Canning with Mehu-Liisa

We have been out to our favorite cherry and blueberry farms this past week or so. The cherries were Queen Anne varieties. Beautiful and flavorful but not too abundant due to some challenging spring weather. The dark sweet cherries were very minimal and were picked out before we got back from our summer vacation on the Oregon Coast last week. Oh, well. That means they will taste that much better next year!

Blueberries seem to have come on well. We did our first pick yesterday at Bear Fruit (541-995-3445, 521-7721) in Harrisburg. Not at their peak yet but still were able to pick about 20 lbs in short time. It was a beautiful evening with a slight breeze (we got there a bit late but they graciously allowed us to pick as long as we needed). A bull frog was GUNKin’ in the irrigation pond and a small green heron was fishing in a slough.

   
We will freeze this lot and get another for our cherished Blueberry jam later this week. I will also get a bunch for juicing and syrup making. Blueberries are easy to freeze. Place them on a cookie sheet and freeze flat for a while then place frozen berries in freezer bags. Easy to add to muffins and pancakes later in the year!

Blueberries shouldn’t be washed (unless they were sprayed) before processing as they have special qualities that may be lost with washing. They are known for exceptional health benefits.

Mehu-Liisa Tip:

I will process a batch of Blueberries for about 50% of the regular time. At that point I drain the juice into jars and cap them. The pulp left in the colander (fruit basket) is then run through a foley food mill into a heavy bottomed sauce pan. I then process for Blueberry fruit spread using Pomona Pectin. If necessary, to correct the consistency or to increase the amount, I will add some of the fresh juice I have just drawn off.

You can also process the usual amount of time, foley mill the pulp at that point and add juice as above (you will have to add more juice at this point to get that great Blueberry flavor). Or, compost the left over pulp and make beautiful clear jelly with the juice using the Pomona Pectin.

Both of these methods work for cherries as well.

Take care and as always give a ring if you have any questions. 800-450-6081

Daniel

Strawberries are late this year in the Willamette Valley around Eugene, OR. For that matter, so are all the other berries and stone fruits. We have been enjoying hot, sunny mornings u-picking strawberries at various farms along the Willamette: Bear Fruit in Harrisburg; Hansen’s fruit farm in Creswell; Still Point Farm in Veneta. Berries have been from good to better quality. Still, none of those exquisite, dark hyper-strawberry flavored gems that one can find every few years when the combination of moisture and heat has been just right.

We have picked enough berries to freeze 30 quarts, jam 30 cups and make several pies, galettes and shortcakes. This will allow approx. 2 ½ quarts of frozen berries and 2 ½ cups of jam to be consumed every month until next berry season. I think for our family that is enough. Especially when I add in all the other fruits we will be processing. I try not to overdue the amount I put up so that nothing goes unused. Still, I try to factor in extras for gifts. There’s nothing like giving some tasty result of your labors to a friend or relative so they can, as Greg Brown says, “taste a little bit of the summer…”.

Also, prices have not been bad…very affordable in fact, even organic. No artificially inflated food prices when you buy local and support local agriculture.

Mehu-Liisa Tips:

1.) Freezing berries for later juicing:

I like to freeze strawberries and other small, fragile berries (raspberries, gooseberries, currants,etc.) for later juicing with other fruit. I will toss a quart or two of these frozen berries on top of the primary fruit during processing (peaches, pears, apples, white grapes, etc.). There is no need to defrost the berries. It is best to place them on top so they thaw slowly and drain through the other fruit giving a good blending of flavors.

2.) Juicing strawberries

Strawberry juice is very thick and silky. It is lower in sugar than when fresh and can be sweetened during processing by adding your choice of sweetener to the fruit in the basket prior to steaming. Although strawberries are very juicy, it takes quite a few berries to produce enough juice for consumption. For this reason, I like to use the juice as a base for other products:

a.) Jelly is easily made from strawberry juice and can be made in small batches throughout the year if you want to cut down on processing time. I use Pomona low-methoxyl citrus pectin when I make jams and jellies. With Pomona you can make the jam/jelly as sweet as you prefer (including no sugar) as the setting process is not dependent on sugar. For jelly making, I suggest not sweetening the fruit in the basket before processing but rather to sweeten when you make the jelly.

b.) Syrup (a flavored simple syrup actually) can be made from the juice by adding sugar in a 1:1 ratio and bringing briefly to a boil to dissolve sugar. Do not overboil or the syrup will crystalize. Let this cool, then bottle and store in fridge. This can then be added to seltzer water for a very refreshing drink. This syrup can be used in mixed drinks as well (alcohol).

Well, I hope folks are getting out and enjoying the start of the season. As always please let me know if you have any questions regarding the juicer and its uses: 800-450-6081

Take Care and Good Juicing

Daniel