Transformational Gardening
March 2013 Foraging Experiences
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April 2013 Foraging Experiences)
March 3, 2013
Maple Sap
It’s Maple Syruping time!!!
March 11, 2013
Maple Syrup
I turned my home into a Sugar Shack. The big drawback to not boiling the sap outside is that you have to do a lot of
cleaning to keep the sap steam off everything. But right now I don't have a place outside to boil the sap. I got about
1-1/4 pints of maple syrup from about 7 gallons of maple sap. Figuring out how to know when it's finished was a little
tricky at first, but with the help of a thermometer and carefully watching how it boils, I think (hope) I have the hang
of it. I will be collecting sap for at least the next couple of weeks. Maple sugar is a source of Vitamin B2 and zinc
as well as a lesser source of other minerals.
Garlic Clove Pickles
I decided to try pickling more this year and will ferment more wild foods. But I thought I'd try with non-wild foods
at first and base my attempts on the ideas in 52
Weeks of Bad A** Bacteria blog. I fermented the garlic cloves for 5 weeks in Harscht fermenting crocks. As you can see, many of the
garlic cloves turn a slight tinge of blue. That is normal when fermenting garlic cloves.
March 27, 2013
Maple Syrup
After giving a lot of Maple Syrup away, I still have 10 pints and am making another pint tonight. I will give away
more when I return from vacation. The taste of homemade maple syrup that has not touched plastic tubing, plastic bags
and plastic bottles is so much better than what I am used to. It gets me excited about local sweeteners and local
foods in general. I think sharing this amazing local product helps to promote local, healthy foods.
I turned my home into a Sugar Shack. The big drawback to not boiling the sap outside is that you have to do a lot of
cleaning to keep the sap steam off everything. But right now I don't have a place outside to boil the sap. I got about
1-1/4 pints of maple syrup from about 7 gallons of maple sap. Figuring out how to know when it's finished was a little
tricky at first, but with the help of a thermometer and carefully watching how it boils, I think (hope) I have the hang
of it. I will be collecting sap for at least the next couple of weeks. Maple sugar is a source of Vitamin B2 and zinc
as well as a lesser source of other minerals.
I decided to try pickling more this year and will ferment more wild foods. But I thought I'd try with non-wild foods
at first and base my attempts on the ideas in 52
Weeks of Bad A** Bacteria blog. I fermented the garlic cloves for 5 weeks in Harscht fermenting crocks. As you can see, many of the
garlic cloves turn a slight tinge of blue. That is normal when fermenting garlic cloves.
After giving a lot of Maple Syrup away, I still have 10 pints and am making another pint tonight. I will give away
more when I return from vacation. The taste of homemade maple syrup that has not touched plastic tubing, plastic bags
and plastic bottles is so much better than what I am used to. It gets me excited about local sweeteners and local
foods in general. I think sharing this amazing local product helps to promote local, healthy foods.