living in the woods and making stuff

It seems to be the end of the raspberry season. I went to pick last night, and the berries were smaller, fewer, and farther between. And they definitely had a different taste. A little old maybe. Trying to make the most of the last bits of warmth and sunlight.

The yellow jackets were out too, practically burying themselves in the riper berries.This is the raspberry patch. All the berries are planted in raised beds, with grass planted between them. This makes for slightly easier weeding and care. and easy picking too! You don’t have to bend down as much to pick the berries.

It is the end of the season, and I am getting a little tired from all the cooking, stirring, etc. So with this batch of berries I decided on something a little easier. Raspberries in red wine vinegar, raspberries in apple cider vinegar, and raspberries in brandy.

The berries are put in sterilized jars and mixed with the vinegar or brandy.

The brandy berries have to wait at least 40 days. Vinegar berries wait at least a month.

Recipes for raspberries in brandy (and a million other interesting ways of preserving foods) are from Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage, and Lactic Fermentation. A very interesting book compiling many traditional recipes from the French countryside. With a forward by Deborah Madison.

For recipes for raspberries in vinegar look in The Joy of Jams, Jellies, and other Sweet Preserves, by Linda Ziedrich. Another wonderful source for recipes, and lots of interesting information!