Pattypan's Diary - Pantry update Week Ending Sunday 7 August 2022
It is always busy when it comes to preserving season in this household. Basically because I have been away for so long this year and missed seasons of this and that, I decided to join the #Everybitcounts challenge to motivate me to start getting back into the swing of producing valuable items for the pantry shelf. It seems to be working and I am starting to get items put up and out of the way. This is not only from bargains from the shops, but also from the Wild Larder. I am finding that I am planning more what I want to do. Checking on the reduced barrow outside the veg shop is also helping, as I am being able to create good stockpile items for the Pantry as a result at next to nothing in price. My initial criteria is that I look on the barrow first and if there is anything useful there and I am able to purchase it I do so. I also look around the main items as well. I seem to be a bit of a squirrel and am constantly gathering.
This week have managed to squirrel away the following items for the Pantry shelf
Monday
Tuesday saw me making 8 jars of Windfall Apple sauce out of some eating apples I had to hand. This has come up quite well and I will be using this for on top of Muesli, Granola or Porridge during the winter months, or indeed as apple sauce to go with a pork roast. It will also be good with pancakes, in a sponge cake and an apple sauce cake. I do intend to make some more of this as I can see all sorts of uses for it.
Wednesday
More dessert apples were secured from the Veg shop. I also came away with the most beautiful flowering purple broccoli which will have to eat with the Toad in the Hole meal I have been promising myself this week. Also bought a couple of large cobs of fresh corn. That is a real treat in summer.
I also went foraging for Blackberries again and came away with 5lb in weight which are going to be turned into Blackberry and Apple Pie/Pudding mix for the winter months so that a pudding can be created quite quickly and at short notice. Always nice with a bit of custard or cream. I also found some more Wilding apples again on the floor. Whether some kids have been messing around with the trees or not I do not know but they were on the ground so I bought some of these that I could get to away with me. I could not get to the back of the tree because of underlying prickly foliage.
I need to keep a look out for Elderberries, as I would like to make Elderberry jelly, Pontack Sauce and Hedgepick Pie filling.
I bought eggs for making Lemon Curd, and for Pickling. OH loves Pickled Eggs, so I thought would try and put up a jar or two per week so that there will be enough to see him through the winter season without me having to make a further batch.
Thursday
It is fatal when I go round to the veg shop as I always see all sorts of possibilities and one never really knows what you are going to find. Today I have come back from there with two big bowls of oranges, the large oranges which I intend to turn into an orange jelly for the Pantry shelf. I tend to lurk around the reduction bowls as I get more for my money that way on. Every bottle or jar you put on the shelf, gives you food security and options to make different things. Every little helps as they say.
I have also come away with another three bowls of the dessert apples, some more apple sauce on the way, i.e. £3, and two bags of reduced peppers a mix of red and green peppers to make sweet pepper jelly at 50p per bag. I also came away with four punnets of peaches with 6 peaches in each punnet for £1 a punnet. = £4.
I also went to the Co-Op and came back with 8 x 300g packs of Strawberries which have been reduced and which are going to be turned into Strawberries in syrup.
I have also bought Cider vinegar for the sweet pepper jelly and more sugar (6 bags). Can never have too much sugar if you do preserving of any kind. More butter has also been bought as I intend to re-stock the fridge again little by little so that I have a nice little store of things again. I also bought a bag of reduced peppers, yellow and red also for the sweet pepper jelly.
I have my sights on tomatoes for Salsa and for Spaghetti and Pasta sauces. Am very much keeping my eyes open for these on reduction. We use a lot of tomatoes and I have no tomato based items in stock yet which really needs sorting as I use a lot of tomatoes. Home made roasted tomato sauce in particular is a favourite.
I also need to get some potatoes and onions. Stock items for me as I like to have these to hand at all times. There are several new preserving recipes I want to try as well. I also need some Grapefruit as I have a few recipes for using these as well.
Cooking apples are on the list. They have not had any as wrong part of season, however they are hoping to have some in over the next few days.
Piccalilli is also on the cards.
I also keep looking at Cucumbers!
There are also 6 1/2 jars of Lemon Marmalade that have been popped on the shelf, and two of homemade Lemon Curd. More Lemon curd to be made, the recipe provides for two standard jam jars but it is tasty.
I have also popped up some flavoured sugars. I have prepared Orange, Lemon and then a mixed version i.e. orange, lemon and lime for the pantry shelf. Will make some more of this as I can see it being a real addition to the Pantry shelf for cooking. A subtle way of giving more flavour to food.
Friday
Today has been spent peeling a multitude of apples and cooking them in readiness for making pie filling/pudding for the Pantry shelf. I have 12 + 1 jars of apple and blackberry pie filling and have peeled about 10kg of apples all told today. Despite all the eating apples, I did go and buy 4kgs of Bramley cooking apples for the Blackberry and Apple Pie/Pudding mixes that have been prepared today. I have managed to put up 12+ 1 jars of this and am extremely pleased with this. Every jar sealed, despite me having concerns about one jar in particular. Lifted it up by its lid/seal and it held. So 12 + 1 jars all totally sealed and a success.
I still have more apples to process, but that will probably be an activity for over the weekend. I intend to put some more of the Windfall apple sauce up as well. Did not get to this, but will do during the week.
Saturday
Bought eggs so that I can do a batch of pickled eggs.
Also bought 2 bottles of cyder vinegar, need a couple of more bottles for a couple of jellies want to make. Have found a bag of Jam sugar in the cupboard which am going to use for this purpose. Have a couple of more items to get then can make these.
Lemon vinegar completed. Used three bottles for the Lemon cleaning vinegar. Have left enough room to add more Lemon shells as they become available. Will leave this for a month before using for the first time. Have one spray bottle need to source some more for these home made cleaners. I will also need to stock up extensively on white vinegar, as despite having had a lot in stock I have used it and my stores are now sadly depleted.
Went out with the dog for walkies. Took my foraging bits with me and ended up finding another 4 1/2lbs of Blackberries. They are currently in the fridge ready for processing. Will deal with them tomorrow sometime during the day. Not sure what am going to do with these yet. I tell a lie, one thing that I want to try is a Blackberry Whisky. I have a bottle spare in the cupboard I think, so that is on the cards also.
Peaches I bought reduced are too soft for preserves. However, I am going to turn them into something useful in a matter of waste not, want not.
There are also a couple of recipes in this genre that I want to make as well. Rather than do them all at once I am going to try and make them in pairs. I am talking about wines and I need to get busy.
I have also bought a couple of punnets of reduced chestnut mushrooms for dehydrating.
Sunday
Prepped the strawberries, and then layered them in bowls with alternate layers of sugar. Put back in the fridge as needed to leave them to stand for a minimum of six hours. They are to be bottled later this evening, but will form the subject of the #Everybitcountschallenge post which will be posted tomorrow.
Started the Blackberry whisky. I had a bottle lurking in the cupboard that needed using up.
Have prepped up some of my wine making equipment including fermentation buckets, demijohns. I have identified five types of wine to make thus far. Will take them in twos so further details will be popped up during the course of the challenge.
I have also located the last of my preserving jars which have to be stripped down and sterilised so that I can crack on with the other canning projects I have in mind. These have since been done. I do need to start gathering these again though, as the more I am doing the faster I am running out of bottles! I do intend to bottle the blackberries I picked yesterday. I have also located another picking place for blackberries so intend to go for more of those during the week. They are in a different location and I do my best not to over-pick leaving for the birds and others.
Tight Tips for the Week
Pam the Jam (Pam Corbin) gave details of how to make your own Jam sugar. The link is here:
This I think will save a lot of money.
Use the fine nylon type reusable nets that are sold in the supermarkets in which to pop your fruit in rather than polythene bags, to act as your jelly net when making jellies for the Pantry shelf. Needs to be very fine mesh. Think they cost about 40p each.
Do not buy the spreadable butter in packs as they are getting ridiculously expensive. Make your own with the aid of a mixer as per Nancy Birtwistles Instagram account. This little gem popped up the other day and potentially could save a lot of pennies. Link is here:
So it has been a very busy but enjoyable week. I might keep on doing stuff like this after the challenge concludes as it fits in well with what I do and I love doing it.
Catch you soon.
Pattypan
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Some great ideas here Pattypan. Esp. the spreadable butter and the jam sugar (both horribly expensive, but I have always just used butter anyway). You have been very industrious. Well done.
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