Making Basil Jelly

Today I helped make Basil Jelly at Open Sky Farm, a therapeutic farm for disabled persons.  The kitchen was pungent with the smell of Basil and the recipe we used was basically like the one below, except for the exclusion of food coloring and the addition of one extra package of pectin.


Basil Jelly
Prep: 25 min. Process: 15 min.
Yield: 48 Servings 
40

Ingredients

• 4 cups water
• 2 cups firmly packed fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
• 1 package (1-3/4 ounces) powdered fruit pectin
• 3 drops green food coloring, optional
• 5 cups sugar

Directions

• In a large saucepan, bring water and basil to a boil. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Strain and discard basil. Return 3-2/3 cups liquid to the pan. Stir in pectin and food coloring if desired. Return to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir in the sugar. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from the
• heat; skim off foam.
• Carefully ladle hot mixture into hot half-pint jars, leaving 1/4-in. headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe rims and adjust lids. Process for 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner. Yield: 6 half-pints.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Basil-Jelly

Zucchini Chocolate cake,Casserole, and Soup


 I picked my fist zucchini the other day and a friend is going to pay me to make a chocolate zucchini cake for a group of disabled people.  Here is a recipe that looks like the usual one that I bake, although I prefer the cake made in a Bundt pan or Angel Food cake pan.

Zucchini Chocolate Cake

• Prep: 30 min. Bake: 30 min. + cooling
• Yield: 18 Servings

303060

Ingredients

• 1-3/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup baking cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups shredded zucchini
• 1 cup (6 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Directions

• In a large bowl, beat sugar and oil on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the eggs, applesauce and vanilla; beat 1 minute longer. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating just until blended. Stir in zucchini.
• Transfer to a 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with chocolate chips and pecans. Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Yield: 18 servings.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Zucchini-Chocolate-Cake-3

 Zucchini Soup


  I make zucchini soup by cutting the zucchini in cubes, dicing the onion, and I saute these in butter until they are soft.  Then I pure this and return it to the fry pan. Next I add a whole container of chicken broth, some lemon juice, and a bit of curry.  Everything is stirred and reheated and then it is ready to eat.

Zucchini Casserole

I make a casserole by sauteing the zucchini and onion until they are cooked.  Next I make a white sauce by mixing a couple of tablespoons of corn starch in a cup of milk.  You have to do this in a bottle with a lid on it.
I place the zucchini, onion, and white sauce in a casserole dish.  To make croutons, I take cubes of bread and toss them in melted butter.  The croutons are then placed on top of the zucchini mixture and I grate cheddar cheese over top of it.  All of the ingredients are placed in the oven at 350 degrees and the casserole is cooked until the cheddar cheese is melted and the white sauce is hot.

Tomatoes Everywhere!

I had a lot of tomatoes this year and every-time we would go out our 85 year old neighbor slipped two brown  bags of tomatoes in our porch.  We have made green tomato salsa, red tomato salsa, green tomato mincemeat, and stuffed tomatoes.  What a bounty! There always is a plentiful amount of zucchinis this time of  year, although I have had only one from my straw bale garden. One of the nice recipes we used was green tomato salsa and here are the instructions:

Ingredients:

• 1 onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 8 green tomatoesshopping list
• 2 jalapenos
• juice of 1 lime
• salt

How to make it

---

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put a little olive oil in two baking dishes. Leave the skin of the onion on. Slice it in half and put the onion in the baking dish, cut side down. LEave the peels on the garlic. Slice the tops quarter-inch off the cloves of garlic off. Put the garlic in sliver foil, pour a little oil over the cloves, and close the silver foil. Put it in the baking dish. Place the jalapenos and green tomatoes in the second baking dish. Bake for an hour, until the cut edges of the onion are brown and carmelized, and the garlic is squishy and golden. Bake the jalapenos and tomatoes for twenty minutes, until slightly softened.
• When cool enough to handle, remove the skins from the onions and garlic. Mince the onion into a mushy paste. Chop the tomatoes to small, quarter-inch pieces. (Note: if you are using a blender or a food processor instead of a mortar and pestle, you   can chop the onion and tomatoes very coarsely.) Remove the stems from the jalapenos, slice them lengthwise, and remove the gills and most of the seeds. (Leaving more seeds will make the salsa hotter).
• If available, place all in the ingredients in a matate, a stone mortar and pestle. Or use a blender or food processor. Grind or chop until pureed, though still chunky. Add lime juice and salt to taste.  http://www.grouprecipes.com/16086/green-tomato-salsa.html
• The photos below were taken at the Oxford County Fair.  I thought that they were so pretty I would include them in my blog.

                                                      Stuffed Zucchini
When I need to use up zucchini I make a poultry dressing and hollow out the squash like a boat.  The dressing is whole wheat bread done in a blender so that it is crumbs, add melted butter, and Summer Savory. I press the dressing into the zucchini boat and put a little water in the pan.  Next, I put aluminum foil over everything and bake at 350 degrees until the zucchini is tender.  I developed this recipe myself for zucchini and I also stuff tomatoes with this poultry dressing.  They are tasty done this way.

"Playful Pumpkins"

It will be time to harvest pumpkins in a month or two, so I have included some recipes that use pumpkin..  I roast my pumpkins in the oven and then scoop the inside out to either freeze or make pumpkin soup, pie, or cheesecake.  Here is a pie recipe taken from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/perfect-pumpkin-pie/ .  I use the same amount of roasted pumpkin as the canned pumpkin in the recipe.

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
• 1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, spices and salt in medium bowl until smooth. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes.
2. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from crust comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.

Below is a Pumpkin Soup recipe from:http://www.mom-mom.com/pumpkin_apple_soup.htm

Apple Pumpkin Soup

1 large onion, chopped
1/2 pound of bacon, chopped
one 15-ounce can of pumpkin
1 cup water
2 cups apple cider
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 cubes chicken bouillon
1 apple, chopped and unpeeled
dash of liquid smoke
salt, to taste
2 teaspoons white pepper
1/3 cup crystallized ginger, chopped

Sauté onion and bacon lightly in large pot. Add pumpkin, water, apple cider, brown sugar, chicken bouillon, apple, liquid smoke salt, white pepper, and crystallized ginger to the pot. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Stir frequently. Blend to thicken in blender-size batches. Serve with sour cream: one teaspoon on each serve.

Simple Pumpkin Soup

Puree roasted pumpkin, cooked apple, and sauteed onions together

Put 1 large container of chicken broth in the puree

Mix together, heat, and serve.

Pumpkin Marble Cheesecake

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/marbled-pumpkin-cheesecake/ Ingredients 1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans 1/3 cup butter, melted   2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup white sugar, divided 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 eggs 1 cup canned pumpkin 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, mix together the crushed gingersnap cookies, pecans, and butter. Press into the bottom, and about 1 inch up the sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake crust 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla just until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture. Blend 1/4 cup sugar, pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the remaining mixture. Spread the pumpkin flavored batter into the crust, and drop the plain batter by spoonfuls onto the top. Swirl with a knife to create a marbled effect. Bake 55 minutes in the preheated oven, or until filling is set. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Allow to cool before removing pan rim. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

Southern Fried Green Tomatoes

Hi all, I just harvested a lot of green tomatoes, because the tomato plants developed a blight.  Then I found a  recipe for fried green tomatoes Southern-style.  It can be found at: http://busterbucks.hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Make-Fried-Green-Tomatoes . I can't wait to try them.  Previously, I was just dipping the green tomato slices in cornmeal and frying them, but this recipe has buttermilk, flour, and cornmeal.  There also is a technique that uses salt and sugar to make the juices come out of the green tomato slices. I may make green tomato mincemeat for pies at Christmas time ((http://allrecipes.com/recipe/green-tomato-mincemeat/) and some of the green tomatoes will turn into red ones.  In that case I may make salsa or spaghetti sauce.  Red tomatoes can be frozen by placing them into boiling water, then plunging them into cold water.  This makes their skins come off very easily.

Photos of my Garden

I just took some picture of my garden after the rain.  The first photo is Balsam; the second is my bird feeder;
the third photo is Comfrey; the fourth is zucchinis; the fifth is Hyssop; the sixth is tomatoes; the seventh is Ginger mint; and the eighth is Stevia (in the center).  The Balsam and Comfrey grow like wildfire and can soon become pests.  I make a salve out of Comfrey which is really miraculous in its healing properties.   This year I'm growing Stevia as an alternative sugar substitute.  The ginger mint is interesting because of its special gingery taste as a tea.  Hyssop is a herb that was used in the Biblical times as a ritual purifier, and today it is used to help female troubles in menopause. I hope you enjoy the photos of my garden.

Today it is raining and I am grateful. The garden really needed it.  I have decided to show you some pictures of flowers and herbs that are in my garden.   The plants are Bee Balm, Motherwort, Black Eyed Susans, and Sun Drops going from the top to bottom. I hope that you enjoy the photos.

Recently, I found a famous 18th century poem on "The Garden" that is quite beautiful.  It emphasizes the beauty and tranquility of being with plants, trees, and herbs.

The Garden

by Andrew Marvell

How vainly men themselves amaze

To win the palm, the oak, or bays,

And their uncessant labours see

Crown’d from some single herb or tree,

Whose short and narrow verged shade

Does prudently their toils upbraid;

While all flow’rs and all trees do close

To weave the garlands of repose.

Fair Quiet, have I found thee here,

And Innocence, thy sister dear!

Mistaken long, I sought you then

In busy companies of men;

Your sacred plants, if here below,

Only among the plants will grow.

Society is all but rude,

To this delicious solitude.

No white nor red was ever seen

So am’rous as this lovely green.

Fond lovers, cruel as their flame,

Cut in these trees their mistress’ name;

Little, alas, they know or heed

How far these beauties hers exceed!

Fair trees! wheres’e’er your barks I wound,

No name shall but your own be found.

When we have run our passion’s heat,

Love hither makes his best retreat.

The gods, that mortal beauty chase,

Still in a tree did end their race:

Apollo hunted Daphne so,

Only that she might laurel grow;

And Pan did after Syrinx speed,

Not as a nymph, but for a reed.

What wond’rous life in this I lead!

Ripe apples drop about my head;

The luscious clusters of the vine

Upon my mouth do crush their wine;

The nectarine and curious peach

Into my hands themselves do reach;

Stumbling on melons as I pass,

Ensnar’d with flow’rs, I fall on grass.

Meanwhile the mind, from pleasure less,

Withdraws into its happiness;

The mind, that ocean where each kind

Does straight its own resemblance find,

Yet it creates, transcending these,

Far other worlds, and other seas;

Annihilating all that’s made

To a green thought in a green shade.

Here at the fountain’s sliding foot,

Or at some fruit tree’s mossy root,

Casting the body’s vest aside,

My soul into the boughs does glide;

There like a bird it sits and sings,

Then whets, and combs its silver wings;

And, till prepar’d for longer flight,

Waves in its plumes the various light.

Such was that happy garden-state,

While man there walk’d without a mate;

After a place so pure and sweet,

   What other help could yet be meet!

But ’twas beyond a mortal’s share

To wander solitary there:

Two paradises ’twere in one

To live in paradise alone.

How well the skillful gard’ner drew

Of flow’rs and herbs this dial new,

Where from above the milder sun

Does through a fragrant zodiac run;

And as it works, th’ industrious bee

Computes its time as well as we.

How could such sweet and wholesome hours

Be reckon’d but with herbs and flow’rs!

(Written in 1621–1678, England)

When I studied the herbalist course that I took I made up the following handy chart which gives several options for treating the same condition. One can also combine the herbs to make them more powerful.  Just check with your pharmacist to make sure the herbs do not conflict with your medication if you are taking some.

WHAT THE HERBS TREAT
Garlic Flaxseed Ginger Alfalfa	Anti-inflammatory
Cinnamon Ginger	Anorexia
Flax seed Garlic Thyme Leaves and Oil Turmeric Garlic	Detoxification
Garlic Parsley Rosemary Leaf and Oil Thyme Leaves and Oil Turmeric Flaxseed Fennel Seed Garlic Alfalfa Black Pepper	Antioxidant
Flax Fennel Garlic Sage Leaf Thyme Leaves and Oil Turmeric	Digestive Upsets
Flaxseed Alfalfa Sage	Hormone Balancing
Black Pepper Cinnamon	Energy
Sage Leaf Thyme Leaves and Oil Garlic Black Pepper Cinnamon	Antibacterial
Thyme Leaves and Oil Turmeric Parsley	Urinary Problems
Ginger Parsley Rosemary Black Pepper Cinnamon Fennel Thyme Leaves and Oil	Flatulence
Garlic Rosemary	Memory Problems
Alfalfa Parsley Rosemary (external) Black Pepper Garlic Turmeric	Bone and Joint Problems
Sage Leaf Thyme Fennel Garlic Ginger Cinnamon	Catarrh Nausea
INDIVIDUAL UNIQUE PROPERTIES OF HERBS
Flax	IBS Haemorrhoids Diverticulitis Poultice Sore Throat Cellular Regeneration
Fennel	Increase libido Multiple Sclerosis Increase milk Body Odour
Garlic	AIDS Yeast Infections Allergies Worms Earache Athlete’s foot Antifungal Anti-aging Anti-protozal
Alfalfa	Vitamins A, C, E, K, Calcium phosphorus, potassium, iron Recuperative aid
Black Pepper	Allergies Weakness Low energy Hyperthyroidism Graves disease Drug delivery
Cinnamon	Blood sugar control Larvicidal Heartburn fever
Sage Leaf	Excessive perspiration Gastric juice deficiency Night sweats Wounds disinfectant
Thyme	Anti-aging Mouth wash Whooping Cough Urinary disinfectant flu
Turmeric	Arthritis Liver health Bladder health Sprains Dyspepsia
Ginger	Parasites Morning sickness Dizziness
Parsley	Menstral difficulties Myalgia Amenorrhoea Cramps Diuretic
Rosemary	Food preservative Muscle soreness Appetite stimulant Anti-aging tea