*Collapses, flailing on the couch with relief*~from Mandy Wrangles garden.

Finally, tomato season is over! I made my final batch of green tomato chutney over the weekend, marking the end of what turned out to be months of weekend sauces, chutneys, relishes and salsas.

I’ve pulled most of my tomato plants out – already replacing some with garlic, kale and leek – and this weekend I’ll pull the remaining ten or so. Already, there’s literally hundreds of baby tomato plants popping their heads up after self-seeding. What a shame they won’t last the winter! Along with tomato preserves, I’ve been pickling chilli, gherkins and other veggies, drying herbs and freezing berries. I feel very organised and prepared for any zombie apocalypse.

Berries

I’m still getting about half a dozen strawberries and maybe three or four ripe raspberries each day. While I did get to make loads of yummy stuff with the strawbs, there was never quite enough razzies in one day to do much with. So towards the end of the season, I’ve been freezing my berries. It’s by far the easiest and most practical way of preserving them for use later in the year.

Raspberries, I simply pick and immediately pop into a small snap-lock bag in the freezer. I don’t even bother to wash them – my garden is totally organic, so I know there’s no unwanted chemicals hanging around, and the lack of water means no ice crystals will form on the fruit.

I do, however, check the berries over for unwanted critters and hitchhikers! With strawberries, I’ll hull them first, and maybe slice the bigger ones in half. That’s it! Perfect for baking, defrosting to have with breakfast cereal, yogurt or desserts.

Herbs

Last summer, I turned most of my basil into pesto and froze it. I didn’t find it all that successful, and we struggled to use it all up. This year, along with chives, Italian parsley, oregano and celery leaves (sooo delicious!) I’ve been dehydrating my basil to use dried in the kitchen.

It’s time consuming, but so, so simple. You can buy a basic dehydrator like mine for about $40 upwards. I think we paid around $60 five years ago. For herbs, just pick straight from the garden, remove leaves and check for critters. With chives,

I hold a bunch in one hand and snip them into smaller pieces with scissors – much easier than cutting with a knife. Arrange leaves flat on the shelves of your dehydrator, and set to a low heat for about six to eight hours. You’ll know when they’re ready because the herbs will be crunchy. Your kitchen will smell AMAZING for days. Commercial dried herbs have nothing on the homemade stuff – you’ll find home dried herbs have a more concentrated flavour and are a great replacement when you can’t get hold of fresh produce. 

One of my favourite German dishes! It can be a bit messy the first time around, but the taste will make all the mess worth it. Delicious, especially with a fresh slice of lemon.

Ingredients:

• 8 pork scaloppini
• Salt and pepper
• 5 eggs
• Plain bread crumbs (I used Progresso)
• 2-3 cups of corn oil (I used Mazola)

Instructions:

1. Take your pork scaloppini out and let them thaw. This recipe won’t work if they’re frozen.
2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the five eggs. You may need more later.
3. On a large plate pour out 2-3 cups of bread crumbs. You may need more later for this as well.
4. On another plate, put a thin layer of bread crumbs. This plate is for the finished breaded pork, and the bread crumbs are to ensure the meat will not stick to the plate.
5. Once your pork is completely thawed, salt and pepper each side.
6. Take a single slice of pork, dip and cover it in the whisked egg. Allow any excess egg to drip off.
7. Transfer it onto the bread crumbed plate, covering the entire thing with crumbs. When you’ve covered it and pushed down the crumbs to ensure they stick, pick up the pork and allow any extra crumbs to fall back onto the plate.
8. Transfer the pork to the third and final plate.
9. Repeat this process, until you’ve finished with all your pork scaloppini.
10.  In a large pot, pour 2-3 cups of corn oil or until you have about ½ inch on the bottom of your pot. On medium heat allow this to get hot. Prepare a clean plate with paper towels next to your stove. The paper towels are there to suck up any extra oil from the finished schnitzel.
11.  Once your oil is hot, add your breaded pork. Be careful: oil does start to pop and can burn you. Do not flip it until the bottom side is a darker gold color. Turn it over to the other side and let it cook until it matches the color of the top. This can happen pretty quickly, so don’t leave it out of your sight.
12.  Take your schnitzel out of the pot, and transfer it to a plate with paper towels. And continue doing this with all your breaded pork.
13.  Make your favorite potato salad, or bake up some French fries, add a lemon slice to your schnitzel, and ENJOY!

One of my favorite German dishes! It can be a bit messy the first time around, but the taste will make all the mess worth it. Delicious, especially with a fresh slice of lemon.

I made this recipe for my boyfriend’s birthday after messing up chocolate dip twice! I didn’t want to throw away the good (and expensive) chocolate, and decided to make a cake! It’s really simple, and only requires ingredients that you’ll probably have on hand! Everyone seemed to like it, especially since I didn’t even get a piece 🙂

(The best one you’ll ever have!)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 ½ sticks of unsalted room temperature butter
• 1 ½ cups of hot water
• 2 ½ cups of flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda
• 1 ½ cups of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• 1 cup of milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and butter you crown bund cake form, or any other form you choose!
2. In a microwave-safe bowl, heat up the semi-sweet chocolate chips with 1 ½ cups of butter. This shouldn’t become dipping chocolate—it should become thicker than that, almost as if you put your dipping chocolate in the microwave for too long. But you also don’t want to burn it.
3. In your electric mixing bowl, combine your chocolate butter mixture and the hot cup of water and slowly mix it. Add the rest of your butter (1 stick), vanilla extract and sugar. Continue mixing.
4. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder.
5. In small segments, add the flour mixture and milk to your chocolate mixture. Take turns between the flour and milk, mixing between each addition.
6. Allow this to bake for about thirty minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean in the middle. Before taking it out of your bund form, please be sure to let it cool. Frost with your desired frosting, and ENJOY!

I love the whole process that goes with cooking sauces, chutneys and relishes. From collecting suitable jars and bottles to growing the ingredients myself (you don’t actually have to do that bit…), chopping veggies and adding to the magnificent four gallon enamel pot that once belonged to my Dad. He gave it to me a few years before he died, and using it isn’t just seriously practical – it’s very sentimental. I love the scent of vegetables, vinegar and spices wafting through the house, having something to stir and taste each time I wander into the kitchen, and the fact that it might take a whole day (or even two!) to make a good sauce. It’s worth every minute. If you’ve never attempted making your own sauces or chutneys, don’t freak out! It’s a much easier (and weirdly relaxing) process than you might think.

I’m going to write up a few of my chutney recipes over the coming weeks – all made from home grown ingredients. We’ll start with the simplest of them all, Zucchini and Corn.

We didn’t just have an abundance of zucchini this year, but also corn and capsicum. The corn in particular was to die for. I almost felt bad using it to make relish, but then…nah. I didn’t. Now, these quantities listed are for a double batch. Feel free to halve them. You can also play around a little bit with spices, garlic and chilli. But *don’t* change the quantities of your sugar, salt and most importantly, vinegar. This has to do with the preserving process, and keeping things safe. This recipe will make about 8 quart-size jars.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1500g of zucchini, diced. This works out to be around 8 largish zucchinis.
• 2 red capsicums, diced.
• 1 green capsicum, diced.
• 2 cups of corn kernels (fresh from the cob, if you can). Works out to be around 3 – 4 large cobs of corn.
• 3 onions, sliced.
• 3 cups of white vinegar.
• 2 ½ cups of white sugar (seems a lot, but this is a big batch of relish).
• 1 medium chilli – this is optional. I did one batch with it this year, once batch without. The spicier version is the family favourite.
• 8 teaspoons of turmeric.
• 5 teaspoons of mustard powder.
• 3 teaspoons of mustard seeds (or whole grain mustard).
• 1 tablespoon of curry powder.
• 4 – 5 cloves of garlic, crushed.
• 3 tablespoons of salt.
• Cornflour to thicken at the end of cooking.

HOW IT’S DONE:

After you’ve chopped everything up – throw it all in the pot (except the cornflour). Seriously, that’s it. Just chuck it all in. Bring it to the boil, then turn down the heat to low. Now, I have recipes where they recommend simmering for an hour. I cook it all day – well, for at least five hours anyway. Leave the lid on your pot for the first couple of hours, then remove, which will help to reduce your mixture. Make sure you remember to give it a good stir regularly. Keep tasting it, too, and feel free to add more of your favourite spices (or chilli!)

*Do note that I don’t use any oil in my chutneys. There’s good reason for this. Firstly, you don’t need it. With the vinegar and combined vegetables, trust me when I say there’s plenty of fluid in this mix. It won’t burn if you stir it every now and then. Secondly, oil can be a carrier for botulism when you’re working with preserves. So I’d rather stay safe than sorry.

To thicken your relish at the end, add a couple of teaspoons of cornflour to a small jug. Add water and mix until it forms a smooth, thin paste. Add to your relish mix in a thin stream, stirring constantly. Best to go a little at a time with this, remembering your relish will also thicken as it cools.

Jarring Up:

Ah, the controversial bit. Depending on which country you live in, and what your food safety laws are, there are different recommendations for the preservation of food. What do I do? Well, I wash all jars – make sure they are the type where the lid will ‘pop’ up and down – on a sterilisation cycle in my dishwasher. Yes, even the brand new ones.Then, I add a couple of jars (and their lids) to a large pot of boiling water for ten minutes. Use a pair of tongs to remove. I make sure I’m wearing thick rubber gloves, too. Fill jars with VERY HOT relish mix, leaving about 1cm at the top. Wipe away any mess around the lip, and fit the lid. Some preserving jars will have a flat lid and a metal ‘skirt’ to fit around them. If your jar has sealed properly, and depending on the heat in the room, within about half an hour, the lid will ‘pop’ down with suction from the cooling relish. I store my sauces and relishes for over a year in the pantry if they’re unopened, in the fridge once they have been opened.

Other methods include water baths and pressure baths. I recommend checking them out for yourself and seeing what you feel most comfortable with, depending on the quality of your water and sanitising conditions. A good website for all things preserving can be found here:

Pick Your Own

Zucchini and corn relish is super-delish on ham, corned beef or salami. I’ve been using it as a dip, spooning a couple of tablespoons over cream cheese and serving with crackers and a crumbly tasty cheese. But my favourite use for it has turned out to be as a pizza sauce! Yep, a few spoonfuls on a pizza base, salami and a sprinkling of cheese – AMAZING.

Lisa says: ‘Ever since I made this extremely easy dish my mom won’t stop asking me to make it again!’

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of cooked shredded chicken
• 6-8 ounces (170-230  grams) of softened cream cheese
• 1/3 cup of sour cream
• ½ cup of salsa
• 1 ½ cup of shredded cheese (I used the Mexican mixed bag!)
• 1 ½ cup of baby spinach, no stems
• Salt and pepper
• 10 inch (25.5cm) flour tortillas
• 1-2 cups of corn oil

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl combine the shredded chicken, cream cheese, sour cream, salsa, shredded cheese, and spinach. Give it a taste. Salt and pepper if you desire.
2. On a slice of tortilla, scoop about 2-3 spoons of your chicken mixture. Roll it up and set it down, so that the opening is on the bottom, to keep it closed. If you add too much filling it may leak out while frying later, so don’t stuff it too full! No matter how tempting it might be!
3. Continue doing this until your chicken stuffing runs out.
4. In a large pot, pour about 1-2 cups of corn oil, or until there is a good layer covering the bottom of your pot. Allow it to heat up on a medium setting before putting in your chubby tacos.
5. When the oil is hot, gently place your chubby tacos into the pot with the opening at the bottom. Allow each side to brown and place on a plate with paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
6. Enjoy with your favorite beans and rice!