I can haz break naow?

[catspaw]

Dear Mother Nature/Higher Power/Whom It May Concern,

It's NOT that I don't appreciate your Bounty. I seriously do. I love having a ready supply of fresh, organic veg. But...



do they really all have to come at once regardless of sowing times? I'm drowning under a mountain of mixed metaphors produce here...

I love cauliflower, I really do. Here's a cauliflower:



It's the size of a soccer ball.

I have six of them sitting in my kitchen, waiting to get bagged up and frozen.

I'm also dealing with the Euro mountain of peas, broad beans, carrots, lettuce (what the hell is here to do with lettuce?), strawberries and courgettes (zucchini).

And I'm balefully eying up the raspberries, broccoli, syboes (spring onions, scallions), early onions (red and white) that won't keep that well, cabbage and salad potatoes.

And please don't get me started on the plums...

::sigh:: Summer has its drawbacks.

And the weather's shite too :-(

Comments

[babs-sg1.livejournal.com]

Summer Squash Ice Box Pickles:

7 cups thinly sliced zucchini, summer squash or combo
1 cup thinly sliced onion
1 cup grated carrot
1 green pepper finely chopped
1 cup cider vinegar (apple cider vinegar)
2 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon pickling salt
1 Tablespoon dill seed

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well. Refrigerate overnight.

Pack the vegetables tightly into quart jars (or whatever size you have). Cover with the brine. Refrigerate. They will keep up to 3 months.


Freezer Pickles

8 cups sliced cucumbers or combo with zucchini
2 medium onions sliced thinly
2 Tablespoons pickling salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon celery seeds

Put cucumbers and onions in a large bowl and sprinkle with salt. Allow to stand at least 3 hours. Rinse the vegetables thoroughly with cold tap water, and drain. Meanwhile mix the other ingredients.

Pour brine over vegetables. Mix and cover. Refrigerate overnight.

Pack the pickles in straight-sided containers. Cover with brine. Seal and freeze. Defrost in the refrigerate for 8 hours before serving.

[catspaw-sgjd.livejournal.com]

Brilliant, thank you :-))) :scuttles off to 'save'::

I'll definitely try these tomorrow ::eyes the three zucchini sitting in the kitchen right now:: - I'll let you know how I get on!

One thing though - I'm not used to working in cups. Do the cups have to be packed tightly, or just roughly as the bits of whatever get scooped up into them?

[babs-sg1.livejournal.com]

I don't actually measure the cups out myself. I just fill the large bowl with them. If you do measure, I'd just scoop it up.

[catspaw-sgjd.livejournal.com]

Scoop up, check. I can do that. :-)

I think this is going to be tomorrow's project.