Mulberry Meyer Marmalade

I love making marmalade because it means I'm making my own organic pectin, and not adding anything from a box.  And while our mulberry tree has not been as prolific this year (maybe because I need to feed it, maybe because of our changing climate), I'm still thinking about coming up with new things to do with mulberries (although they are quite lovely just eaten straight off the tree).  I did bake them up into a mulberry crisp a few weeks ago, and simmered them into a quick compote to serve on waffles or pancakes, and then I thought of this!..

3 1/2 lbs Meyer lemons: ours from my mother-in-law's beautiful yard in the Oakland Hills
4 cups filtered or spring water
4 cups evaporated cane sugar
3 cups mulberries, stems removed

Scrub the lemons clean. I do not use soap (yuck); just rubbing and water.

Cut in half and juice the lemons except for one (you need about 2 1/3 cups of juice), saving all the seeds & membranes in a muslin bag or cheesecloth.  Scrape the white pith (and save in the bag) from the lemons.  Julienne the peels (for 3-4 cups).

Cut the last lemon in 8ths, lengthwise.  Remove seeds and membranes and add them to the bag.  Slice the sections into thin triangles.

Put the juice, peels, Meyer triangles, water & muslin bag (closed tight, let the string hang over the edge but don't let it catch on fire) in a large, heavy bottomed pot.  Bring to a boil and boil, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring so the fruit and bag don't stick to the bottom and burn.

Remove from heat.  Transfer bag to a bowl and allow to cool.  Measure the marmalade mixture and for every cup, add 7/8 cup of sugar.  Squeeze the pectin juices from the bag into the marmalade mix (I save it and squeeze it more after it cools, saving the pectin liquid for later jamming).

Heat the marmalade back up to a rapid boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.  Secure a candy thermometer in your mixture, making sure it does not touch the pot.  You want to get the temp up to 220-222 degrees so it will jell.  Then stir in the mulberries.

Fill sterilized jars (that you've been keeping in hot water), scrape down side to remove any air bubbles, clean head space & outer threads with a clean, damp cloth, add lids & rings (that you've been keeping in hot water), not super tight, and boil in a water bath for 10 minutes.

I got about 9 cups.

Rose Grapefruit Lemonade

Wow! Just made this one with inspiring ingredients on hand and it was amazing!!!  Perfectly refreshing with this super hot weather...

spring or filtered water
1 cup evaporated cane sugar
a handful of dried roses
3/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice, lemons from my neighbor
3/4 cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice, grapefruits from Sage Mountain Farm

In a small pot on high heat, bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add the roses and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.  Strain into a half-gallon container.  Add a few cups of cold water, then add the juices (this way the heat doesn't cook the raw juice; I don't like the taste of cooked juice) and fill the container with cold water.  Delicioso!  And it's a beautiful pink color.

Check out more lemonades here.

Snacks, Hydration & Greywater

I'm so very excited to have some of my greywater now going into my soil to water some newly planted grapes (muscat and wild native).  I also plan to plant bananas, a few passion fruit vines and more.

I'm very happy that I was able to do this as a workshop, providing an opportunity for folks to learn and share and build community.  Three of the 17 folks who came were my neighbors living within a few blocks of me!  I'm so grateful for the opportunity to get to know them.  And one of them will trade me his kale & lemons for eggs (love the chance to build the barter/underground economy)!

Folks worked so hard (my soil needs serious rehabing).  Here's what I fed them to keep them fueled:

granola, trail mix & fresh farmers market fruit (strawberries, grapes, tangerines, tangelos, apples from Smit, Schaners, Suzie's Farms

garlicky hummus with fresh veggies (carrots, sugar snap peas, cauliflower, romanesco, broccoli, green onions, radish from Sage Mt and Suzie's Farms)

fresh squeezed lemonade

and iced tea...

Orange Ginger Iced Tea
1 oz black tea (I used Darjeeling)
1/2 oz dried orange peel
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

Bring a gallon of filtered or spring water to a boil.  Add tea, orange peel and ginger and steep for 5 minutes.  Strain the tea and allow to cool.  Serve over ice, sweeten as desired or mix with lemonade.

Citrus Jamaica Chia Fresca & Holistic Orchards

I've been taking a wonderful class through Wild Willow Farm & Education Center on holistic fruit tree care with an inspiring and extremely knowledgeable teacher.  I'm about to plant citrus, avocado and even bananas(!) and I already have a few citrus, loquats, pomegranate, peaches, and a mulberry so I can immediately (and gratefully) put what I'm learning to good use.

Last week, we spent some time at one of our classmate's beautiful and extensive mostly-citrus grove and, lucky us, she was kind and generous with her lemons.  I love to make all sorts of lemonades, so here's what I brought to class to share this week:

3/4 oz dried hibiscus (the edible kind)
1/4 oz dried orange peel
1 1/2 cups evaporated cane sugar (more or less to taste)
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice (more or less to taste)
1/2 cup chia seeds (more or less to taste)

Bring 4 cups of filtered or spring water to a boil and add the hibiscus and orange peel.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.  Strain the liquid into a gallon container and allow to cool.  Add the lemon juice and chia seeds and fill the rest of the container with water.

Cinnamon Apple Cake with Goat Cheese Frosting

This was a delicious breakfast and could totally be baked into muffins.  And instead of frosting, you can tart it up in several ways (bake it topped with a crumble, drizzle with caramel...) depending on how sweet you'd like it to be.

4 oz cup Spring Hill butter
1 1/4 cup rapadura sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup milk
2 cups apple - peeled, cored, chopped about 1/4"
1/2 cup walnut or pecans, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 inch round pan. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Stir in the apples and nuts.
Spread batter evenly in the pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Cinnamon Goat Cheese Frosting
2 oz butter (from Spring Hill: the secret to a perfect frosting), room temp
4 oz chevre cheese, room temp
1/4 vanilla bean (or 3/4 tsp vanilla extract), fair trade of course
3 oz powdered sugar
a pinch of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
and if you want to get real crazy, a couple scrapes of orange zest

Scrape vanilla seeds from the bean (save the pod for vanilla sugar or make your own extract). Whip all ingredients together until smooth.

or...

Crumble Topping
6 tablespoons butter or nut oil (or a mix of the 2)
¾ cup rapadura sugar
2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
½ cup rolled oats and/or chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans...)
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Mix together and crumble over the cake batter before baking. 

More Smoothies

This first recipe is my very favorite smoothie right now.  And my favorite way to eat it is in a bowl with a spoon, topped with granola and drizzled with honey.

1 packet frozen unsweetened acai
4-5 strawberries from Suzie's or JR Organics Farm
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
a slice (about the size of a quarter but a little thicker) fresh ginger, peeled
1 1/2 teaspoons cacao nibs
2 pinches local bee pollen
2 inches of frozen banana
1-2 dates, pit removed
1 cup (or more if needed) fresh pressed apple juice from Smit Farms

Blend all ingredients until smooth (about 2 minutes) in a very good blender.  Add more liquid if needed for good flow (you want to see the whole mixture moving).  Makes about 3 cups.

I recently got a hold of dragonfruit smoothie packets to test for the co-op as a possible new product.  They made the most beautiful smoothies, gorgeous magenta color, and my spouse actually preferred them to acai:

1 packet frozen dragon fruit
1/3 cup mango
a slice (about the size of a nickel) fresh ginger, peeled
1 kiwi, peeled, from Smit Farm
2 inches of frozen banana
1 cup orange juice from Schaner Farm (or apple)
1 date, pit removed
a tablespoon of local honey (more or less to taste)

(Follow the same instructions as above)

The Gift of Nature's Bounty & Honey Kumquat Cranberry Compote

For many of us, winter brings holiday opportunities to celebrate with, spend time with, and show gratitude for family and friends. I get immense joy from sharing with those I love food made with care and love from beautiful, wholesome ingredients. So with that in mind, I have spent the last year putting up foods to give as gifts or to share at gatherings.

Homemade pickled vegetables make beautiful hors d’oeuvres. Hot sauce & salsas get rave reviews as gifts and are quickly consumed at parties. Jams, preserves, compotes are very versatile: add to a cheese plate, serve with fresh baked rolls, bake on brie wrapped in puff pastry, spread on sandwiches, or in desserts. Make an unconventional version of a traditional holiday dessert, trifle, by layering cranberry compote with small chucks of ginger spice cake, topped with a few spoonfuls of whipped heavy cream sweetened with maple syrup, and topped with a few pieces of toasted pecans. The cake and compote can be made a few days ahead of time, and assembled (up to 24 hours ahead of time) in small clear glass cups or mason jars for beautiful individual servings.

By preserving the harvest, we can share and enjoy the best each season has to offer year round. Our (or our neighbors’) trees & gardens can produce boatloads of produce, sometimes falling to the ground faster than we can pick it. Or ask your farmers or produce department if they have any overripe and pick up multiple pounds of the stuff at a lower price. Canning is not hard and what an awesome way to use fallen fruit and bruised veggies!

For the uninitiated, the canning process may seem intimidating to take on by one’s self. But it's ever-so-fun in a group, or find a friend with some experience, or follow instructions on the pectin package (or online or a book from the library). You will need some equipment: large pot, canning rack that will fit into said pot, canning jars (can be reused), new lids (these can't be heated twice), bands (can be reused), maybe a few other useful tools (like a ladel, funnel, spatula, maybe a magnet lid wand). Yes, it's a bit labor intensive but the results are pretty amazing and cheap, and all your loved ones will feel so fortunate if they get some.

In season now, persimmons and pomegranates are beautiful winter fruits that can be a little tricky:

You generally find two varieties of persimmon at the markets: fuyu (short, squatty shape) and hachiya (more oblong, teardrop shape). The fuyu you can eat firm and are a bit sweeter when they are just a bit soft). I do not recommend eating hachiya until it is very, very ripe, super soft, and jelly-like, almost translucent. If it's not, the hachiya is very astringent, which is not pleasant (but you may want to try it just for the experience).

Easily remove the jewel-like seeds of the pomegranate by scoring the outside with a knife, peel it apart and loosen the seeds from the pith in a bowl underwater. The seeds sink and the skin and pith float. Or try cutting it in half, and banging the outside with a wooden spoon over a bowl and the seeds fall out.

Another seasonal favorite, cranberries are not grown locally, but this compote is so much better than the jelled substance from a tin can. This is a new, easy recipe I improvised this year. Make it with love!

Honey Kumquat Cranberry Compote
1 cup fresh orange juice from the farmers market
1 1/2 cups kumquats, sliced thin, seeds removed, from my backyard
3 cups fresh cranberries from the local co-op
1/2 cup local honey

Stir together all ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Cover pan and bring to boil over high heat. Stir, reduce heat to medium, and cook covered for 5 minutes, until all cranberries burst. Uncover, reduce heat to simmer for 10 minutes, until thick.

Can be made weeks ahead of time (keep refrigerated) or canned:

Boil empty canning jars for 10 minutes and left them to sit in the hot water. In a separate small pot, soften lids in hot water (not boiling). Ladle hot compote into sterilized canning jars, filling ½ inch from the top, wipe off the rim with a clean damp cloth. Seal each jar with a lid and barely tighten bands. Boil jars for 15 minutes on a canning rack. Remove from water bath and let sit, undisturbed overnight. Test lids in the morning by pressing top to make sure they’re sealed; tighten bands and label your homemade gifts.