Carob Tree - Pekmez and Flour

We planted a carob tree about four years ago and we cannot wait until it starts fruiting which should be in the next year or so.

If you enjoy peanut butter and jam then, try a much healthier alternative, pekmez (made with carob pods) and tahini (made from sesame) for a wonderful combination.

Carob is supposed to be a slow growing tree but ours has grown rapidly. The tree is evergreen, can live up to 200 years and is  well suited to dry climates. Additionally, it will grow in any soil and is drought tolerant.

Fruits are brownish coloured pods which can be grow up to 30cm long and contain between 10-15 hard seeds.  The tree flowers between September and November but pods take 8-9 months to mature.  The pods start off green and eventually turn to a darkish brown and are ready to harvest in August. 

Harvesting, in Cyprus, has remained unaltered for centuries. The pods are knocked down by using bamboo poles and the pods collected by spreading nets around the tree. 

The pods can be used to either make pekmez, a syrup made from the seed pods or ground to make carob flour used in all sorts of recipes and as a chocolate substitute.

Pekmez is made by crushing the pods, soaking them in water and then simmering the pods over a low heat for up to 24 hours. The result is a thick syrup which is sieved and poured into clean sterile jars.

The process to make carob flour involves sun drying the pods for up to 5 days on sheets. The pods are then roasted before being ground to a powder which can be used for baking. 

Pea Pod Soup

We have been picking peas but the crop has not been as good as last year. After shelling it seems wasteful to just compost another pile of pods so we had a try at making pea pod soup.

We washed and boiled a pot full of pods for 10 minutes and left the pods in the pan until the next day. The liquid was strained through a colander and the pods squeezed to extract as much liquid as possible. The pods were still fibrous and tough but the liquid was a lovely colour and surely must be full of nutrients. The pods still ended up in the compost but at least we had extracted some of the goodness and a lunch.

We finely chopped an onion and three cloves of garlic and fried until soft in a olive oil.

Finely diced two medium sized potatoes and added them to the pan with salt and pepper to taste. Added the pea pod liquid, a handful of peas, two sprigs of finely chopped mint and cooked the soup for about 15 minutes.

The result was a well worth the effort. A very tasty soup enjoyed with an olive roll.

11 Uses for Vegetable and Fruit Trimmings

Rather than just composting your vegetable and fruit peelings why not use them.  The peelings contain many nutrients and are full of flavour. However only use them if  you have grown them organically or buy organic produce which will ensure no pesticides or chemicals in the peelings, Here are some suggested uses in the kitchen and home.

1. Clean your teapot or kettle by adding lemon peel before boiling. Allow the water to cool completely before emptying and rinsing. The lemon peels will remove mineral deposits and tea stains.

2. Candy your watermelon rinds for a tasty treat. Follow the link http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2012/01/candied-watermelon-rind-recipe.html

3. Make potato crisps with potato peelings by coating in olive oil and baking at 200c for about 10 minutes.

4. Make your own cleaner with orange peels by the following http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2012/01/make-your-own-orange-peel-oil-cleaner.html

5. Make vegetable stock by boiling potato peels, corn cobs, celery leaves, onion skins, carrot peels, pea and bean pods, leek ends and herb stems. You can store trimmings in the freezer until you have enough for a stock and if you make a large amount freeze some stock for later use.

6. Make a delicious treat using orange peels by following the link.  http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2012/01/candied-orange-peel.html

7. Make your own orange marmalade by following the recipe link.  http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-make-your-own-orange-marmalade.html

8. Make your own lemon tea by following the link.
http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2013/03/make-your-own-powdered-lemon-tea.html

9. Make onion tea by infusing onion skins in boiled water which is especially good for sore throats.

10 Make firelighter using citrus skins by following the link.
http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2012/01/citrus-skin-firelighters.html

11. Roast pumpkin seeds for a nice snack http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-dry-and-roast-sunflower-and.html

Make Your Own Powdered Lemon Tea

We spent an hour this morning squeezing lemons to make lemonade syrup. If you would like to try the recipe follow the link - http://cyprusgardener.blogspot.com/2011/07/make-your-own-lemonade-syrup.html

The process left us with lots of lemon rinds and as we like lemon tea we decided to dry the peels for powdering to use for tea.

It's a simple process, just a matter of cutting away the bitter pith with a sharp knife and then leaving the strips, peel side up, on a plate to dry indoors. Alternatively the rind can easily be peeled using a vegetable peeler.

Drying takes between 3-5 days depending on the air temperature, after which the shriveled dry skins can be powdered in a food processor (or using a mortar and pestel) before storage.

Store in a clean jar in a dark cupboard and away from any heat source.

The same process can be used for any citrus skins. Try a combination of grapefruit, lemon and orange for quite a lovely flavour.

Wood Ash - 10 uses

We get a steady supply of wood ash from our wood burning stove and rather than simply spreading it onto vegetable beds to be dug in - here are a few more uses.

1.   Use wood ash to add nutrients to your compost. Contains potash and calcium carbonate.

2.   Use wood ash to deter snails from plants. Spread around the perimeter of the plant.

3.  Use wood ash to add nutrients to planting holes for tomatoes  by adding about half a cup to each hole.

4.   Use wood ash to clean stove glass doors. Add to a damp sponge to wipe away sooty deposits.

5.   Use wood ash for soap making. Soak ashes in water to make lye which is used in the soap making process.

6.   Use wood ash to clean metal by making a paste with the ash.

7.   Use wood ash as a dust bath for chickens, it kills lice and mites.

8.   Use wood ash to remove sticky labels from glass jars by making a paste with a little water.

9.   Use wood ash as a top dressing around onions, leeks and garlic.

10. Use wood ash to raise the Ph of soil if required, as an alternative to lime.

12 Uses for Lemons

Lemons are a very useful fruit with so many uses:

(1) Use to whiten laundry by adding lemon juice to your wash. The citric acid in lemons provides for powerful natural cleaner and fabric whitener.

(2) Use to eliminate smells in the fridge or any other bad odours throughout the house by simmering a few lemon halves in a pot to provide a lovely lemony smell.

(3) Use to clean brass, stainless steel or copper by making a paste of lemon juice and salt and applying to tarnished metal surfaces. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes, then rinse with warm water and dry.

(4) Use lemon juice to stop fruits and vegetables from turning brown whilst cooking. Works well on apple slices.

(5) Use for sore throats, mix a tablespoon of lemon juice and a tablespoon of honey into a cup of water and  warm to a drinkable temperature.

(6) Use to remove hardened or baked on food from dishes and pans by making a paste with baking powder and a little lemon juice, allow to soak in before washing.

(7) Use to deter ants, moths and other insects, as they dislike the strong scent and flavor of lemons.Works well in stopping ants if sprayed on their trail.

(8) Use a teaspoon of lemon juice to stop your rice becoming sticky whilst cooking.

(9) Use lemon juice to kill weeds.

(10) Use to clean chopping boards - particularly works well after using boards to cut meat.

(11) Use on insect stings for relief, disinfect and heal.

(12) Use to remove stains or odours from your hands especially good at removing beetroot or berry stains.

How to avoid food waste and save money.

Recent media reports have highlighted the fact that at a large proportion of the world’s food (apparently somewhere between 30%-50%) is disposed of as waste whilst many people across the world have insufficient food and go hungry.

This includes householders throwing away up to £600 of food on average a year, by crops not being harvested because they do not meet the stringent demands set by supermarkets (wrong shaped carrots for instance) and food wasted by supermarkets and food outlets when they are past their sell by date.

We find these figures shocking, as we rarely throw away any food at all. We have our shopping down to a fine art which means everything get used. The most important thing we do is make a list before shopping which avoids being tempted by supermarket displays or special offers.  At the end of the day it simply comes down to planning your shopping and meals to fit in with whatever is available as fresh produce from the garden. We tend to eat a lot of soups when there are gluts say of peas or artichokes and leftovers can often be included in a soup or used the next day for a snack on toast.

Set yourselves a target to reduce your food waste to zero and not only will you be better of financially but you will discover tasty and creative recipes to use leftovers.