25 gallons

Filling a 5 gallon bucket.

This post was originally titled "15 gallons", but that was before I checked 3 of the 6 maples trees that we are tapping for sap.  I have run out of 5 gallon buckets (used to receive sap from the 2 gallon tree buckets) and am busy cleaning other containers in our home so that we do not lose some of the sap from the trees.  One of the 5 gallon buckets has already been emptied into my large kettles on my stove.  Clearly (ahem), the initially boiling of sap is an outdoor activity--my hair is a little wavier, my indoor plants love the balmy atmosphere that the sap boiling has created, and I am now left with the task of wiping ceilings and windows down.  In the works for this weekend is an outdoor fire pit to boil down the sap.  I am on the hunt for a suitable kettle to use outdoors and hoping for good weather, no blizzards please.

Unrelated, be equally important:  my seed orders have been placed and Kelly (our generous greenhouse owner) is awaiting our seeds for starting.  We're coordinating our efforts to avoid duplication and I am eager to try some new varieties from Sand Hill Preservation and Hudson Valley Seed Library.

Hope this Leap Day is treating you well!

Soule Spile

Our first season of sugaring has begun.  My husband purchased a variety of spiles from our local hardware store and we spent a few hours over the weekend selecting, drilling and tapping our maples trees.

We are enjoying these books:

Maple Syrup Season by Ann Purmell

Sugartime: The Hidden Pleasures of Making Maple Syrup with a Primer for the Novice Sugarer by Susan Carol Hauser

And enjoying these online resources:

edible Grande Traverse  ~ this resource discusses the health benefits of maple syrup and has beautiful pictures.

www.eataweed.blogspot.com  ~ they have a lovely post on the Sap Moon.

My mother recently gave me her beautifully kept 7th edition of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook (circa 1942) and I was delighted to see many recipes that use maple sugar.

I like how Will Weaver describes maple sugaring in his forward to Sugartime:
"It is more than the work of one night or one week; its rhythms are measured in sunlight and shadow, in the tilt of the earth's axis and in the ancient memories of trees."

I think of his statement as my family adds a new venture to our path of living mindfully and enjoying these moments on our land.

Have you tried sugaring?  Do you have a favorite maple recipe to share?  I would love to read about it!

Preserve: October 2011

Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkin

Small batch preserving of the produce we grow or purchase locally is part of my heritage.  My paternal grandmother supplied us with her amazing canned pears, frozen baked beans, hot tomato juice, and frozen pie crusts that I swear multiplied by themselves in her chest freezer.  My mother made strawberry freezer jam that I loved as a child.  Then, with busy work schedules and endless convenience foods--who cared to take the time to grow and preserve your own?

I welcome the cool fall temperatures that make it tolerable to spend most of the day tending to a hot oven and stove.

Our crop of Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkins from this source did not do as well as we would have liked, so I'm making a trip to the local farmer's market for more pumpkins.

We received Prune Plums from my dad and stepmom's trees and the apples are from our orchard.  There's something about preserving with the foods we have grown or from our loved ones' hard work that makes it even more special.

Here's what I'll be preserving this week:
Roasted Pumpkin:  http://www.elanaspantry.com/how-to-roast-a-pumpkin-in-10-steps/
Italian Prune Plum Jam:  http://threecleversisters.com/2011/09/26/italian-prune-plum-jam/
Slow Cooker Applesauce (recipe courtesy of Sheila):
8-10 apples, peeled, cored and quartered
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp water
sweetener of your choice to taste
cinnamon if you desire
Cook on low for 5-6 hours

What are you preserving this week?