Food Preservation

Kaye and I have decided to bring back food preservation to our household. We have relied on Kaye's aunt Liz for sweet pickles for years. Now Liz no longer has a garden and her husband TM is not well and requires a great deal of attention and making pickles is far down on her list of priorities. When Kaye and I were first married, we used to make pickles and jellies and jams all the time. Our careers and our attention to our son's activities put these traditional activities on the back burner.

We started a batch of 14 Day Sweet Pickles last week and have been tending to them each day as the recipe requires. We also went to a local produce farm called Dempsey's and bought strawberries to make jam. We made 12 half pints and opened one for breakfast on Sunday morning. It was fantastic! Tasted like fresh strawberries.

Here are the recipes for our 14 Day Pickles and Strawberry Jam:

Strawberry Jam

5½ cups crushed strawberries (about 3 quart boxes strawberries)
1 package powdered pectin
8 cups sugar
Yield: About 9 or 10 half-pint jars
Please read Using Boiling Water Canners before beginning. If this is your first time canning, it is recommended that you read Principles of Home Canning.
Procedure: Sterilize canning jars and prepare two-piece canning lids according to manufacturer's directions.
To prepare fruit. Sort and wash fully ripe strawberries; remove stems and caps. Crush berries.
To make jam. Measure crushed strawberries into a kettle. Add pectin and stir well. Place on high heat and, stirring constantly, bring quickly to a full boil with bubbles over the entire surface. Add sugar, continue stirring, and heat again to a full bubbling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; skim.
Fill hot jam immediately into hot, sterile jars, leaving ¼ inch head space. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; adjust two-piece metal canning lids. Process in a Boiling Water Canner. Begin timing when water returns to a boil.

0-1,000 feet - Process 5 Minutes

1,000 - 6,000 feet - Process 10 Minutes

6,000 and above - Process 15 Minutes

I use this link for food preservation guidance: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/index.html

This document was adapted from "How to Make Jellies, Jams and Preserves at Home." Home and Garden Bulletin No. 56. Extension Service, United States Department of Agriculture. 1982 reprint. National Center for Home Food Preservation, June 2005.

14 Day Pickles

14 lbs sliced cucumbers

2 pints of salt

2 gallons of boiling water

Bring salt and water to a boil and pour over pickles. Use a non reactive pan (stainless steel or enamel pan) or ceramic crock.

Stir pickles every day for 7 days.

On day 8, pour off water and rinse pickles in a collandar. Wash out crock or pan

Bring 2 gallons of water to a boil and pour over pickles. Leave for 24 hours.

On day 9, pour off water. In 2 gallons of water put 4 Tbsp. Alum. Bring to a boil and pour over pickles.

On Day 10, drain off Alum water and prepare syrup. Bring 2 quarts of vinegar and 4 quarts of sugar, and 1/2 of a 1 1/2 oz pickling spice to a boil. Pour over pickles.

On days 11, 12, 13 pour off syrup in to a stainless pot and heat to a boil. Boil syrup for 4 minutes each day. Then pour the syrup back over the pickles.

On day 14, drain syrup and boil for 4 minutes. Place pint or quart jars in the a kettle of simmering boiling water or you can process the jars in a dishwasher with a heated dry. Place lids in a fry pan with water to cover and simmer (near boiling). Be careful not to let lids overlap. Remove hot jars from the dishwasher or kettle and pack with pickles. Do not pack jar higher than the slope of the jar. Pour syrup over pickles just to cover. Leave a 1/2" space at the top of the jar. Immediately place an heated lid and a ring on the jar. Tighten lids securely. Place jars on a towel allowing several inches between jars on the counter and allow to cool.

Jars will begin to "pop" as the seals are secured. If jars don't seal properly(after cooling you can push on the lid and it "pops") you can reprocess the jars and syrup or put in the refrigerator and use with in several weeks.

Makes about 20 pints or 10 quarts.

Absolutely Ridiculous Weather!

This has been the most miserable week I can remember here in a long time. It has been nothing but wind, rain, and chilly temps for over a week! I am glad I wasn't one of the scores of families who paid to be here this week! I know who they are as I have seen them riding golf carts in their bathing suits shivering and trying to look like they are absolutely thrilled to be here.

All this pent up energy is ready to come out this Memorial Day Weekend! Friends Joe and Pam are going to be staying with us this weekend as their house is rented this weekend. They weather forecast is for highs in the low 80's this weekend. Sounds like a recipe for a major case of sunburn on the beach.

Steven Whetstone

I would like to introduce you to a wonderful new artist. His name is Steven Whetstone. Kaye and I first discovered Steven when we were in Beaufort for dinner at the Saltus River Grill when we saw this wonderful painting in the I Pinkney Simmons Gallery window. This work is 40 x 40 and now proudly hangs in our entry level hallway. Steven lives in Columbia, SC where he graduated from the Unversity of South Carolina.

Last week Steven let us know that he was going to be in Beaufort to deliver several new works to the I Pinkney Simmons Gallery and asked if we would like to have lunch. As one of his biggest fans and his largest collector in the low country we jumped at the opportunity. We went to Wren for lunch where we learned more about Steven, his journey as an artist and his family. He has a very promising future as an artist.

Check out his work at:

http://www.stevenwhetstone.com/index.html

and our friends at I Pinkney Simmons Gallery

http://www.ipinckneysimonsgallery.com/

Rooftop Gardening

When you live in either a small space or in our case an area where the deer eat everything in sight, container gardening can be a great option.

Here on Fripp Island we cannot garden as the deer will eat nearly everything you plant. I really miss gardening and have chosen to resort to rooftop container gardening.

The picture here is of a clay pot container commonly called a strawberry pot. We have planted tomatoes in the top and herbs in the smaller holes around the pot. We have added basil, thyme, parsley, dill, and chives. We have also planted a variety of pepper plants in their own clay pots. The challenge with container gardening is keeping plants adequately watered in the dryer months. Clay pots will draw out the moisture in the soil so it is important to water every couple of days.

12 Veranda Beach Drive

We have decided to put this little piece of heaven on the market. We are trying to get closer to our son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter in Richmond, Va. If you are interested in owning your own piece of paradise let us know! Check out our YouTube tour!

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=7008E9E8FFCE21A9&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&v=rMAOPyW5pxc

This is an aerial view of the south end of Fripp Island. This is the Veranda Beach area were our house is located. Ours is the one on the right side of the photo with the "Crows Nest" on the roof.

This is a view of the ocean from our "Crow's Nest" on the roof of our house on Fripp Island. We have the only home on Veranda Beach with a roof top view of the island.

Springtime on Fripp!

We are back after a very long winter! This is the first sunset picture of the spring season. We plan to spend as much time here as we can this year. This has to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. Kaye and I spent the day on the beach today with our friends Rick and Irene. The sea breeze is still quite cool and if you are under an umbrella it can be quite cool. You have to spend some time in the sun but at these temperatures you can and will burn very easily.