Now that we finally have the "fruits" of our labors coming in... what to do with them? IF you can keep your kids from eating them all and complaining of belly aches, and have enough to put up for winter, then I will make some suggestions.
FREEZE: freezing peaches and nectarines is EASY!! DON'T freeze pears, they fall apart. So peel and pit your fruit. Cut into the desired size pieces, sprinkle with sugar, place in freezer bags and seal. Lay flat in freezer. You can also use a citrus dip to prevent browning.
DRY: I love this!!! You can dry any fruit. So for pears.. to peel or not to peel, it's up to you, but we prefer peeled. So we wash the fruit, peel it, and slice about 1/4-inch thick. This dip in watered down orange juice. pineapple juice or lemon juice and put on dehydrator trays. We do the same for peaches and nectarines. We use these as snacks. You can also do this with bananas, and my kids LOVE them this way.
CAN: So many options! You can do a light syrup, or heavy syrup. You can make butters, chutneys, salsas.. it is amazing! I suggest getting a Ball Canning, freezing and dehydrating book. Usually a new one comes out every year. I have made pear butter (absolutely divine, just don't scorch or burn it), banana butter, peach butter, fruit in light syrup, peach jam, triple berry jams, apple butter, apple sauce, apple pie filling, peach pie filling, apple juice, zucchini jam (yes it is good!!).
The BALL book is great!! BUT, you can also use their website.
Ok, so don't be afraid, get ready to jump in up to your elbows because you will be sticky all the way up!! You can always email me if you have questions.
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