Garden Tour/Canning Crushed Tomatoes

August 4, 2016 Elizabeth Boegel

Last night I had the pleasure of hosting a large group of women for a tour around our farm. These ladies do good work - helping other women start businesses, helping young girls go to college if they wish, and providing funds for women looking for a new start in life. It was an honor to have them here. Very few were gardeners, but they were willing to look around and hear a bit about our philosophy, as part of one of their monthly meetings. They had great questions and were game to troop around in the mulch. I even found that one of them is a UC Master Gardener (hi Theresa!) and one is hoping to be, just like me (hi Robin!). I love walking around the garden and talking about what we've done, and I love turning folks on to different ways of having a suburban yard. This crowd was especially gracious, given that so many of them were not really 'into' gardening. Thanks to them and to my neighbor Karen for a great evening!

This morning, given some cooler weather, I decided it was time to start on my annual stockpile of canned crushed tomatoes. One of our tomato plants in particular had a LOT of ripe fruits on it - a variety called "Mortgage Lifter." For those of you who haven't heard the story of this pink, 1-2 lb heirloom tomato, it is said that M.C. Byles of West Virginia crossed varieties for six years until he introduced this one in the 1940's. After he sold the plants for $1 each, he was able to pay off the $6k mortgage on his house, and he named the variety, Mortgage Lifter! It's a beautiful fruit indeed.

They are large, juicy, and very tasty, and I like them a lot despite the fact they won't be paying off any mortgages around here, more's the pity. Today I used quite a few of these particular fruits, along with a few Black Krim, a few Nebraska Wedding, and several paste tomatoes of differing varieties.

Here's my process: I cut out the stem, mark an 'X' in the fruit close to the bottom, dip them for a minute in boiling water, then plunge them into ice water. I slip off the skins and rip the fruits up with my hands, discarding many of the seeds as I do so (skins and seeds and extra juice goes to the chickens, though I like a few seeds in my jars too). Then I put all the ripped-up fruit in to a big pot, and bring it to a boil, stirring and crushing as they heat up. I boil them for five minutes, then put them into warm sterilized canning jars leaving a 1/2" headspace. Release the air bubbles, add 1/2 teaspoon of citric acid per quart, clean the rims, and water bath can for 45 minutes. Mine always end up with lots of juice, but that's ok. We tend to use these canned tomatoes for chili or ragu, both of which are only improved with extra juice.

Did you know that the nutrition of tomatoes increases when they are cooked or canned? True!

We tend to use 1-2 cans of crushed tomatoes every month, so ideally I'd like to preserve at least 12 quarts, double that would be better. If you don't grow tomatoes of your own, now is the time to hit your local farmer's market and stock up on your own crushed tomatoes for winter!

Oh yes, I also want to recommend a film, which I haven't seen yet, I just know it's going to be good (I heard about it on 'Forum'). I somehow missed the showing on our local PBS station, but I'm trying to find another place to see it locally, or maybe I can host a screening. The film is called 'Changing Season: On the Masumoto Family Farm,' and it's about a peach farm in the central valley of CA. It's a somewhat famous farm here for their lovely, organic, drought-resistant peaches. I've been longing to try a program they have in which you 'adopt' a tree, then go to the farm and harvest the fruit when it comes ripe. Doesn't that sound fun? Unfortunately the farm is hours away from here, so I have to figure out logistics. Field trip?

Media Suggestions

August 2, 2016 Elizabeth Boegel

Lately, I've been hearing a lot about Regeneration. That it's not enough to be organic; rather, we should be focusing on regenerating the land. For those of us with small home gardens, this isn't hard - we're regenerating by adding compost and organic matter, not tilling the soil, planting native flowers and perennial vegetables, adding mulch and being aware of how to plant in different microclimates in our yards for the most benefit. But in terms of large-scale agriculture, it's much more difficult - we know something has to change if the system is going to be sustainable, but feeding the entire country this way is hard.

A new short film shows some ways to feed folks in a regenerative way, and it's a fast and entertaining piece. It's called 'Unbroken Ground,' and you can find it here. There's a short description of the film and the full version is at the end of the page. It's a great film, and very encouraging for the future.

A Sonoran Skipper (Polites sonora) on a Scarlet Scabiosa (Scabiosa atropurpurea 'Scarlet')

I've been driving the kids back and forth to various sleep-away camps, and on those longish trips, I catch up on my podcasts. Yesterday while driving home from Oroville I heard the most recent Radiolab podcast, which is about the connection between tree species in forests. It's another topic I've been hearing a lot about and researching, the way roots interact with mycelium in a symbiotic relationship, but what makes this particular listen so fun is that the hosts are just blown away by what trees can do. And it makes the listener rethink his or her own ideas about trees, too. You can find that podcast here.

A lone Jimmy Nardello pepper among a group of Sheepnose Pimento

Finally, two books for your summer reading pleasure. I read both of these a while back but realized recently that I need to recommend them, because they are both so great. A caveat: Neither of these is for the typical weekend gardener. If you're a serious plant geek, like me, then you'll enjoy them a lot.

The first is 'Planting in a Post-Wild World' by Thomas Rainer and Claudia West. What I like about this book is that it shows how to plant in communities - but where local native gardening tours are obsessively focused on only native plants, this book brings in plants from all over the world and groups them with our natives to make communities that work together. I must have highlighted the entire preface of this book, I was just that inspired. It's a very practical guide and is written mostly for landscape designers who care about regeneration, but I've found it very useful in my home garden as well.

I can't tell you how many times I heard, on local garden and farm tours, "I plant things, and if it doesn't live, well then it wasn't meant to be there, oh well." What a waste of time and money. Wouldn't it be much more prudent to figure out what will grow best where, and then plant accordingly?

a basket of cherry tomatoes; Mexico Midget, Black Cherry, and Yellow Pear

Another really wonderful book I've read lately is 'Beyond the War on Invasive Species,' by Tao Orion. Ms Orion works to rehabilitate natural habitats. She found that a regular practice in this field is using chemicals to combat the invasive weeds. She wondered if there was another way to deal with the problem; then found that invasive species really aren't the problem we think they are. In fact, they tend to fix an awful lot about the soil and habitats they grow in. Yes, this includes kudzu and loosestrife, both of which can be a real problem on the East Coast. If you're interested in why weeds grow, this is the book for you. And it may make you feel differently about the weeds in your own garden.

I would love to hear your recommendations, too - books or film or anything, really! Just let me know in the comments.

Varieties of Paste Tomatoes

July 30, 2016 Elizabeth Boegel

I'm growing six kinds of paste (or plum, or roma) tomatoes in my garden this year. I am searching for the perfect tomato for making sauce, and here are my requirements: I want them to be large and prolifically producing, with a greater ratio of meat to juice, plus a resistance to Blossom End Rot (which tends to be a big problem for me in paste tomatoes), and, of course, they must also have a delicious flavor. I don't want much, do I?

Last year I grew two varieties, Amish and Baylor, and of the two, I preferred Amish. So this year I included one Amish paste variety. It's a great tomato, round rather than long, with a nice meaty interior.

It's not the largest tomato, and I've had a few problems with both Blossom End Rot (BER) and Sunscald with this variety. It's a reliable producer. I grew this one from seed. It's an heirloom that comes from an Amish community in Wisconsin. According to Seed Savers, which is where I bought all my tomato seed this year, this variety is generally a favorite of canners.

The next five varieties are new to me this year. The most disappointing of the lot is Pompeii, which I did not start from seed. I bought it as a seedling, and it was grown from seed obtained from my favorite seed house, Renee's Garden. It's a hybrid. It was an early contender, having been the first ripe paste tomato in my garden, and in fact the first ripe tomato altogether (usually the cherries are first to ripen here). But almost immediately, it developed a case of BER that I haven't been able to shake. I have had very few of these tomatoes make it all the way to ripe. Plus, they're small, though they are prolific. The bottom line is that I have a huge crop of tiny thin tomatoes with BER. Not acceptable. I will not be growing this variety again. (Interesting note, this variety has a sort of dimpled bottom - wonder if that contributes to BER in some mysterious way?)

The next variety is the only Determinate tomato I grew this year. I did not grow it from seed, I bought it as a seedling, but I do not know the origin of the seed. It's La Roma III, a hybrid. Apparently lots of folks grow La Roma exclusively, as they are considered one of the most superior varieties. It's not my favorite. The fruits are small, though the plant is prolific. I keep expecting a harvest 'all at once,' because Determinate tomatoes are supposed to work that way - it fruits at once and ripens at once, which would be handy for making a lot of sauce in one big batch. But I've had a few at a time, like Indeterminate varieties. Also, I shouldn't have grown one Det. among all the Ints., because it's a completely different size, much shorter than the others, and so it's hard to include in my Florida weave system of staking. The good news is, I've had no BER in this variety.

The next variety is an heirloom called Federle, which I grew from seed. The seed is originally from West Virginia. It's got a long, thin shape, but the shoulders are meaty, and it's quite a bit bigger than the previous three I've mentioned. It roasts beautifully for sauce, is incredibly prolific, and has had minor problems with BER. I bought it because it is supposed to be particularly good for salsa, and it has few seeds.

Another long, thin variety that I'm liking is Opalka. This is one I grew from seed. It's a Polish heirloom that has few seeds, therefore it's meaty. It's big - most of the fruits are six inches long, I've had no problems with BER, and it's been a prolific producer. I'm sorry I don't have a picture of a ripe one for you just now, but here's one on the vine.

look at that gorgeous, fat Opalka tomato - and there's more where that came from.

I think my favorite variety of all is Rocky, which is one I did not grow from seed - I bought it as a seedling, and I do not know the origin of the seed. It's an heirloom from the United States. This is an exceptionally big tomato, extremely meaty, delicious to eat fresh and also great for sauce. It's had zero BER issues and has been very prolific. My only beef with this variety is that it has a fragile stem and needs a lot of support, and the leaves are droopier than any of my other paste tomatoes, which means it is always looking half-dead. But man. The tomatoes. They're long AND fat. I love them.

I believe I will begin to save some seed from Rocky, Opalka, Amish, and Federle, for next year. Hopefully I'll also have room for several new varieties.

Apple Cider Vinegar/Apple Pie Filling

July 26, 2016 Elizabeth Boegel

Our apple harvest has been excellent. As you know, we've been eating out them of hand, and drying slices for snacks. But I knew I also wanted to do two other things with them - pie preserves, and cider vinegar. An awful lot of folks make applesauce from their apples, but we only eat applesauce about once a year. I do use an awful lot of cider vinegar, though, so I knew that would be a worthwhile project. And last year I made pie preserves which we didn't use for pie, but rather for apple crisp, which was a great treat for breakfast on cold winter weekend mornings. I would take a jar of this apple pie mixture, put it in the bottom of a buttered square pyrex dish, then make a crumble out of thick-cut oats, a bit of flour, a little brown sugar, and some cinnamon. We'd pop that in the oven, say 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly, and with a little cold cream, that was breakfast. We loved it. So I wanted to do that again for sure.

First, I had to peel and core many, many pounds of apples. This is a chore, no doubt, but the whole time I just kept thinking about how great it was to be using up the apple harvest, how nothing would go to waste, etc etc. It's funny what you tell yourself to get through the drudgery part of things, but it was all true and it worked well to keep my mind off the peeling. I peeled off a nail in the process, but oh well. Am I the only one who gets canning injuries? Surely not. The burns alone...

The apples soaking in a water bath with a little Ball 'fruit fresh' mixed in to keep them from browning

Most of the peels and cores went to the chickens, but a lot went in to making vinegar

Once that was finished, I could use the peels and cores and seeds to make apple cider vinegar. Tom and I have made both red and white vinegar over the last six months. Tom got me a beautiful vinegar crock and also a 'mother' - the bacteria necessary to turn wine into vinegar - at Christmas. I really like both the vinegars we've produced already; they are very 'winey' and have a nice sharp flavor. The mother seemed diminished after using it for those two batches, so we sacrificed it to the compost and washed the crock, awaiting this apple harvest.

You don't need a mother to make cider vinegar, though I did add a tablespoon or so of the vinegar we have on hand, Bragg's, which has a mother in it - that should help the process along. But the peels and cores, plus a little sugar and water solution, should start things fermenting and create a new mother, sort of like a scoby in Kombucha (which frankly, I just can't like, no matter how hard I try). Tom recently purchased some glass weights to use on top of our ferments, to keep the food under the liquid, in order to keep air out (and make a sort of seal). These have come in handy for this project. After filling the jars with peelings and the sugar solution, I popped one of these weights on top, then covered it with a bit of cheesecloth and put them in a dark corner to ferment for a couple of weeks. After that time, I'll strain out the peelings, and put the remaining liquid in our vinegar crock for several months to cure.

My next project was the apple pie filling preserves, which are a bit of a pain to make, but oh so worth it. I use the recipe found here, at the Growing a Greener World website. The recipe is by Theresa Loe, their preservation expert. It's a mixture of cider, apples, and spices, just what you'd expect.

One thing I want to caution you about. The recipe calls for Clear Jel. I took a shortcut and bought some from Amazon, this product by King Arthur Flour. It did not work well in this recipe. I had a gloops and glops of un-mixed clear jel that I ended up scooping out and throwing away. Buy it from the source Theresa gives you in her recipe.

DON'T use this in this particular recipe

Despite this snafu, I had enough thickening power to create a nice bubbly pie filling that filled five quart jars for canning, and a pint jar for someone to put on vanilla ice cream tonight. (Hm, wonder who that will be.)

It's lovely to think we'll be able to have a special breakfast once a month for a few months when it's rainy and cold. It's also a comfortable feeling knowing I used all the apples on our tree and didn't waste a one. From the early thinnings, I made all the pectin we needed for jam. The pruned branches have made a brush-pile-home for lizards and birds. The fruit has been used four different ways, and will be enjoyed all year. One small apple tree can provide a lot of food for a family of four.

Solar Dehydrating

July 25, 2016 Elizabeth Boegel

On these 100+ degree days, it really makes sense to use the sun to do some of our food-drying for us. Dehydrating requires three things: Heat, circulating dry air, and time, all of which we have in abundance here, and it's all free, to boot. No need to buy a $100 piece of equipment that we don't have the budget or storage for; and anyway, we can start small and upgrade later if we need to.

We experimented a bit with drying apple slices when we thinned out our apple tree back in early Spring. I used a baking sheet and an old floating row cover to dehydrate them, and they took very little time and were delicious, chewy and tart. So we knew it was possible, we just wanted a more dependable set-up.

Tom knocked together a folding frame from supplies we had lying around - wood slats, old screening, some hook-and-eye hardware - to make a serviceable drying rack for tomatoes, hops, apples, peppers, herbs - anything, really. We've placed it on our old patio table which is made of wrought iron and has holes as part of its design - that way the air can come up under and also flow over. The sun is hot, by God, so things don't take very long to dry, depending on how wet they are. So far, tomatoes take the longest. Our first tiny batch of tomatoes are on day 3 of drying.

fresh apples and peppers, joining some tomatoes already in progress

We're still in the experimental phase, so we're not doing huge quantities of stuff. An apple here, three little Calabrese peppers there - to see how long things take. Our goal is to dry a LOT of peppers to make homemade chili powder and chili flakes, maybe a few tomatoes to put in the freezer (I'd rather can sauce and crushed tomatoes, frankly), and a good amount of apples for the freezer, for snacking. According to the Ball Blue Book, after these things are dehydrated, they can keep in the freezer for a year. And I'd love to dry some of our herbs to replace the ones I've bought, as we run out. Thyme, rosemary, oregano - these are all dried herbs I use in abundance and would love to be able to make my own. (I do use them fresh, too.)

These seem to take a half a day to dry completely

apple chips are fast, depending how thin you slice them

The tray just stays out all day and all night; so far, we haven't had any raccoons or skunks try to rip it apart. The screen on both sides keeps flies and wasps out, and it is easily cleaned with the hose if it gets gunky. We are very happy with this design.