latest posts – Page 13 – Planet B Gardens

homemade apple cider

What to do with small, blemished apples not pretty enough for pies or eating whole? I’m making apple cider. If you have a juicer, this is super simple. Wash the apples. Quarter the apples and throw them into the juicer — skins, cores, stems and all. Run the apples through the juicer, and that’s it. The cider will last a couple weeks in the fridge. It will ferment naturally, so be aware that you could get a bit of a buzz once that process happens. It could also get a bit sour — let your taste buds be your guide for when the cider is no longer drinkable. You could

October 7, 2015

lawn to garden

This year I wasn’t able to create a full-size garden due to the poor quality of the soil, but next year I’ll be ready. There is a sunny, level section of lawn between the cabin and the shop that is perfect for expanding to a larger garden. To get the plot ready for next spring, I started by mowing the grass short. Then we spread a couple of inches of composted manure on top. Over the compost we placed a layer of cardboard and wet it down. Once the cardboard was saturated, we added more compost, soil, and dried, shredded leaves, straw, pine needles, and mulch on top. I’ll continue adding kitchen

October 6, 2015

hand pies for freezing

Large pies work well for freezing in my experience, but they take up a lot of room and are more suited for a larger crowd. Hand pies seem like the perfect solution. They can be tucked in nooks and crannies in the freezer, and I can take out as many servings as I have people when I’m ready to bake them. The process starts the same as for large apple pies. If you’re preparing a large batch of apples for pies (or dehydrating) I highly recommend investing in a hand-crank apple peeler and corer. It’s fast, fun, and you get perfectly uniform slices. Once you’ve run the apples through the

October 5, 2015

unboxing the brushmaster

Last fall I hauled three truckloads of maple prunings to the dump. They would have made excellent mulch. I see no such waste in the future with the arrival of the Brushmaster. With 10 acres of trees that need tending, and lots of twigs, branches, leaves, pine needles, and woody vegetable stems from the garden, a chipper/shredder is likely a wise investment. It was difficult to find enough info online to decide which would be the best chipper/shredder for what I need. All had major pros and cons. In the end, I decided to go with a light commercial grade so I’d have enough power to take care of most

October 4, 2015

apple butter

First time making apple butter. Apple butter has no dairy in it despite the name. The end result is supposed to spread like butter, but be made of only apples, sugar, a touch of salt, and spices. The recipe I used also called for apple cider vinegar during the simmering process. I started by washing and slicing the apples into quarters, keeping the skins and core attached. The quartered apples went into a large stock pot with 4 cups water and 2 cups apple cider vinegar. After bringing to a boil and simmering for 20 minutes or so, the apples were soft. I put them into a food mill a

October 4, 2015

ripe, delicious fall apples

Friends Sheryl & Dan’s apple orchard is ripe with what seems like an infinity of apples right now. I dropped by yesterday to gather apples for eating, making apple hand pies for freezing and apple butter for canning. The trees were so laden with ripe apples, many were dropping to the ground as we walked the orchard. We picked those up to add to the already full box. Dan had the excellent suggestion of adding apple cider to my list to make use of the surplus. I have no doubt that Dan’s joy and enthusiasm for farming is a key ingredient for making his orchards a success!

fires out, cayennes in

Thankfully the wildfires in the area are out, and we’ve had a little rain over the last month to clear the air. During the height of the smoke we escaped to Colorado for 10 days for an impromptu visit with friends. After that I had to go to San Francisco on business for another 10 days, so most of September was spent traveling. I hated to leave the garden knowing it wouldn’t survive without daily watering, but with the smoke and lack of sunshine it wasn’t clear how well September would have produced anyway. I was able to harvest some ripe cayenne peppers and a couple of quarts of tomatoes

October 4, 2015

vine-smoked chipotles

Wildfires continue to burn throughout the area, making it dark in the middle of the day. This picture was taken at noon. Most of the garden leaves are starting to curl, yellow, and drop off after more than two weeks of nearly constant smoke. The tomatoes have pretty much stopped ripening — except for a few determined black cherry tomatoes. Cayenne and jalapenos are the exception. They continue to ripen slowly and the plants still look relatively healthy. Can chipotles be smoked on the vine?

pickled tomatoes experiment

Smoke from the wildfires made for a change in plans from outdoor to indoor work today. The only place to be is indoors with windows closed and air filters running on high. Outside looks (and smells) like nuclear winter at the moment. Makes it hard to catch your breath. I had a couple of pints of fresh-picked cherry tomatoes, a few jalapeno and cayenne peppers, and a sweet onion that needed to be eaten or preserved, so decided to try pickling them. I’ve done pickled peppers before, but not sure how the fresh taste of tomatoes will hold up after time in the jar. Tomatoes tend to ripen a few

August 24, 2015

knäkkebrød

Traditional Swedish knäkkebrød is a great option if you’re looking for a high-fiber, low calorie, and low gluten alternative to regular bread. I’ve been buying the Wasa brand for years, and finally decided to make some from scratch. I like the result much better, and it’s fairly easy to make. First, gather your ingredients: 1 1/2 teaspoons dry yeast 2 cups lukewarm water 2 teaspoons salt 1 tablespoon fennel or cumin seed, crushed 1 cup coarse rye meal 2 1/2 cups dark rye flour 1/2 cup rolled oats 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (more as needed to make a firm dough) Mix ingredients in order of the list above.

August 23, 2015