Cinda Webb

As part of the Master Food Preserver class, we went to Hollywood for a class with Chef Ernest Miller of the Farmer’s Kitchen. He served us some fermented jalapeños in a queso dish. The peppers were spicy but did not have the lasting burn of a typical hot pepper. I decided to try to ferment some as well. I used the directions from the Well Preserved blog. It took about two weeks but now they are ready for salsa and other spicy dishes.

Although I usually like to buy fruit at the farmers’ market, I do make some exceptions. Cherries were on sale at Whole Foods and if I bought a whole case I would get the case discount on top of the sale price. So, eighteen pounds found their way into my cart and followed me home. The result: 8 half-pints of jam, 4 pints of cherries in red wine, and 4 pints of brandied cherries. For the jam, I made 4 jars using Pomona’s Pectin and 4 using a recipe that called for cooking an apple with the jam to thicken it. They both turned out fine but the jam with apple took about twice as long to thicken as the other. Both had about the same amount of sugar.

Inspired by my fermented jalapeños, I decided to try a different kind of fermentation: honey wine. Using Sandor Ellix Katz’s book Wild Fermentation I started a batch in my decorative Ball Jar on July 18th and moved it to a gallon jar with an air lock on July 23rd. It is still bubbling away.

I usually help with photography at our church’s Vacation Bible School and to thank all of the photographers this year I made them a s’more gift bag with homemade graham crackers and homemade marshmallows.