Nothing Wasted

I'm taking a little sit-down break; a coffee break, if you will. Today I'm peeling and puree'ing tomatoes, pouring them onto the flat sheets in my dehydrator, and making dried tomato paste. Then I'll pulverize it and have tomato powder.

I've got some peppers I'm cutting up to dehydrate on the shelves, too. Not hot peppers; green peppers. Once dehydrated, I can add them to anything - soups, stews, whatever - and add the flavor of summer green peppers. I can even crush them and the tomato powder together and mix them in my bread dough for a really great bread... or mix them with eggs and flour for homemade noodles with a bite.

I've got still more cucumbers and they will be pickled this afternoon. Meanwhile, it is 60 degrees outside, with a brisk North wind, and I'm watering the yard. The "terrible storms" that threatened two nights ago dropped absolutely no rain, but produced a lot of wind that dried out my plants. Which reminds me - time to harvest the basil and thyme. If the weather holds and my sunflowers continue to bloom and produce seeds, I'll have to dry all of them too. Fortunately the lack of humidity here doesn't promote rot; I can air-dry the herbs and seeds if I want. (But putting the herbs in the dehydrator makes the house smell so gooood!) Plus the quicker they dehydrate, the more flavor they hold. After the first frost, I can harvest that horseradish out in the garden, and make not only horseradish sauce, but cold medicine and even a nice rub for sore muscles and joints. I'm wondering too about the possible use for insect repellent; they don't like the capascin in the hot peppers, maybe they won't like the flavenoids in the horseradish either! So much to think about....

The multiplier onions I ordered should be here soon. They are planted in the fall to overwinter, then harvested in late spring. I ordered 50. They also dehydrate well, and even without dehydration, keep for up to 12 months in a cool, dry place (which pretty much describes the basement!) They are heirloom, which means that they and their progeny can be planted year after year with no change in their cellular makeup, like happens with hybrids. Their tops in spring also make great green onions!

I just hate to see things go to waste; especially edible things. And I can't wait to get really started on the greenhouse and the plant starts for spring; already I'm thinking of what to put in for not only my garden and future produce, but to sell.

Yes, it sounds like a lot of trouble to go through, when one can buy things in the store, already processed and ready to cook and eat. But it is fun to do, it keeps things from being wasted - and who knows what food, even the basics, will cost in another six months, or what will even be available? Not to mention what goes into the processing of such things? At least I know what is in the food I'm preserving.

So with disco on the stereo, I'm bustling abut the kitchen, making plans.