Calypso Storage Share Note: Week of August 22, 2005

Your Share This Week:

*Collards
*Beets
*Cabbage
*Broccoli
*Thyme
*Savory
*Sage
*Marjoram


***************************************************************************************

To Preserve Broccoli:

Freezing: cut into florets and slice stems. Blanch for 3-4 minutes, rinse in cold water, place in freezer bag and freeze.

To Preserve Cabbage

Cabbage will store for 3 weeks to 2 months refrigerated or longer in a root cellar. Leave outer leaves intact. Cabbage can also be blanched and frozen like kale. There are also several ways to preserve cabbage through fermentation:

Sauerkraut
There are many ways to make sauerkraut – here is a simple one from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

1 medium cabbage – cored and shredded
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 tablespoons whey * (if not available – use and additional tablespoon of salt)

In a bowl, mix cabbage with caraway seeds, salt and whey. Pound the mixture with a heavy wooden spoon, pounder or meat hammer for about 10 minutes to release juices. Place in a quart sized, wide mouthed mason jar and press down firmly until juices come to the top of the cabbage. The top of the cabbage should be at lease one inch below the top of the jar. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage. The sauerkraut can be eaten immediately but the flavor with improve with age.

Kim Chee
From the Winter Harvest Cookbook

Kim Chee is a generic name for a hot fermented pickle that is common in Korea and Japan. It cam be made from any number of vegetables but commonly contains cabbage.

1 medium sized cabbage - shredded 2 small onions - chopped
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sea salt (divided) 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup diced kohlrabi (optional) 1 to 2 teaspoons chopped hot pepper

Put cabbage in a large bow, sprinkle with 2 tbls of salt and mix. Cover and let stand until the cabbage wilts to about half of its original volume. This will take about 3 hours. Rinse well, drain, and return to the bowl along with the kohlrabi, onions, garlic, hot pepper and remaining teaspoon of salt. Mix well, pack into a quart jar, cover lightly and let stand at room temperature until it is fermented to your taste. This will usually take 1 to 4 days depending on the temperature and your preference. Store in refrigerator or cold storage.

To Preserve Beets:

Freezing: Cook beets in boiling water until tender (for small beets 20-35 minutes, for large beets 45-50 minutes). Cool promptly in cold water. Peel, cut into slices or cubes. Package and freeze.

Pickling: (see recipe below)

Pickled Beets

3 ½ pounds beets 1 cup water
2 cups vinegar 1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon sea salt 6 whole cloves
1 cup sugar 2 small onions (optional)

Boil beets for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Slip off beet skins and slice into ¼ inch slices. Slice onions – set both aside. Combine vinegar, slat, sugar and fresh water. Put spices in a cheesecloth bag and add to vinegar mixture. Bring to a boil – remove cheesecloth. Place beets and onions in sterilized, wide-mouth pint jars, leaving ½ inch head space. Pour hot vinegar solution into the jars, over the beets – leaving ½ inch head space. Remove air bubbles, adjust lids, process for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath. Wait 4-6 weeks for flavor to develop before opening.

To Preserve Herbs:

Drying: Hang herbs upside down in an area out of the direct sunlight. Hang until fully dry and then transfer to plastic bags or containers for storage.

Herbal Vinegars: Place fresh herbs in sterilized glass containers. Heat vinegar to just below the boiling point (white or rice vinegars work well). Pour hot vinegar over the herbs, cap and sit in a cool, dark place for several weeks to develop full flavor. Once opened, refrigerate.

To Preserve Collard Greens:

Blanch and freeze just like kale!

Back to the 2005 Farm Note Archives!