or is there another forum that is more appropriate? I get lost in the tangle of forums here sometimes. Usually I only post at Frugality and Finance, but some kinds of posts need other forums.
We are gluten-free (no wheat, rye, barley, spelt, or kamut - we do have GF oats) and dairy-free and cane-sugar-free (we do use maple syrup for limited sweetening) and soy-free except for tamari and miso. We also avoid processed food and additives. We also have some challenging pickiness (probably sensory issues) to deal with when cooking/planning.
We eat locally and homegrown and from pantry as much as possible. DH was laid off in Dec and I am trying even harder this year to grow and preserve food and buy in bulk from local farmers. We have a big garden.
I just picked 40 lbs of strawberries this morning. I plan to freeze most of them. I also have a secondhand food dehydrator and wondered if anyone has ever dried their own strawberries for storage? I wonder how well it would work?
I am interested in trying maple-sweetened jam. I cannot use cane sugar, honey, or artificial sweeteners. I haven't found a recipe for this and wonder if anyone has ever tried it. Canning experimentation seems like it could be a lot of work and mess for disappointing results. But I still might try, somehow. I would love suggestions on how to make this work. I would use boxed pectin.
Later this year I'd like to make sweet pickles with maple instead of sugar. Has anyone managed that?
And I'm looking for some yummy recipes that can be made with the foods we CAN eat. Strawberries go so well with "creamy" (darnit). We like smoothies, but I have been avoiding bananas because of how far they have to travel to us (= oil use I don't want to be responsible for). Same for coconut milk. My family doesn't like strawberries in muffins or in cake. I could make strawberry sauce for plain muffins and call it shortcake...or maybe make some kind of strawberry pie, although my mom's always used Cool Whip, which we don't eat. I would love some ideas!
Thanks, and sorry if that was confusing!
We are gluten-free (no wheat, rye, barley, spelt, or kamut - we do have GF oats) and dairy-free and cane-sugar-free (we do use maple syrup for limited sweetening) and soy-free except for tamari and miso. We also avoid processed food and additives. We also have some challenging pickiness (probably sensory issues) to deal with when cooking/planning.
We eat locally and homegrown and from pantry as much as possible. DH was laid off in Dec and I am trying even harder this year to grow and preserve food and buy in bulk from local farmers. We have a big garden.
I just picked 40 lbs of strawberries this morning. I plan to freeze most of them. I also have a secondhand food dehydrator and wondered if anyone has ever dried their own strawberries for storage? I wonder how well it would work?
I am interested in trying maple-sweetened jam. I cannot use cane sugar, honey, or artificial sweeteners. I haven't found a recipe for this and wonder if anyone has ever tried it. Canning experimentation seems like it could be a lot of work and mess for disappointing results. But I still might try, somehow. I would love suggestions on how to make this work. I would use boxed pectin.
Later this year I'd like to make sweet pickles with maple instead of sugar. Has anyone managed that?
And I'm looking for some yummy recipes that can be made with the foods we CAN eat. Strawberries go so well with "creamy" (darnit). We like smoothies, but I have been avoiding bananas because of how far they have to travel to us (= oil use I don't want to be responsible for). Same for coconut milk. My family doesn't like strawberries in muffins or in cake. I could make strawberry sauce for plain muffins and call it shortcake...or maybe make some kind of strawberry pie, although my mom's always used Cool Whip, which we don't eat. I would love some ideas!
Thanks, and sorry if that was confusing!
