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Across the Fence:  Strawberry Fever Exhaustion  |
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Amybug
Farmgirl in Training
40 Posts
Amy
Grand Island
Nebraska
USA
40 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 05 2009 : 8:44:49 PM
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I am so tired I am not sure I can make it to the bathtub. My daughter and I went to a strawberry farm and picked 82 pounds of berries today. Ever since we got home at about 2:00 (it is 10:30 now), we have been "processing" (freezing, dehydrating, and putting up jam). The kitchen looks like a horror film, with the drips of strawberry all over the place--even with mostly cleaning up as we went. I don't like to leave a kitchen messy, but I need to get some sleep, so I have the energy tomorrow to finish up. Although my back really hurts right now and at times today I thought, "What was I thinking?" , I will be pleased to have such a bounty on hand.
Have any of you gals been "putting by" strawberries lately?
Amy
"The secret to a successful life is to take the cards you are dealt and play your best hand with them." |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2009 : 9:43:26 PM
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OH how fun! I have only put up two flats of berries so far. No farms around here. I grew up near strawberry fields and sure miss that! (in Calif) It will be so fun for you to have so much on hand. I froze enough more to make a couple more batches of jam this next week. Don't you love how the house smells? Here is some of my jam from the last jam making session.
Jenny in Utah
Proud Farmgirl sister #24
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
Edited by - Aunt Jenny on Jun 05 2009 9:53:24 PM |
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Farmtopia
True Blue Farmgirl
1465 Posts
Zan
New York
New York
USA
1465 Posts |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 03:36:46 AM
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Our peak strawberry season was last month.
Beautiful berries all around!
I picked whenever off from work.
I alao make jam, but prefer to process ( freeze) the berries and then make jams clsoer to Christmas.
It is back breakig work all the way ...but SO worth it.
Did you save ANY to just enjoy eating? There's never enough! |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 03:44:37 AM
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As a part of the trial and error learning curve, I discovered a few years ago not to submerge berries when cleaning. HAd to toss a few bags of berries when they faded out. This also makes /em mushy even if they are to be sued for jams.
In years past to make jam, I follwoed the directions to layer and crush the berries. Also lost a lot of pretty juice that way. Experimented by leaving most berries whole (cut out the green tops) and quartering the largest ones to freeze. Come jam time, I just emptied small quantities of thawed berries into a belnder and only gave 2 or 3 pulses to just beak up the berries. This time there hasn't been ANY waste, and the rave reviews about the dark, rich color and how wonderful it tasts has led me to keep up with this process for 5 years now. It doesn't save any more time, but does saves precious juice. OH and saves a bit of wear and tear on my wrists though.
I had made jelly from the juice too, but it never was as big a hit. |
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Amybug
Farmgirl in Training
40 Posts
Amy
Grand Island
Nebraska
USA
40 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 06:02:38 AM
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Thanks, Anna, for the tips.
I woke up this morning and took the first load of strawberries off of the dehydrator-they are so yummy; my kids eat them like chips-and I am now going to make strawberry/jalpeno pepper jam.
We ARE eating the fresh ones and they are delicious. I think breakfast will be a big, big bowl of them.
Amy
"The secret to a successful life is to take the cards you are dealt and play your best hand with them." |
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Contrary Wife
True Blue Farmgirl
2164 Posts
Teresa Sue
Tekoa
WA
USA
2164 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 06:08:10 AM
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I go up to an area called Green Bluff, where they have several orchards. I like to pick enough berries to put up some jam, then I freeze the rest in ziplocks to enjoy through the winter, and of course we have fresh berries! When we get settled in our own place I will have a strawberry patch!!! Right now, I have a raspberry patch and that is quite nice too, but I would like both.
Teresa Sue
Farmgirl Sister #316
Planting Zone 4
"Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly." The Dalai Lama |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 11:20:29 AM
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My old strawberry patch used to give me about 250 to 300 lbs of strawberries every year. Everyone would always remarks on the tall grass and weeds in the patch but it kept the birds out. That patch produced for about 15 years but finally gave up the ghost last year. I planted a new patch about 250 plants last year so we will see how they do all clean and spiffy and in neat rows in the garden - they had good bloom and have set berries so we will see. I have picked in Greenbluff too in past years - not only strawberries but cherries and apples as well. I didn't do Strawberry last year but hope to this year. I at least have to have some for the freezer for the strawberry cloud cream filling for my son's wedding cake. There is nothing better than the smell when picking berries and the sugar/berry smell of the house after jam making. I know how that kind of tired feels - hope you've recovered nicely.
Sheri |
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Betty J.
True Blue Farmgirl
1404 Posts
Betty
Pasco
WA
USA
1404 Posts |
Posted - Jun 06 2009 : 12:14:17 PM
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Amy, can you tell me how you dehydrate strasberries? I have a smallish dehydrator and no freezer, so I would be interested.
BTW, I'm fron Alliance, NE.
Betty in Pasco, WA |
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Amybug
Farmgirl in Training
40 Posts
Amy
Grand Island
Nebraska
USA
40 Posts |
Posted - Jun 07 2009 : 10:56:41 AM
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Betty,
Dehydrating strawberries is very easy, as you don't have to pretreat with lemon juice, like I have to for the apples and pears to prevent browning.
All you do is cut off the tops, slice, and then put them on your dehydrator. That is it. I slice them in "rounds" and then don't dehydrate the fleshy tip (bottom). I save the tips for jam. I found that it seems to take "forever" for the tips to dry. Or, at any rate, it takes much longer than the rounds, so I don't want to keep the dehydrator going just for them.
I dry them for about 12 hours at 145 degrees, as we like them crisp. The kids love them. They are good by themselves, or in oatmeal or in gorp for backpacking trips.
My 12 dehydrator trays, which are round, hold about 12 pounds of strawberries, or roughly 1 pound per tray. It takes about 2 trays to fill a pint mason jar. It is astonishing how such a large amount ends up so small. Because my kids like them so much, I do have to ration them, or they would end up eating a pint in one sitting and probably get a tummy ache!
Hope this helps,
Amy
P.S. I haven't been out to Alliance in a really long time. I like to go on Nebraska road trips, so I might put that on my list. We went to the Danish Festival in Dannebrog yesterday. We went rather late, as I was busy with the strawberries, and unfortunately, the kolaches were all sold out. Darn!
"The secret to a successful life is to take the cards you are dealt and play your best hand with them." |
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Across the Fence: Strawberry Fever Exhaustion |
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Strawberry Fever Exhaustion
