Food 2019 Amateur Farm and Garden thread

Four, 24"X 18", 4.5" deep pans of zucchini lasagna frozen away. First 300+ grape tomatoes on the dehydrator. Lots of cucumbers. Gonna pick 60-80 very large bell peppers tomorrow (once the grandkids are gone), make a few big pans of stuffed peppers. Then it's on to eggplants and green beans.
 
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Stroke them a few times before they go in the freezer, Eddie. Not too much though. Just enough to turn the little pricks into bumps.
 
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Four, 24"X 18", 4.5" deep pans of zucchini lasagna frozen away. First 300+ grape tomatoes on the dehydrator. Lots of cucumbers. Gonna pick 60-80 very large bell peppers tomorrow (once the grandkids are gone), make a few big pans of stuffed peppers. Then it's on to eggplants and green beans.
what do you do with the dehydrated tomatoes. I made 8 quarts one year, and havent used them once.
 
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what do you do with the dehydrated tomatoes. I made 8 quarts one year, and havent used them once.

We dehydrate the grape tomatoes down to leathery not hard, then bag and freeze. We get them out maybe a quart at a time to keep in the fridge. We eat them as a dry snack, add to soups, Italian dishes and now the rosemary focaccia stuffing fly suggested at CHristmas :heart:. I keep some at work, add to various left-overs. And give my adult children a baggie of them here and there.
I like dried tomatoes. We usually dry 3-4k of them each season - we've counted(by the average tray of 40, not individually :) ) Dried cucumbers and zucchini both are pretty sucky. If you like honeydew melon, dry some 1.5-2cm thick slices of that - shit is heavenly, flavor isn't changed, just intensified.

I'm on stay-cation this week so I am cooking and freezing a bunch of stuff while off Started two 1/2 gallon jars of of whole garlic dills for the wife last night.

:( Garden clumsiness, 8 leeks crushed. Now residing in freezer as a gallon of chopped leeks.
 
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We dehydrate the grape tomatoes down to leathery not hard, then bag and freeze. We get them out maybe a quart at a time to keep in the fridge. We eat them as a dry snack, add to soups, Italian dishes and now the rosemary focaccia stuffing fly suggested at CHristmas :heart:. I keep some at work, add to various left-overs. And give my adult children a baggie of them here and there.
I like dried tomatoes. We usually dry 3-4k of them each season - we've counted(by the average tray of 40, not individually :) ) Dried cucumbers and zucchini both are pretty sucky. If you like honeydew melon, dry some 1.5-2cm thick slices of that - shit is heavenly, flavor isn't changed, just intensified.

I'm on stay-cation this week so I am cooking and freezing a bunch of stuff while off Started two 1/2 gallon jars of of whole garlic dills for the wife last night.

:( Garden clumsiness, 8 leeks crushed. Now residing in freezer as a gallon of chopped leeks.
I know we discussed it but I forgot. Do they taste like sun dried tomatoes from the store? Man, I could eat an entire bag of those things.
 
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I know we discussed it but I forgot. Do they taste like sun dried tomatoes from the store? Man, I could eat an entire bag of those things.
mine did. You can spice em too, i add a little bit of oregano and sea salt
 
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I know we discussed it but I forgot. Do they taste like sun dried tomatoes from the store? Man, I could eat an entire bag of those things.
PRetty much the same thing. We've done paste tomatoes, beefsteaks,etc. All very similar once dried down.

@fly - so you suggested the rosemary foccacia stuffing at CHristmas, my daughter showed up with a bag of fresh rosemary sprigs from a bartending gig she had done . . . . the stuffing was fantastic and now I have a rosemary plant that looks like DOn King's hair from one of those sprigs. :p THanks man!
 
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Despite it's snowy reputation, MIchigan is the #7 pepper producer in the USA. Not bad for a 4.5 month growing season for warm-weather stuff. I picked 86 of the big ones, will go back for their slightly less burly siblings in another week or so. Then hopefully a secondary crop as they branch
out more. 257 gr(9 oz) for that one pepper.
9144
9145
9146
 
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50 pounds of tomatoes, 30 pounds of peppers, 25 pounds of onions. Just finishing up a long day of salsa-making now. Canning the last 12 quarts
 
this may be the first year im actually coming out financially positive on my garden.

costs:

14 dollars in seeds
15 dollars in copper fungicide, that i didnt actually use
time

didnt need new
I take back this statement.

we made roughly 40 dollars for 16 man hours of work. Thats a terrible deal.

Logic: if one were to buy the same amount of salsa, it would cost 40 bucks.
 
I take back this statement.

we made roughly 40 dollars for 16 man hours of work. Thats a terrible deal.

Logic: if one were to buy the same amount of salsa, it would cost 40 bucks.
12 quarts of salsa for $40 that isn't terrible? Sign me the fuck up.

The salsa I like costs $8 for a half quart from the store.
 
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ehh, im actually not that impressed this year with my batches :/

I was wrong about the pepper ratio. I dunno why it worked in previous years, but this year its way off, i bascially have hashed peppers with some tomatoes.
 
this may be the first year im actually coming out financially positive on my garden.

costs:

14 dollars in seeds
15 dollars in copper fungicide, that i didnt actually use
time

didnt need new
Well, hopefully you have more stuff to harvest to bring that further into the black. I spent a bit more on the garden - about $300-350 for all seeds, biological pest controls(ladybugs, nematodes, praying mantis cases) and fertilizers. I just ran a rough count, I'm anticipating $1400-1500 in produce @ realistic retail cost, not considering the fresh, organic factor. I may have more man-hours into it though, as I don't use any plastic mulch or lab type chemicals.
 
Well, hopefully you have more stuff to harvest to bring that further into the black. I spent a bit more on the garden - about $300-350 for all seeds, biological pest controls(ladybugs, nematodes, praying mantis cases) and fertilizers. I just ran a rough count, I'm anticipating $1400-1500 in produce @ realistic retail cost, not considering the fresh, organic factor. I may have more man-hours into it though, as I don't use any plastic mulch or lab type chemicals.
I found a whole nest of wild mantises on the other side of my property this year! The biggest one was as long as my hand. Me and the kids moved most of them over to the garden.