Erlyn's Gardening Sharing Spot

Recipe for Rhubarb Jam from Bonnie

2008-07-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

One of my counselors told me she makes rhubarb jam, so we tried it as an enrichment activity.

10 cups rhubarb cut into small pieces--it represents the fruit so make the chucks as big as you like(it doesn't matter that it is still partly green and use to where the leaf starts)
5-6 cups of sugar
3-3 ounce boxes of strawberry jello (or whatever flavor you like, we tried raspberry and orange too- orange wasn't as good, but others were great)
Put rhubarb and sugar into a large pan and let it set until juices start expressing themselves. Turn on medium high heat to high heat and boil for a few minutes, then add jello and continue boiling for 2 minutes. Spoon into canning jars leaving an inch space at top. Follow regular canning procedures-at least ten minutes in canner. You can change the amount of sugar, it will not affect the success of your canning.

I wonder how peach would taste? I have some old recipes on using zucchini and also green tomatoes to represent the fruit and you use jello or koolaid for the flavor. Have you ever tried, and do you have a good recipe?

2008-07-07T12:09:00.000-07:00

Which Wheat is Right?

As one drives along on I-15 it is hard to miss the Lehi Roller Mills sign on the historic building in Lehi. So because the wheat crop in Australia is failing yet again…..

(extensive drought), I pulled off and went into the office and figured that I needed some of their white wheat and some of their red. Driving around to the other side of the building strong young men loaded these white tubs into my car for me to its limit and I drove home feeling very much like the little red hen.

A month later in a class on bread making the teacher said, “Whatever you do……… Don’t buy THEIR wheat. Buy OURS instead. Ours has a lower moisture content (fewer chances of bug infestations) and a higher protein content (higher loaves). So, since America’s heartland is now growing corn for fuel instead of wheat, I panicked and ordered their ‘golden wheat’.

When this wheat arrived I was disappointed because it came in paper bags instead of white tubs. Deciding my three young married families living nearby would be so grateful to have me drive up with a carload of wheat for each of them I divided it among the three. Two of them have mouse proof food storage areas in their basements. The third, however, is living in the new homes in western Springville where they do not have basements because of the high water table. All the new building going on in western Springville has rudely displaced the fieldmouse population and now all these darling little mice have found refuge in our son’s garage where they happily gnaw through the paper bags and feast gratefully on his wheat.

I then realized that if a person calls Walton Feed in Idaho at 208-847-0465 and give your credit card number a truck will soon appear at your very door delivering all the wheat of ANY COLOR anyone could ever possibly wish and ALREADY PACKED IN WHITE TUBS. They drive a truck down to Utah County about twice a week anyway because they supply most of the stores around here selling wheat to the public and it is easy for them to swing by a private home if you order enough. I DID order enough because I have ten children and seven spouses and twenty grandchildren and well……… one just never knows…..

My new wheat is of the Golden Prairie variety and is FANTASTIC !

And yet cheaper than anywhere else !!!

Last month’s Church News reported that BYU Scientists appealed to LDS folks everywhere to send in samples of all their stored foods for scientific analysis. The BYU scientists were surprised to learn that stored foods almost no matter what they were……… or when they were purchased……….. were still good……….. !!!!!

It is now realized that stored foods are good and last longer than anyone previously thought. Wheat, as you know, is one of those foods with a VERY long shelf life. It is even said and proven that wheat found in the Egyptian pyramids will still sprout.

Being born and raised in California I have never been able to bake a decent loaf of bread. Once we were each asked to bake bread and take loaves to our neighbors. I did this. (It was 1974). One neighbor lady came over about six months later and said she had finally been able to get my loaf removed from the pan. She was returning the pan. That was the last time she ever spoke to me.

After moving to Utah, the land of “all-ladies-baking-beautiful-bread-every-week” and learning from all the wonderful free classes offered here and there and especially at the Bosch Kitchen Center I can now make ABSOLUTELY MAGNIFICENT HIGH AND LIGHT 100% WHOLE WHEAT BREAD !!!! I am including the recipe.

This year’s Canadian Wheat Crop is in trouble. China’s wheat crops were ruined by the worst mega-snow-storm they have had in 50 years. The sky could be falling…. Or not…

But, if you lay in your wheat now……….. at least you will be ready.

Erlyn Madsen

When to Plant What in Provo

2008-07-07T12:06:00.000-07:00

When to Plant What in Provo

(Three Gardens)

EARLY-BIRD GARDEN

If you want to plant an early-bird garden

in April… these cold weather vegetables

stand some frost (a light freeze) and

will thrive in the cool, wet early spring

weather: radishes, lettuce, spinach, swiss

chard, turnips, carrots, peas, onions & beets.

SUNNIEST GARDEN

As the soil warms up (early June)… plant

outside tomatoes, winter squash, pumpkins

and melons all of which need every bit of

heat during our long summer days. Utahns

traditionally jump the gun and use Mother’s

Day as their guide day to plant these things.

Many then often suffer from cold as the

official last day of frost for Provo is not till

May 26^th.

JULY FIRST GARDEN

The first week of July is when your most

productive garden of all may be planted.

Our first frost date in the fall is September

24^th. Look at your seed catalog to

determine the number of days that it takes

a particular vegetable to mature. The

vegetable seeds included here will all have

plenty of time to mature even if they are

not planted till July. They will LOVE the

warmed up soil and long days to sprout

and begin their lives and won’t mind if the

weather cools off as they become more

mature: Carrots, beets, turnips, cabbage,

lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, peas,

beans and corn.

If you are not ready to plant a garden this

year… just put this envelope into a Ziploc

bag, store in the fridge and save it for a

decade or so. Then in case of hard times

YOU WILL BE READY.