THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

betterlife wrote: »

Hi guys, I have a quick question if anyone can help me please. I!!!8217;m thinking about getting a dehydrater for fruit etc, and was wondering if you can make jam with dehydrated fruit? Thank you

If you google jam from dehydrated fruit quite a selection of sites will come up and there are some on Youtube. So the answer is yes!

Karmacat wrote: »

Ooh. Fig jam. I know of a huge old fig tree that fruits massively, but its right in a busy city centre, and the fruits must be pretty poisonous from the petrol fumes. Plus, erm, its in a churchyard .... but still, fig jam. Yum.

A few years ago I read of a PhD thesis based on checking the results of wild fruit by the roadside and the amount of chemicals and nasties retained when they were processed as opposed to the same crops grown in a field. There was no discernible difference, much to general disbelief. I will try and find it again and link it in, but I think as long as you wash the fruit or whatever well, maybe the cooking or freezing process negates the pollution.

Don't know which thread on OS it was, but someone recommended the Simpler Life thread, which I'm working my way through - very fabulous, and I've got loads of notes to follow up!!

We have lots of things [STRIKE]dumped[/STRIKE] stored at DH's work from when we had building work done, that the kids and I will finish sorting this week. Going to be really ruthless - after all, if we've not missed it in nearly 2 years, do we need it?! :rotfl: Littlies will be allowed to rescue a few toys each, on the understanding that an equal number of things currently at home will have to go - they're good at understanding about donating to those with less stuff than us. Unfortunately, some of the stuff down there is from my mum's home, when we emptied it last summer. My sister in America was supposed to look through as she'd asked for certain things, but when she visited the other month she didn't do it - do I try and shoehorn the stuff into my attic, ask brother to add to stuff he's kept, and which is in storage, or just harden my heart and get rid?

Have asked on freecycle and a local page re clean wood for my stove, and, surprisingly, have had offers - including an entire tree stump that's probably bigger and heavier than me! :rotfl: Will follow up the most promising and chop up where necessary, at the very least there will be kindling = lovely peeps!

We'll going brambling this aft and tomorrow, to avoid the rain due later in the week, and make some jam, freeze a load, and make a couple of crumbles with my apples.

I worked for a friend last weekend, at a local food festival, and she brought round my wages last night - first money I've earned in more than 5 years, and it felt so nice - even better, it was in coin of the realm, so ready to add to my house stash! She also had us take home as much as we liked of her produce at the end (cooked food), otherwise it had to be chucked, although she would have had very little waste. So we've been having her lovely Malaysian curries for the last couple of days - gorgeous!

A xo

dND wrote: »

from my experience of having a dehydrator, things take longer than the book says, so it is always a longer process than you expect. Add to that, you generally end up drying in summer. In my case, this year that has meant running it through some of the hot weather and my kitchen went up from a just about bearable 27C to a rather uncomfortable 29+C :eek: just from the heat from the dehydrator.

I soon realised that the heat and condensation caused by drying produce is pretty unbearable, so when I finally bought my lovely shed I had electricity and stable doors put in so that I can dry even if I am out. This year I am trying to spiralise courgetti and then freeze for winter use in 'spag bog'. One real bonus is that I can do masses at once and only have to clean the spiraliser once too. I have solar panels which means as long as the sun is shining (or the day has some brightness in it) my electricity is free so by growing my own and then drying it's a win/win situation. Today I am going to pick up some apples sourced from Freecycle and I will be drying them before the rain at the weekend. I still haven't found decent sized blackberries but am still on the look-out....

As there seem to be so many preservers about at the moment on here, could anyone advise me on the best way to do runner beans please? I will have masses (and will be able to pick them once I get help to get the cane structure upright again after the winds!) and I can freeze them or dry them, either in 1" diagonals or cut vertically with the new toy (car boot). Who has had success, and how?