Pickled Garlic…

I used the recipe out of Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon to preserve some garlic cloves I bought in bulk.

Pickled Garlic

about 12 heads of garlic

2 t dried oregano (preferably organic)

2 t sea salt

2 T whey (can use 2 t of additional sea salt if you don’t have any weigh)

1)  Place garlic heads in the oven at 300 degrees until heads open and cloves can be easily removed.

2)  Place cloves in a wide-mouthed quart jar.

3)  Add oregano, sea salt, whey, and cover with filtered water leaving at least 1 inch headspace below the top of the jar.

4)  Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before placing in refrigerator.

It is winter here in Kansas and our house isn’t quite warm enough to ferment on the countertops.  So, I wrapped the jar in a tea towel and set it on top of our dvr to keep warm which actually seemed to work.

Now I can grab a couple cloves, crush ‘em, and toss ‘em into whatever dish I am preparing.

 

Freezing Sweet Potatoes

This is a really great way to preserve sweet potatoes to use in casseroles or pie if you do not have a cellar.

Wash sweet potatoes that have been cured for at least one week.  To cure sweet potatoes: store the fresh potatoes in a warm room in the house for 14 days. Curing develops the flavor and allows for longer storage.

Peel and cook the sweet potatoes until almost tender in water, steam, a pressure cooker, or the oven. 

Let stand at room temperature until cool.  Cut into chunks, slices, or mash.

To prevent darkening, dip whole sweet potato or slices for 5 seconds in a solution of 1/2 cup lemon juice to 1 quart water.  To keep mashed sweet potatoes from darkening, mix 2 tablespoons of orange or lemon juice with each quart of mashed sweet potatoes. 

Pack into containers, leaving 1 inch headspace.  Make sure all the air is squeezed out of the bag.  Seal and freeze.