Addendum

Last week I showed the pictures of the pears ripening in the basement and I didn't exactly explain that and some of you may have wondered why. If you did or even if you didn't, hear is the skinny on canning pears!

 You can't let pears ripen on the tree or else the will ripen and brown from the inside out and not be edible. So, you harvest them when they are hard and put them in a cool, dry place in one layer and check them until they give a little when you press your thumb near the stem. These pears turn from green to yellow and you want to catch them when they still have a hint of green. Terry and Bev have 2 pear trees and the last time they produced fruit was 4 years ago and they have been eating canned pears from those trees for that entire 4 years! If you want to try it yourself, here is the recipe!

Yield: 2-3 lbs of pears per quart 

Prepare a bowl with about 5 cups water and 3 tbsp lemon juice (doesn't need to be fresh lemon). After you have the ripened pears, peel, core, and quarter them, and be sure to remove all brown spots. Immediately after slicing, place them in the lemon juice water to prevent browning. There should be enough water to cover the pears so just add more according to how much you need. 

Make a light syrup of 5 1/4 cups water and 2 1/4 cups sugar. Heat syrup so that the sugar is dissolved and ladle the pears out of the lemon water into the light syrup and heat until they are hot throughout (a light simmer). Pack the hot pears into sterilized jars and ladle the hot syrup over the pears leaving 1/2" headspace. Adjust with 2 piece lids. Hot water process quart jars for 25 minutes and pints for 20 minutes. 

Good luck! You can buy pears from the store and I am sure it would be less work cutting out brown and buggy spots, but the good thing is that we know our trees are not sprayed and are 100% organic. 

This Saturday, August 31st, we will have at the market:

 - swiss chard

- beets

- carrots

-  lettuce

- green beans

- grape jelly

- red currant jelly

- black currant jam

- cherry tomatoes

- flowers

- sunflowers

- red cabbage

- tuscan kale

- curly kale

 - green onions

- assorted peppers (green, jalapeno, hungarian wax)

- cilantro

- parsley

Happy Friday!

It's Friday which is harvest day for us at Endeavor Farm. Terry is always up early and we try to pick whatever we can before it gets too hot. He is picking beans as we speak! We usually have to wait until late afternoon or after dinner to pick some of the more delicate things like cilantro and parsley.

Our sunflowers really took off this year and people love seeing them and buying them at the market.
Our tallest plant is 9' - 6"!

 

The garlic has been drying and is almost done. It is certainly edible and we have been selling it but for winter storage, we will keep them hanging for a few more weeks to make sure they are all dried out. We used all of the Leningrad variety for green garlic this year, so are just selling Music, German Porcelain, and Italian Purple Stripe. Please let me know if you aren't in the area and would like some shipped to you!

 

Canning season is far from over and this week Hannah and Bev made 40 jars of salsa! They both now have pears ripening in their basements to can once they're ready. Canned pears are not to be underestimated! The sweetness in the winter is so delicious and they are beautiful as well. 

 

 

 

The final product!

Please come see us at the market tomorrow on Saturday, August 24th. We will be selling:

 - swiss chard

- beets

- carrots

-  lettuce

- arugula

- green beans

- cucumbers

- grape jelly

- red currant jelly

- black currant jam

- cherry tomatoes

- flowers

- sunflowers

- red cabbage

- tuscan kale

- curly kale

 - green onions

- assorted peppers (green, jalapeno, hungarian wax)

- cilantro

- parsley

Market

This Saturday at the market is the annual Corn Celebration. There are great activities for kids where they can paint an ear of corn and there will be grilling and samples available. It's always a great event that draws a lot of people so please come enjoy some corn and come get any of the following from Endeavor Farm!

Saturday, August 17th

- kale (tuscan & curly)

- swiss chard

- beets 

- carrots

- green beans

- parsley

- basil

- green onions

- arugula 

- salad mix 

- spinach

- garlic

- flower arrangements

- sunflower stems

- grape jelly 

- red currant jelly

- black currant jam

Above are the results of my pickling the other day!

Farm Update

Between the recipes and jam and pickling season I haven't given you a good update on what's actually happening in the garden theses days! The garlic has been harvested and hung and is almost finished curing.  Most of the work in the garden is weeding and it never seems like the job is done. Thanks to Hannah's help this year, the weeds are under control a bit better. She is great to have around this year to help out and make sure we are on top of it.

The flowers are huge and doing great and have been selling really well at the market this year. We sell arrangements for $5 and sunflowers for $2/stem. Sometimes the bees even come with us to the market!

Cucumbers are ending, and tomatoes are starting. Eating the first tomato out of the garden is always one of my favorite moments. This time of year I eat tomatoes for breakfast lunch and dinner because I know the season is always shorter than I want it to be.

Our leftover tomato plants that we composted are taking over the pile and producing some fruit! 

As fall approaches it's also time to plant some of the cool weather crops. We are able to plant lettuce, radishes, spinach, cilantro, and parsley. 

 Radishes

Spinach

Check back later this week for what we'll have at the market. I'm off to make pickled carrots, dilly beans, and bread and butter pickles!

Market

Please forgive me for the short post this week, but here is what we'll have at the market tomorrow. The weather looks like it will be perfect. Hope to see you there!!

Saturday, August 3rd:

- kale (tuscan & curly)

- swiss chard

- beets 

- carrots

- cucumbers

- green beans

- parsley

- basil

- green onions

- arugula 

- salad mix 

- garlic!

- flower arrangements

- sunflower stems

- grape jelly 

- red currant jelly

- black currant jam