Fruits of Summer

I have discovered one big problem with reading other people's blogs: fruit envy. I was perfectly happy and satisfied with the delicious melons from my CSA, the unique flavor of the prickly pear fruit, and my last few peaches in the freezer from last season. But then, bloggers in other parts of the country started writing about their delicious berries. Abbie with her 'here today, gone tomorrow' wineberries, Eco 'Burban Mom and her mountain of strawberries, and Wendy's huge blueberry patch. I remember seeing more fruit posts but I can't remember which blogs they were on and I don't dare go searching because everyone was also making pie with their fruit, and my keyboard can only deal with so much drool at one time.

Last week, one of the grocery stores had a great price on organic strawberries, blueberries, and cherries. While none were local, I love these fruits and could not resist the bargain. The strawberries are almost local since they come from just one state away, but the blueberries and cherries were probably from the north. I assuage my guilt with the comforting knowledge that they did not have to cross an ocean to get to me, however.

We spent the week eating fresh fruit salads of various combinations as well as each fruit individually. I also browsed and drooled my way through a stack of food preservation books to find interesting recipes worthy of my fruity delights. The next stop was a grocery store to pick up a few ingredients I didn't have on hand. This is possibly where the insanity began.

As I walked into the produce area, I saw a case of bananas on the floor. I rarely buy bananas because of the distance they travel as well as the policies of the major banana companies. But, a whole case marked at $5 was too good a deal for me to pass up. As I examined the bananas, expecting the usual highly overripe odor, I was shocked to see most were in perfect condition. Some, in fact, still had green tinges to the skin. I carried the box over to the gentleman stocking the produce and asked if the box was marked correctly. He indicated it was but I could get no further details about why it was marked down as my brain has proved resistant to picking up other languages.

Bananas have become a big part of our diet this week. Before you condemn me for purchasing out-of-country fruit, let me share some interesting numbers. The bananas came from Colima, Mexico. According to a mileage calculator, this is approximately 995 miles from me. I did not note the exact source of the blueberries and cherries, but I know many of the blueberries sold here come from Oregon - which is actually farther from my home than Colima! The banana company is also 100% Mexican owned and operated, rather than a US corporation operating in another country.

Yesterday, it was time to deal with the berries and cherries. It should have been relatively easy to do this, but I have this incredible knack for complicating things. Was I willing to make a mixed fruit jelly or perhaps one jam for each kind of fruit and call it a day? No. I wanted to try a wide variety of recipes. Translation: washing dishes over and over again, waiting to sterilize the next set of jars while the previous batch was processing in the water bath canner, slaving in a hot, steamy kitchen for 10 hours straight. Yes, I am an idiot.

This marathon canning session utilized the same hot water throughout, however, meaning it actually used less energy to do all the canning than it would have if the canning was spread over several days. I was quick to realize that I could clean all the fruit at once, even though they were used in different recipes. This also helped me realize that I needed to cut a couple of recipes from the list due to insufficient quantities of fruit, even though I halved most of the recipes.

Here is a list of what I made yesterday, along with a basic description of each. I cannot reproduce the recipes here due to copyright laws.

Italian Strawberry Syrup - this is not complete yet as the strawberries first ferment with yeast for a few days before being strained and cooked with a sugar syrup and lemon juice. From The Well-Stocked Pantry: Preserving Fruits & Vegetables by Carol W. Costenbader.

Maple Strawberry Smooch - a yummy strawberry sauce with apple juice, maple syrup, and lemon juice. Just a spoonful drizzled over a bowl of oatmeal or fruit salad would add lovely color and flavor. From the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.

Blueberries Pickled in Molasses - this has got to be the strangest pickling recipe I've ever seen. Blueberries, cloves, and lemon zest are left out to ferment and sour in molasses for several days. It's supposed to yield a tasty relish but my taste today indicates the cloves are too strong. From The Joy of Pickling by Linda Ziedrich.

Blueberry & Cherry Preserves - a sweet, fruity combination spiced with nutmeg. I found the nutmeg a bit overwhelming, but perhaps the flavor will mellow out with time. If not, I'll annotate the recipes to use half as much nutmeg. From The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader.

Black Forest Macaroon Conserve - a rich spread reminiscent of Black Forest cake and chocolate macaroons, this should be saved for special occasions. Should be. I slept in this morning since I was up until midnight canning, and my sweetie grabbed a jar at random to go on his toast. Hm. From the Ball book listed above.

Prickly Pear Jelly & Syrup - at 10:30 pm, I decided I might as well finish processing the prickly pear juice. I forgot how many lemons I needed to juice and how long it takes for the cold juice to come up to a boil. By midnight, I was totally beat and have been dragging through my Monday.

The one good thing about finishing the work yesterday is the house stayed cooler today.

I still haven't figured out what to do with all the bananas. I've looked through the preserving books and the National Center for Home Food Preservation for banana recipes. I can't find anything except a strawberry-banana freezer jam and a chutney that calls for more dried fruit than bananas. I'm out of strawberries and we already have banana chutney. I guess it's time to make some space in the freezer for the bananas and grind up some more wheat for banana bread. And maybe I'll try some of these banana recipes from Africa.

Who knew fruit envy could create so much work?! It's nice to have the variety, but perhaps it would have been wiser to make one big batch of mixed berry preserves.