Apricot Update, County Fair and Nectarines

Family vacation was all too short. We had a few days after returning from Crater Lake, which gave me time to check up on some of my experiments.

I will not share the recipe I used in my attempt to make apricot wine. Not yet, anyway. It definitely turned to vinegar by the time I was able to bottle it. It was a disappointment, but I do have uses for vinegar, and it sure looks pretty in those clear flip-top bottles.

Too much delay getting the wine into the carboy, plus too much air at the top of the carboy, meant too much exposure to air in the fermenting process. 

The apricot wine-turned-vinegar sure looks pretty in the bottle, though.

I don’t know if there were flaws in the recipe I used, but I suspect operator error—too much air and too little sugar. I’ll have the chance to try again though. Our nectarine tree is loaded with fruit that can’t be ignored much longer. I’ll keep you posted.

One of my apricot brandy experiments is still steeping away, though the eight-week process is nearing its end. The other two turned out rather well, though with a lot of apricot sediment that probably wouldn’t have occurred with dried apricots. I honestly don’t know which recipe I prefer, though I’m leaning toward the first, simple recipe. The sugar finally mixed with the vodka and apricots, and it ended up with a pleasant, liqueur-like consistency that was just what I was looking for.

In case you think I’m obsessed with alcohol, I did do other things with those apricots—roll upon roll of apricot leather, dried apricots…did I mention the freezer preserves?

Tray upon tray of apricot leather.

A couple of jars of apricot freezer preserves.

On another note, one of my recent Amazon purchases is my favorite thing right now. I used to dry herbs by hanging them on a hat rack, but I decided to let my husband’s hats have their space and got this herb-drying rack instead. I am happy both with how it works and with how it looks. It adds a certain charm to the kitchen hall in our Victorian home.

My new drying rack is mounted and in use.

Vacation was over all too soon, though. Hard on the heels of our brief time of relaxation came the county fair.

Last year, we were about to set off on a month-long, cross-country trek, so entering things in the county fair wasn’t high on our list of priorities. This year, I persuaded several of my family members to enter items (the lure of premium money helped) and gathered everything I could find to enter myself.

The fair hasn’t officially opened as I write this, so I don’t know all our results, but I did get this peek at one of my photos. Unexpectedly, a photo I took of those apricots received the Judge’s Choice ribbon. It’s an honor I’ve never received in my life before, and I’m kind of proud of it. Even though our fair is a small one, there’s a lot of competition from some amazing photos. Turns out those apricots were good for something I never imagined!

All those apricots!

Proud as can be of that ribbon!

After two days of 100+ heat, today is forecast to be gusty with a high of 91. We’re all sending up a prayer that no stray sparks start any fires in these ideal wildfire conditions. Meanwhile, the forecast of high winds means I need to get outside and pick the nectarines—ripe or not—off the overloaded branches of our tree before those branches break. In the seven years since we planted that tree, I’ve never seen an abundance like this. It’s a blessing, but also means more time up to my elbows in fruit.

Better get started.

 

Fermenting…Again

 

Nearly three years. Nearly three years. I can’t believe it’s been that long since I poked away at this blog. So much has happened—and yet not so much.

I always think I’m going to be so productive during the summer. After all, I’m down to one job instead of two, and homeschool has slacked off, if not stopped, for a couple of months. It doesn’t happen, though. Summer rushes by just as quickly as any other season, maybe more so.

It’s July, and I’m still trying to find my footing after an exhausting spring. My house is a mess. My garden is a mess. My flowerbeds are a mess. I’ve gained even more weight. I’m a full-fledged member of the sandwich generation. My two chickens are living in a dog kennel because I haven’t had time or energy to fix their coop.

Despite all that, though, I’ve been a fermenting powerhouse. It’s as if all my homesteading instincts that get bottled up during the winter months have come pouring out at once. Yes, I’m still making my own vinegar. (Did I ever mention the vinegar?)

I managed to make my most successful batch of kvass ever last week, along with a successful batch of old-fashioned ginger ale. My grandmothers never made ginger ale, as far as I know, but if they did, they would have made it just like this old-fashioned method.

It's already time to make some more ginger ale and kvass.

Now, I’ve got my own creation in the works, a strawberry-apple ale using the same method. I’ve made apple ale before with good success, so we’ll see how this goes.

My attempt at strawberry-apple ale and homemade sourdough, side by side.

On top of all that, I’m back at creating my own sourdough starter, this time with help from The Perfect Loaf blog.

I will admit that I haven’t always followed his directions perfectly.
Once or twice I’ve forgotten to tend it for a couple of days, and it has formed what one blogger colorfully called “hootch.” (Yeah, fermentation is a natural process that comes with certain side effects, some of them delicious.)

Recently fed, this sourdough starter is just beginning to bubble again.

No worries, though. As long as it hasn’t gotten too far, you can stir that liquid back into the batch and feed away without any negative side effects. My sourdough bread won’t get you drunk, I promise.

I haven’t made my first loaf yet, but I’ve used the discard in a couple of recipes and…so far, so sourdough. One of my favorites so far is this Sourdough Cinnamon Quick Bread from Farmhouse on Boone. No photos, I’m afraid. It was demolished far too quickly.

Now, heaven help me, I’m researching barley tea, apple presses and traditional wine-making methods. Somebody save me from myself.