October Challenge: Will be posted

Hello Fall.. I was not wanting you to arrive yet. I was just starting to enjoy my visit with summer.

Yes, we will be having an October weekly challenge. It will be posted Saturday Oct 5, the week will go from Oct 6 to Oct 12, just like September.

September Challenge Week 4: Sept 22 - 28

Last week I was able to get a lot of bone broth canned and put up. Whew, 32 # of chicken backs, makes quite a bit of broth!

I also made some "beef bouillon".. ya it doesn't smell or taste like beef bouillon. You take 3 cups minced carrots 3 cups minced celery and 2 onions minced, and half a pound of ground beef. You put it in a pan and slow cook it for about 3 hours. THEN you blend it smooth. Guess what. It just tastes like mire poix. You can not tell there is any beef in it. The people that reviewed that recipe, they must have no taste buds! So I froze some, and dehydrated some. So now I have cooked pureed mire poix in my freezer and in a baggie in my pantry, ready to add to any soup or casserole I desire.

So that is what I did in week 3. I canned broth, and dehydrated mire poix (celery, onion and carrot).

We are now in the last week of September. I am very sad with how fast this year has gone, especially the summer. The family reunion and vacation was not long enough, my growing season for my garden was not long enough. It really is sad.

So this week, I am putting some freezer meals in my freezer. Yesterday we made a yummy butternut squash soup, carrot rolls, green salad and then a berry salad for dessert. It was yummy. So this butternut squash was 6 pounds!!  So I put some cut up in 1-inch cubes in a freezer bag, added 1 quart of homemade chicken broth,a bay leaf, onion, garlic, potato chunks and some rice, and froze it. I will season it after it cooks a bit. But this will be a nice easy meal to put in my crock pot on a Sunday when I am not feeling with it.

I am also assembling some other freezer meals for my crock pot (cp) and instant pot (IP) on Wednesday. These can be thawed then cooked or cooked from frozen and are amazing!

Canning this week, or dehydrating has not yet been decided. So much is coming on! I could do apple pie filling, peaches (almost gone), more pears, pear butter (delicious!), zucchini butter (YUMMY), tomatoes, pumpkin, banana squash or any winter squash.

Part of the September Challenge

I am finally getting to my chicken broth. This is the broth I mentioned the other day. I am not canning it until tomorrow morning. BUT, I got the chicken backs baked! Our favorite seasonings on baked chicken are salt, pepper and paprika. Super easy, and super yummy!

Yes, I ate some of the cooked skins, delicious!

Then I through some mire poix (carrots, onions and celery), bay leaves, turmeric, garlic, salt and kale into my crock pots; today I used curly, dinosaur and purple kales.

I used 2 crock pots, that is why you get 2 pictures.

 

 Really pretty right? What next? I tossed 14 backs on to the pile of veg. 

This almost looks like some kind of fancy salad. Now I added water to cover everything.

My goodness, my mouth is watering just looking at that deliciousness. Now we have to wait about 24 hours cooking this on low. Sometime in the morning tomorrow or the next day I will strain the liquid, then can it in my pressure canner. My next batch will be smaller and will be for working on my recovery.

Now if I needed this because I was sick, or using this as a medicine during recovery, I would NOT can this. I would strain it, then put it in the fridge. The collagen (gelatin) and minerals in this broth are amazing for helping one to heal, and the canning process kinda kills them.

UPDATE: Ok, just pulled these out of the canner.

September Challenge Week 3 : Sept 15 - 21

Well, I barely made it! But I did it!

I was able to can pears, and dehydrate pears, plus I got raw honey!

Aren't they pretty? I got 38 pints of pears, plus 4 quarts of dried pears. And I got 4 quarts and half a pint of raw honey! The pear chips are perfect and I am half tempted to go get some more pears and dry another 5 trays.

This week I am working on chicken bone broth. When I picked up my honey, I also picked up 32 pounds of chicken backs. First I bake them with seasoning, then I will pull off any meat and freeze it for a casserole. Next the chicken backs, and some onion, carrots, garlic, celery, ACV and a little salt will go into either my crock pot or my pressure cooker (cp for 24 hours on low, pc 3 hours on pressure of 2). Then I will strain the broth, and pressure can it. Seems like it is harder than it really is.

What will you be canning, or dehydrating to add to your food storage this week?

September Challenge: Week 2 Sept 8 - 14

I did it, even with surprise travel, kids starting school, and doing weird things like shopping.
Week 1

36 jars of different beans AND chicken bone broth! Whew!

Now for this next week. I am hoping to can some butternut squash and pears or peaches.

How about you? What are you canning or drying this week?