Category Archives: cooking

8.20.12 Summer in a jar

Posted on August 20, 2012 by diary of a tomato

These jars are like a timeline of summer’s harvests. Ever since reading about Daphne’s refrigerator pickles, our refrigerator has been slowly filling up with them, added to as the season progresses. Left to right: baby carrots, Cincinnati Market radishes, and … Continue reading →

Posted in cooking, garden, preserving | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Mastering Food Preservation: Freezing & Canning Low-Acid Vegetables

Posted on August 17, 2012 by diary of a tomato

As a general rule, it’s the acidity of an ingredient that determines the method of canning that should be used. Low acid foods (ph greater than 4.6), such as vegetables and meat, require processing in a pressure canner in order … Continue reading →

Posted in cooking, preserving | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Roasted Eggplant Salad with Almonds & Mint

Posted on August 10, 2012 by diary of a tomato

“…here in California using Asian ingredients is part of what we do, part of a chef’s vocabulary. It’s not fusion, it’s Californian.” — Chef Jason Fox, Commonwealth, San Francisco Sometimes food is as much about a cook’s own history as … Continue reading →

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Mastering Food Preservation: On BPA in Canning Lids

Posted on August 9, 2012 by diary of a tomato

With growing concern over the presence of BPA in canned goods, the safety of canning lids used for home processing is also being questioned. From Alan Majka of the UMaine Cooperative Extension: I’ve received quite a few questions from consumers … Continue reading →

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Mastering Food Preservation: Drying & Herbs

Posted on August 3, 2012 by diary of a tomato

A line of jars aglow with colorful herbal vinegars greeted us as we arrived at our third Master Food Preserver training session. The evening’s focus was on drying and herbs, and the flavored vinegars were samples of just one of … Continue reading →

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Sole in Parchment with Fennel, Basil & Kalamata Olives

Posted on July 27, 2012 by diary of a tomato

We were members of Eastman’s CSF (Community Supported Fishery) several years ago and, like our fellow shareholders, came to rely on them as a source of local seafood. The CSF has since closed, but left us knowing what fresh fish … Continue reading →

Posted in cooking | Tagged , , , | 16 Comments

Quick Summer Pickles

Posted on July 6, 2012 by diary of a tomato

Preserving a bit of summer really doesn’t get any easier than this. I’ve been pickling for some years now, but usually the canned or lacto-fermented versions. I’d shied away from making refrigerator pickles with the fear that they wouldn’t store … Continue reading →

Posted in cooking, preserving | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment