Calypso Storage Share Note: Week of September 5, 2005

Your Share This Week:

*Carrots
*Turnips
*Onions
*Garlic
*Beets
*Potatoes
*Collards
*Savory
*Thyme

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To Preserve Soup and Soup Stock:

Almost any soup or soup stock can be canned, frozen or preserved in salt. A perfect way to savor some of summer’s bounty mid-winter!

Be sure to follow canning procedures in one of the food preservation resources we have listed in previous notes or other resource you may have. It is important to remember that for canning soups and stocks – treat vegetables the same as you would if you were canning them individually. Food preservation resources will have more detailed information on this. Be sure to cut out blemishes or scars and clean thoroughly.

You can freeze soup or stock in plastic or glass containers. Leave headspace to allow for expansion when freezing. Directions for preserving in salt are listed in two of the following recipes.

Root Vegetable Soup
Adapted from Winter Harvest Cookbook

2 tbsp butter 5 potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, chopped 4 carrots, peeled and grated or chopped
2 beets, peeled and chopped 2 cups water
3 cups strong beef, chicken or vegetable stock salt and pepper
2 turnips, peeled and grated or chopped savory and thyme, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped

Melt butter in a large saucepan or soup pot. Add onion, garlic, savory and thyme and a little salt and sauté over medium heat, stirring, until soft, about 10 minutes. Don’t rush this part – proper slow cooking brings out the natural sweetness and flavors.
Add soup stock, turnip, carrots, beets and potatoes and heat to simmering for 20 minutes. Stir and cover. Add salt and pepper to taste. Puree and let cool completely before freezing.

Vegetable Soup Stock
Adapted from Putting Food By

Note: be sure to cut out blemishes, scars, spoiled spots, blossom or stem ends.

Scrub fresh potatoes (around 8), cut out eyes and blemishes, then cut off thick peels. Put these (peels) in a good sized kettle with 2 medium onions, peeled and quartered; 2 ribs of celery and 1 large scraped carrot, both cut in chunks; about 1 tsp dried savory leaves. Cover the vegetables with 2 quarts of water ( ½ tsp salt optional), bring to a boil, skim for a couple of minutes and; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Check the liquid level, add 1 cup water (or more) if needed. Put lid on again and continue cooking gently for 1 more hour. Strain off most of the broth, add salt as desired; puree remaining broth and soft vegetables.

Keep clear stock and pureed base separate in canning. Together they will make about 4 pints. Use pint jars only and pressure can only in hot pack, leaving 1 inch of headroom.
Feel free to experiment with additional vegetables and herbs with this stock!

See Putting Food By for more information on pressure canning stocks and soups.

Migaine de Thezou (Mixed Vegetable Stock)
From Keeping Food Fresh: Old World Techniques and Recipes

1 lb. onions ½ lb celery
1 lb. tomatoes 1 lb carrots
¾ cup savory and thyme, mixed 1 lb. salt
½ lb turnips

Grind all ingredients coarsely together in the food processor or blender. Let the mixture stand overnight in a bowl or cool place. The next day, remix the contents of the bowl by hand. Put the ground vegetables in jars, and store in the root cellar, other cool place or freeze. Add one or two tablespoons each time you make soup, tomato sauce vegetable stock, etc. It can be tossed in raw or cooked!

Verdurette (Vegetable Stock)
From Keeping Food Fresh: Old World Techniques and Recipes

½ lb carrots
½ lb. turnips
½ lb beets
½ lb onions
½ lb sea salt

Chop the vegetables and mix them with the salt. Put the mixture in a jar and close it airtight. This mixture is excellent for seasoning soups during the winter. You can also add all kinds of vegetables and herbs. Adjust the proportions accordingly. Yields two pounds of verdurette

Herb, Garlic and Oil Concentrate
With some experimentation this weekend, Susan created a great way to preserve herbs and garlic for the winter. Place garlic, olive oil, butter and fresh herbs in the blender or food processor. (the amounts of each thing are up to you, depending on how strong you like particular flavors – do some experimenting). Once ingredients are well blended, put in small jars or ice cube trays and freeze. These herb, garlic and oil concentrates can be thawed and used in soups or stews, in baking recipes or spread on toast! Delicious!

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