As I mentioned in last weeks post we have been preserving and making a few bits and pieces at home lately... the cooler weather and abundance of produce does that to you.
But you don't need a farm, animal or even a veggie patch to produce some of your own staples at home.
I often get comments like "I wish I could do more like that" but the fact is you can. Not everyone can rear and butcher a pig, but anyone can grow sprouts on a kitchen counter or make yoghurt. So here are a few recipes and details about some of the make your own things we've made over the last few weeks... and I guarantee they will taste better than anything you can buy.
Dairy Products-
Greek yoghurt
So I first made this 2 years ago, and have never
looked back! I use my own ‘starter’ which is basically an unstrained (plain) cup
of yoghurt from the previous weeks batch and I use muslin (also known as
cooking cloth or cheese cloth) to strain; as this can then be washed and
reused.
If you want to try this you don’t need a slow cooker,
you can heat the milk on a stove. I just prefer to use mine as it gradually
brings the milk to the right temperature; and I know I don’t have to watch it like
a hawk in case it over heats.
Since this original post I have also tried it with
both full fat flavoured yoghurt as a starter and UHT milk, both work fine. The only real must have is your yoghurt ‘starter’
must have L.Acidophilius and S.Thermophilius in it, as these are the active cultures
that curdle the milk, creating your separation of yoghurt and whey.
I would give the tip of use a yoghurt starter that you
like the taste of, as it does affect the flavour and consistency of the final
product. I have used a creamy vanilla yoghurt as a starter for a batch I made
for our little one as it produces a milder flavour. This way I find it easier,
or less harsh to flavour- only adding a small amount of honey and/or fruit and
vanilla essence and she loves it!
Ricotta cheese
This was a new one for us, I found the recipe on a Facebook post- and now I have made it
successfully once I will never buy ricotta again!
Ingredients
2 litres whole milk
½ lemon (juice only)
Similar process to that of the yoghurt in that you
need to heat the milk to 82°, but then you remove from the heat and simply
squeeze and whisk in ½ a lemon, or similar quantity of edible acidic material (vinegar
or other citrus fruit; remembering whatever you use will affect the taste of
the outcome) and set aside and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Then strain using
muslin or cheese cloth.
I used full cream milk for this recipe, though I have
seen some add 1/4cup cream per litre of milk. I didn’t think ours needed it, as
the result was creamy enough, though I would definitely not advise using lite
milk for this process.
Meat Products-
Bacon
No you don't need to breed your own pigs, or even a
cold room to make bacon. Just belly pork, space in a refrigerator and a few household condiments and spices... and a little time.
Preserves
Passionfruit Butter or Passionfruit & Vanilla Curd
Ingredients
100g
passionfruit pulp
½ tsp vanilla essence
tbsp. lemon/lime juice
50g sugar
80g butter
2 eggs
This is one I ‘cheat’ and use my 'thermo-cheap' ,
though this recipe should be easily adaptable to a conventional stove top method.
1. Place all ingredients into bowl.
2. Cook on 80 degrees for 9 mins
on speed 3.
3. It should coat the back of a
spoon nicely once done.
If it doesn't, cook for a further 4-5 mins
Passionfruit jam
I have always made Passionfruit butter, but as it
contains dairy it doesn’t last that long, so making large quantities with a
glut of fruit is not practical. So with a little research I found a jam recipe…
And it is yummy! (Though I maybe biased) A little more technical (well messy, not technical)
Ingredients
Passionfruit
Water
Sugar
The quantity of sugar required depends on the amount
of fruit pulp you have. I used 10, but depending on the size of your fruit or
quantity you wish to make you may prefer to use more or less.
Firstly before separating the pulp and husk you need
to have a large stock pot ready and a fine sieve and muslin cloth. As you will
be separating the fruit, but saving and using each part.
Scoup out the pulp (fruit and seeds) from the husk and
strain. I use a fine sieve over a mixing bowl.
Then place the husk/shells in a large pan. Once the
juice is strained from the seeds (you may need to assist this process using the
back of a spoon and possibly a splash (smallest amount possible) of water. Then
place seeds into the muslin cloth and secure. Place bag into the pot along with
husks and cover with water.
Place this on a medium heat and allow to boil until
the shells become soft and translucent. Then
remove both the husks and the bag from the water (saving the water).
Decant the water into a jug or other measuring device.
Now scoup out any remaining soft flesh from the husk
and return to the pan, you may now discard the remaining husk/shell.
Measure and add you fruit juice to the pan. Then add
the same amount of saved water and sugar.
Simmer for 20 minutes.
Place in (sterile) jars.
As a test to see whether my jams or marmalades etc.
are ready (will set). I generally allow them to cool slightly in the pan. If
they begin to develop a ‘skin’ then they will set. If they remain runny I add
more sugar (or pectin if necessary) and reheat carefully.
I have tried the ‘spoon’ method, though have been
caught out, particularly with soft (low pectin) fruit such as strawberry and
mango.
So I prefer to let the batch cool. You can either
re-apply heat to spoon into jars. Though I generally find simply stirring the
cooler (skin) into the hotter contents below liquefies the jam enough to decant
into sterile jars.
Marmalade
Our fruit trees have been working overtime (since the arrival of our bees). So I decided to use some of the mandarin/oranges and limes to make marmalade.
I have made marmalade plenty of times, however I have always juiced the fruit and then sliced the rind first. However I keep seeing recipes where the fruit is boiled whole. So I thought I would try it, as I have read it improves the taste of the rind within the marmalade. Besides the pith and the seeds hold the pectin, so they have to be in the pot one way or another.
This method actually worked out a little less messy and seemed to be quicker.
So I halved/ quartered the fruit (depending on the size and placed in a pot and covered with water.
Place on a rolling boil until the fruit is soft.
Once soft I used a potato masher to separate as much of the juice and flesh as possible. Then remove as much of the rind from the mix as I could to slice ready to return to the pot.
Strain the remaining juice and pectin water to remove any pips; measure this strained liquid, as you will need equal parts liquid and sugar.
Return liquid to the pot with an equal quantity of sugar and the sliced rind. Simmering for approx 20minutes. Decant into sterile jars.
Chutney
I have made many variations of this over time, though
I have to admit if you can get green tomatoes they do produce the best chutney.
This time I had a glut of squash- similar to marrows, part of the squash/pumpkin/courgette
(zucchini) family. Not exactly sure what variety they are… the vines have
either sprouted from where we had the grower pig on the veg patch, or they are
finally producing from seeds I sowed last year..??
Either way, they are large and lots of them, so I
decided to make some chutney to use them use (along with roasting them, they
also make great chips!)
For this
recipe you will want;
1kg tomatoes
1
very large zucchini/marrow/squash, peeled and diced
1 large onion, diced
½ cup of mixed fruit
¾ cup brown/raw sugar
200ml of vinegar (I mix both
malt and apple cider, but its personal choice)
tsp ground cumin seeds
tsp ground ginger
½ tsp cayenne pepper
Pinch salt
Remove any
hard ends or eyes (by chopping end off) then simply drop them into a pan of
boiling water for a few minutes; til you see the skins begin to come away from
the fruit
First job is to peel your
tomatoes- Then remove
from the heat and carefully scoop them out (use a slotted spoon) and carefully peel
the skin away- You may want to do this over your intended chutney pot… as they
can fall apart
Once finished chop all the other ingredients- all to a
similar size and add to the pan. (Personally I skin my zucchinis first).
Stir and place on medium
heat and bring to boil, and then simmer usually for an hour, stirring
regularly.
Remove from heat and place
in sterile jars.
It tastes better after a
couple of days, but then it should keep for a few months in cool, dark place.
However as a smallholder D-day always comes with mixed
emotions (this one especially), and a pressure to ensure you do a good job;
clean kill, good scald… 
So Friday late afternoon-
night was spent processing ready for cutting up on Saturday. We were very happy with the results, the scald went well; only requiring the shaving of some of the more stubborn hairs.
