Summer memories
As my son, Mike, and I sit in our screened-in veranda playing a game while the rain pours down, I can’t help but think about this little nursery rhyme. If it wasn’t raining we would be out in the garden weeding or if there wasn’t lightning I would be working at the computer writing this article. But instead we are enjoying a few minutes of relaxation and each other’s company.
My thoughts also turned to the folks who are out camping on their summer holidays. I can remember well the many camping trips that we have taken that included rain. One in particular, had so violent a storm the wind ripped a hole near the bottom of the tent and the rain was running through it. Our foam mattresses soaked up the water like sponges.
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We had to quickly put garbage bags between the mattresses and the kids to keep the water from soaking their bedding. The boys’ running shoes became balers to get the water out of the tent. Surprisingly, the kids slept through it all. In the morning, we realized a tree had also blown over behind our tent. We were thankful it had fallen away from our camp site.
Holiday times are for making family memories. Some near disasters can become funny family stories to be shared for years to come.
A prairie haven
As a child I can remember being allowed to play in my grandmother’s screened-in veranda. It had an old couch and some toys in the corner. It was a cool place to play on a hot summer day.
This spring we enclosed part of our deck with recycled storm windows and screens. The roof and deck were already part of the house so it was just a matter of building three walls and installing the windows.
We chose to use the old storm windows because they blended with the style of our 80-year-old home and look like they have always been there.
We hadn’t realized that this screened-in room would become such a family gathering spot. In the evenings it is cool, with a nice breeze and away from the mosquitoes.
In the afternoon it is shady and a great place for a nap. When it is raining, it is dry but you feel you are experiencing the storm.
Eighty or 90 years ago, when porches were part of almost every house design and there was no air conditioning or television, I can appreciate that they were a wonderful place to shell peas, do hand sewing or read a book, as well as a comfortable place to visit with family and neighbors.
In the past 30 to 40 years patios and decks have been fashionable additions to the popular bungalow style houses, but I now realize how limited their use is, other than for barbecues.
The increased popularity of enclosed verandas and screened-in sun rooms means we are rediscovering what our grandparents knew.
Preserving dill
With the rain and heat that we have had the past three weeks the gardens are growing well, but so also are the weeds. In our case, the dill has almost taken over. While weeding it out I decided to preserve some for later use as I like to use it in vegetable dips, soups and on potatoes.
Other years I have taken the leaves and placed them on screens, covered the dill with cheesecloth, and then placed these in a warm, shady area outside to dry. A dry well-ventilated room such as an attic also works well.
This summer the humidity seems to be too high for this to work effectively. As an alternative I tried drying some in the microwave and oven. First pick the bright green fern-like leaves off of the main stem, discard any that are brown or yellow and wash under cool, running water. Drain on paper towels or a clean tea towel and pat to absorb moisture. Then proceed with drying.
Microwave drying
Caution needs to be used in drying any herbs in a microwave because if the food becomes too dry it can burn. I found that using short time intervals worked best.
Place a single layer of dill on a double layer of paper towels on a microwave-safe plate. Put in the oven for 20 seconds on high power. Remove and cover with a double layer of paper towel and press to absorb the steam. Flip the dill in the towels so the top layer of towel is now on the bottom.
The towel that was on the bottom may be quite damp, so remove it and cover the dill with a dry layer of towel. Before covering the dill take two forks and toss the dill so that it dries more evenly.
Microwave dill for an additional 20 seconds on high. Repeat the towel drying, flipping and tossing of the dill. By the second or third cycle the paper towels will be less damp and can be folded so the dill is covered by a dry portion of the towel.
Repeat this process five or six times or until the leaves begin to feel brittle. They will continue to dry as they cool. When cool, squeeze the dill so the leaves crumble. The heavier stem will mat together and can be discarded. Allow the dill to finish cooling and drying for two hours then package in spice jars or plastic bags and label.
Check the containers for condensation during the first week, if there is any, turn the dill out and allow to dry further. If there is no moisture on the container, store in a cool, dry, dark cupboard.
Oven drying
Spread washed, drained leaves on a baking sheet and dry in oven at 250 F (120 C), leaving the door ajar to allow for air circulation. Set your timer for 10 minutes, then stir the leaves and check the drying.
Repeat in 10-minute intervals until the leaves become brittle. They will continue to dry as they cool. Do not overdry to avoid evaporation of the aromatic oils and discoloration of leaves.
When cool, squeeze the dill so the leaves crumble. The heavier stems will mat together and can be discarded.
Allow the dill to finish cooling and drying for two hours then package in spice jars or plastic bags and label. Check the containers for condensation during the first week.
Wild black cherry /chokecherry
The common chokecherry has been renamed as the wild black cherry. Last Mountain Farms at Southey, Sask., adopted this name to make them more marketable.
“Chokecherry just isn’t a very appealing name and does not translate well into other languages,” said Bill Schroeder of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration Shelterbelt Centre at Indian Head, Sask.
The chokecherry/wild black cherry also has another problem that makes it difficult to market the products to other countries.
When the cherries are heated up to 140 F (60 C) the enzyme emu-lsion is activated and begins to break down amygdalin, a compound found in the seed, to produce benzaldehyde and hydrocyanic acid or cyanide. Cyanide consumed in large quantities is deadly.
Some countries have regulations concerning acceptable levels of cyanide in food.
Japan has a zero tolerance level and European countries have a tolerance level of one mg/100 mL. In North America it is not perceived as a big problem and therefore there are no regulated levels. To export to Japan and Europe a processing procedure needed to be developed that would limit the development of the hydrocyanic acid.
Janet Panford, formerly of Agriculture Canada’s Brooks, Alta., Research Centre, has done extensive testing on the wild black cherry to determine an acceptable processing procedure for the juice extraction.
Her recommendations are that water should be boiling before the fruit is added and then quickly returned to the boiling point.
If the cherries are frozen, they should be added to the boiling water frozen. Once the water has returned to the boiling point the cherries should be cooked for 15 to 20 minutes to break down the fruit pulp so the juice can be extracted. The heat of the boiling water inactivates the emulsion enzyme.
If the cherries are boiled too long the amount of pectin released makes the fruit gummy and it is harder to extract the juice.
To extract the juice, put the cooked berries in a wine press or jelly bag and squeeze. Be careful not to crack the pits as this will release the hydrocyanic acid. The juice can now be processed into jellies and syrups.
Apples and saskatoon berries should be processed the same way as they both have enzymes that will release the hydrocyanic acid in their seeds. Saskatoons should not be thawed before processing to reduce the activation of the polyphenolase enzyme.
Rather, put the fresh or frozen berries directly into the boiling water as the heat will inactivate the enzymes. If activated, the enzyme polyphenolase will turn the juice brown and give it a bitter coffee taste. These processing procedures have been developed for commercial export reasons but are recommended for home processing as well.
For more information on processing chokecherries and saskatoons, contact: Janet Panford, National Research Council, Saskatoon, 306-975-4711.
