Re: Nurtritional difference between dried vs. canned food???

[Guest guest]

Root cellars!

...Also, any thoughts on how people used to make it through winter with

their food, without a freezer or fridge? How did they get all the

nutrition their body required? Food is so much cheaper to buy this

time of year then trying to buy it at the co-op in the middle of

winter. I'm trying to save us money any way I can, but I don't want to

forgo our nutrition, especially for my one year old.

Thanks!

Therese A.

.

[Guest guest]

I spend a lot of time in the summer and fall putting up most of our

veggies for the year. For fruits, I make a little bit of jam which is

canned. The rest I dry. All I do is slice and put it in the food

dryer. I do tons of apples, along with pears, peaches and strawberries.

For veggies I do several things. Some things I put in the root cellar

like potatoes, garlic, onions and squash. I make tons of tomato sauce

and can it in a waterbath. My aunt asked me to can some beans which

must be done in a pressure cooker. I dry (or freeze) everything else.

I prepare the veggies like you do for freezing, par boil them, chill to

stop the cooking and put in the dryer. I turn a bunch of my garlic

into garlic powder just by slicing and drying the slices, then in very

small batches I powderize the dried slices to make garlic powder. This

year I've dried zucchini, beans, and cabbage. I still have turnips and

snow peas left from last year. These work excellent in soups and

stews. I also freeze some veggies like corn, beans, and summer squash.

In days gone by they also pickled veggies and everyone had a huge crock

of saurkraut to last the winter. Large animals were butchered in the

very late fall to take advantage of the colder weather. They cuts were

cured to last through winter.

It's a lot of work to put up all of your fruits and veggies, but as

you've noticed, it's much cheaper to get the food when it's in season.

It also makes cooking much easier for the rest of the year. My veggies

are all prepped, I just need to cook them. It's also an extremely

satisfying feeling to open your pantry door or basement and see it full

of food that you did yourself.

Lynn

>

> Does anyone know which is better and why? I only have a water bath

> canner and I do have a dehydrator.

>

> Also, any thoughts on how people used to make it through winter with

> their food, without a freezer or fridge? How did they get all the

> nutrition their body required? Food is so much cheaper to buy this

> time of year then trying to buy it at the co-op in the middle of

> winter. I'm trying to save us money any way I can, but I don't want to

> forgo our nutrition, especially for my one year old.

>

> Thanks!

> Therese A.

>

[Guest guest]

> I spend a lot of time in the summer and fall putting up most of our

> veggies for the year. For fruits, I make a little bit of jam which is

> canned. The rest I dry. All I do is slice and put it in the food

> dryer. I do tons of apples, along with pears, peaches and strawberries.

Lynn,

You describe what I aim for! How much do you end up needing to buy

during the winter? How do you determine how much to put up?

- Tipper

[Guest guest]

I really buy little fruit (other than bananas) or veggies in the

winter. I'll also buy a case or two of oranges in season and dry the

peels to add to our smoothies the rest of the year. If I can't raise

it myself, then I try to buy things in bulk, locally and directly from

the producer as I can. It's amazing how much food you can fill your

house up with by the end of fall. My dh even made me a root cellar

which I love

I started quite small and I kept track of what I put up, just hatch

marks on a list I keep on the refrigerator. Over the years I developed

a feel for how much I need for the year.

Lynn

>

> You describe what I aim for! How much do you end up needing to buy

> during the winter? How do you determine how much to put up?

>

> - Tipper

>

[Guest guest]

I really buy little fruit (other than bananas) or veggies in the

winter. I'll also buy a case or two of oranges in season and dry the

peels to add to our smoothies the rest of the year. If I can't raise

it myself, then I try to buy things in bulk, locally and directly from

the producer as I can. It's amazing how much food you can fill your

house up with by the end of fall. My dh even made me a root cellar

which I love

I started quite small and I kept track of what I put up, just hatch

marks on a list I keep on the refrigerator. Over the years I developed

a feel for how much I need for the year.

Lynn

>

> You describe what I aim for! How much do you end up needing to buy

> during the winter? How do you determine how much to put up?

>

> - Tipper

>