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Farm Kitchen:  What are you drying?  |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
 Posted - Nov 18 2017 : 08:27:25 AM
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Sara, I line the trays for two reasons. One is small pieces of herbs can fall through the grid. And second it makes for easy clean up for foods that may stick.
You are branching out with your drying and as "Martha says that's a good thing".
I also add dried mushroom slices to soups, stews, and sauces. If I add them to something like meatloaf I hydrate them first and either use the liquid or save it.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Nov 18 2017 : 10:58:44 AM
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| I've not tried lining the trays. However, I have spent a lot of time over the sink, cleaning off bits of stuck fruits! Maybe I'll try that with the next batch of apples. |
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Nov 18 2017 : 11:53:22 AM
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| I picked 12.5 pounds of bell peppers from my garden before the frost last night, so I'm going to try drying a few. The majority will go to the food closet next week, along with 12 pounds of eggplant. |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Dec 04 2017 : 07:17:54 AM
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Because of milder than usual weather some of my herbs are still green and growing. Today I'm drying sage, winter savory, and sweet marjoram.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Dec 05 2017 : 07:52:29 AM
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| Sara, last night I made a quick beef with barley soup. I ground up a handful of my dried mushrooms (a la YOU) and what a marvelous flavor boost they gave!! I am definitely going to keep dried mushrooms on hand at all times! The handy thing about them is that they aren't seasonal like all our other produce is, so I can always find them in the store! Thanks! |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Dec 05 2017 : 07:54:17 AM
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You're welcomed, Sara. Your soup sounds yummy.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Jan 02 2018 : 05:27:07 AM
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I was given a Christmas flower arrangement and when the pine needles started to fall and some flower pedals too I decided to dry what was still good. I took it apart and discarded what could not be saved. Laid the flowers out in a single layer in a large basket and put on top shelf in my closet. The closet has a ceiling vent so the flowers have warm air circulating around them. Checked on it today and all are drying. Don't know what I will do with them but I will have them when I do come up with an idea or give them to someone else to use.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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jillyd
True Blue Farmgirl
728 Posts
Jill
Saanichton
British Columbia
Canada
728 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2018 : 10:44:09 AM
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How about potpourri?
Jill
Farmgirl #6748 |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2018 : 11:09:04 AM
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Good idea Jill. I used to make my own potpourri but haven't done it in years.
Today in the produce marked-down bin I got little over 1/2 lb of chopped onions for 59 cents. Will dry them in the morning. It'll take me rest of the day to put up the groceries I bought and prep the veg before putting them in the fridge.
Bakery French bread was on sale buy 1 get one for a penny and I had a 50 cent customer reward so I got the two loaves. Will dry one in the oven for bread crumbs.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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jillyd
True Blue Farmgirl
728 Posts
Jill
Saanichton
British Columbia
Canada
728 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2018 : 11:25:08 AM
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I've never actually made potpourri myself, but it sounds like fun.
Jill
Farmgirl #6748 |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Jan 05 2018 : 11:39:40 AM
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When I made it I ordered supplies from San Francisco Herb Co; gathered & dried wild plants; dried flowers/herbs I grew and citrus slices. Added fragrance oils for lasting aroma. One year I added dried okra pods. Dried okra pods are good for a lot of crafts.
Also ground up dried flowers/herbs and glued to Styrofoam balls along with seeds, beans, and small flowers and buds. Put the balls in bowls or baskets for gifts. I think I might like to do that again.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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Edited by - YellowRose on Jan 05 2018 11:40:29 AM |
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2018 : 08:22:01 AM
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My favorite way to dry flowers is in a shoe box with silica beads. For decades I saved every little square packet of these that came in a box -- you'd be amazed how many come through your home once you start collecting them. I kept a shoe box full of them, and when I wanted to preserve a bouquet I laid the flowers in there and forgot about them.
I just threw that box out last month in a purge. :) |
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2018 : 08:27:40 AM
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I added my dried bell peppers to my chili beans last week. Thank you for the inspiration! Veggies in my world are feast to famine, and as I've trained myself to eat from the garden I have a tendency to not eat enough vegetables in the winter. By drying my overages in the summer, I now have what I need on hand year-round!
Recently I've been drying parsley. A bunch is so big from the store, and it always goes bad in the fridge. Now I use it in the recipe that caused me to buy it, then dry the rest, and its a long time before I have to buy another bunch.
Next summer I will dry more of my fresh basil. Home-dried is so much more flavorful than store bought! |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2018 : 08:31:13 AM
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Sara glad you liked the dried green peppers. Home dried veg and herbs are so handy.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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HodgeLodge
True Blue Farmgirl
662 Posts
Tiana
Berkeley Springs
WV
USA
662 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2018 : 09:04:28 AM
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I have my moms back porch filled with herbs drying on rope. I have jewelweed, lemon grass, sages, mints, lemon balm, and parsley. Great subject. The plan is to make soaps, and maybe some thai herbal balls for massage.
Farmgirl #4817-The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses. ~Hanna Rion
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Jan 23 2018 : 06:12:36 AM
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Drying two banana peels to grind into powder to put around roses for potassium. By the time I need potassium powder I hope to have dried more bananas.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Feb 20 2018 : 07:18:11 AM
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Drying crusty rolls in oven for croutons / when needed can be made into bread crumbs.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2018 : 11:00:01 AM
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| Drying 4 lovely shallots I found in my basket which were beginning to turn soft. |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2018 : 11:04:57 AM
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Sara, that's one of the things I like about drying we can dry trays at a time or just a little dab.
This is our third day of thunderstorms and off and on rain so my Yellow Rose Cottage has been quiet.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Feb 23 2018 : 12:02:48 PM
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| ...and since the dehydrator was going, I decided to try drying one of my pumpkins. I cut it in thin dice with the plan to toss it in a soup some day. |
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windypines
True Blue Farmgirl
4313 Posts
Michele
Bruce
Wisconsin
USA
4313 Posts |
Posted - Feb 24 2018 : 04:55:34 AM
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Started reading some of the pages here. Wow you all dry so many different things that i never would have thought of. I usually dry apples every fall, and this winter i dried a dehydrator full of blueberrys.
First time doing that. Made a mess, but that was partly my fault for not waiting till they were totally thawed out. Had started with one and a half bags of frozen blueberries. They took about a day to dry. I put them in granola and i really like it. So simple to do and a great way to clean up and use the fruits in my freezer. I do have liners for my trays, but i did not use them. I thought that would increase the drying time. Clean up was not too bad. lol. thanks for all the great ideas.
Farming in WI
Michele |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Feb 24 2018 : 05:34:10 AM
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Sara let us know how the pumpkin turns out.
Michele your dried blueberries sound good in the granola. Glad you found this thread we do like talking about what we are drying. Someone is always trying something new or coming up with a better way of doing it.
I line my trays with either wax paper or parchment paper depending on what I am drying for easy clean up. It also keeps small herb leaves from falling through the tray's grid.
The way I empty the trays is to dump it all out on a piece of wax paper then I can funnel it easily into jars or zip-lock bags.
For the last several days I have been air drying slices of small oranges I bought that I did not like the taste. It was a mix of oranges and something else. I will use the dried slices for fall decorations so they will not be wasted. When it stops raining I will finish drying the slices in my dehydrator.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Feb 26 2018 : 10:33:18 AM
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Oh my goodness Sara! If I made a point of not wasting a single slice of something on my farm....it makes my head spin!!!! Hahahahahah!!!
[right now you could go out on my farm and find, on the ground, walnuts, kiwi, oranges, mandarins, lemons, wild arugula, and rotten pumpkins!] |
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YellowRose
True Blue Farmgirl
7108 Posts
Sara
Paris
TX
USA
7108 Posts |
Posted - Feb 26 2018 : 10:42:01 AM
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Sara I don't have a farm - just a small yard - but I do lose things in the fridge and sometimes they have grown green hair before I find them. I try my best to be frugal with food but I have learnt to forgive myself when I have to throw it away because I forgot I had it.
I dried another banana peel and will have another to dry by tomorrow. Hope to have at least a cup of dried peels by the time I need them for my roses.
Sara~~~ FarmGirl Sister #6034 8/25/14
FarmGirl of the Month Sept 2015.
Lord put your arm around my shoulders and your hand over my mouth.
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saram
True Blue Farmgirl
521 Posts
Sara
Biggs
CA
USA
521 Posts |
Posted - Feb 28 2018 : 08:13:53 AM
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Its true, Sara, that the things we buy carry much more weight of duty than the things we find "free" outside. I felt bad yesterday about my honest reply to you, feeling that it may have come across a bit callous--if so, please accept my apology! I realize that each of us is working with a completely different set of resources, but every effort from every one of us is so very valid.
I had a bag of limp parsley on my counter for about four days before I finally threw it away yesterday. I took it out of the fridge to put it in the dehydrator--thinking of you--but other things became too pressing and I never got to it. I was disappointed in myself.:-( |
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Farm Kitchen: What are you drying? |
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What are you drying?
