The Preserver's Year

sweetserendipity

foxgloves wrote: »

P.S Yes, greeengages are really green to start with, then when they ripen they are yellowy green with a pinkish tinge around the stalk. When they are really ripe they are so sweet, a sort of honey-ish flavour, different to plums. They also make good crumble and chutneys.

The greengages I found yesterday are still really green. How long do they take to ripen?? Is that a daft question??

Confuzzled

hello all

i was wondering if anyone had any recipes i can make from rosehip syrup

my wee one and i had fun gathering the rosehips the other day and made a lovely syrup but there is just going to be far too much of it to consume before it goes off.

this was my first time making anything at all with rosehips and i didn't realise just how much we were going to get from our lot or i would have saved some aside to make jam or such like

does anyone have any ideas how i might make some jam/jelly from rosehip syrup vs the puree?

we do both like it but it can be a bit cloying if you take too much. i watered some of it down and it's not bad but i think i'll mix it with some orange juice to lighten the taste a bit however even doing that i'm not sure we can use it all up!

on the other side of things, i'm thinking next time i go i may collect some hips just for making a tomato type soup as i found ours to have a similar though sweeter taste when unsweetened. i make a very nice tomato and coconut soup that would go down a treat with the rosehips i think..i'll post the recipe if it goes well

RAS

Put the rosehip syrup in bottles and then sterilise them. How ater up to 1cm below the top, bring to the boil and keep simmering for 20 minutes. Should do the job.

You can tighten the lids at that point as well. Keep in a dark cupboard.

have you tried swirling into icecream?

Patchwork_Quilt

Cauliflower pickle

Break cauliflower into florets.
Steep overnight in a brine of 1 lb salt to 1 gallon water
Rinse and drain thoroughly
Pack into jars
Cover with cold vinegar and seal

From Reader's Digest Food from Your Garden

Patchwork_Quilt

Pickled Cucumber

Wash cucumbers and cut into 1/2 inch thick discs
Layer with cooking salt overnight
Drain, rinse thoroughly and drain again
Put into jars
Cover with hot, spiced vinegar

From Reader's Digest Food from Your Garden

Patchwork_Quilt

Also had a go at pickling eggs today, as I have never had a pickled egg (why would anyone want to?) and bottling potatoes with the pressure cooker.

I will let you know what it all tastes like in about six weeks when it's ready!

Confuzzled

RAS wrote: »

Put the rosehip syrup in bottles and then sterilise them. How ater up to 1cm below the top, bring to the boil and keep simmering for 20 minutes. Should do the job.

You can tighten the lids at that point as well. Keep in a dark cupboard.

have you tried swirling into icecream?

i've been trying to save my jars as we'll soon be inundated by elderberries and i also plan to make rosehip/apple jelly however i suppose i could spare a few and maybe raid morrisons 6p curry sauce for extra jars (and yummy curried rice!)

so, pour the syrup into the jars, put the lid on THEN put them in the water and simmer? or do the jars without the syrup then fill? normally when i make jams i wash all the lids and jars in hot water with a bit of bleach, then i rinse well and put in the oven on low for about 30 minutes til they are dry then fill with hot jam, the jars reseal themselves and i've not had problems with this... however i suppose now that the syrup is cold maybe it would be best to put it in the jars?

sorry, not done a lot of bottling in the past

Confuzzled

Patchwork_Quilt wrote: »

Also had a go at pickling eggs today, as I have never had a pickled egg (why would anyone want to?) and bottling potatoes with the pressure cooker.

I will let you know what it all tastes like in about six weeks when it's ready!

actually i quite like pickled eggs but then i love vinegar in general and my mother had to stop me sipping it from the bottle as a child :eek:

however in answer to your question as to why anyone would want to pickle them.... once upon a time when many families kept chickens they would get overwhelmed sometimes with too many fresh eggs so pickling them is a good way to keep them safely edible for tougher times. eggs are good protein so i would think they would have found every method possible to save what they could if they had a glut

missychrissy

Hi Confuzzled

Where in Morrisons will I find the 6p curry sauces?

Patchwork_Quilt

Confuzzled wrote: »

actually i quite like pickled eggs but then i love vinegar in general and my mother had to stop me sipping it from the bottle as a child :eek:

You too? How funny!

Filled the house with vinegar fumes today as I tried to make chutney in the slow cooker without a recipe but it was too watery so I had to boil it down on the hob. I do have 2 jars of chutney now, though, and I've used up some bits and bobs that weren't going to get eaten any other way.