First of all, I want to thank you for your overwhelming support over the last couple of weeks. I have started this account to share some bits and pieces from my life, so honestly, I was not sure if someone would ever read it and I'm truly grateful for all reactions that I have received so far. It turned out that Hive is a platform full of amazing gardeners, skilful photographers, people enjoying walks, and many others who love to cook. All the things that I love too! Thank you again!
Let's talk about another topic now...
Living above the valley of the river Rhine taught us to accept the weather as it comes. It can change multiple times a day, and you're never sure what to wear when you go out. Today started like this...
And in two hours it looked like this...
It has cleared again, but who knows, it might start raining anytime soon.
Somebody recently reminded me of the amazing views that we have from our place, and I have realized that I don't appreciate it enough and I should start looking out of the windows more often. Who knows when we might move somewhere else?
During those two hours I managed to get some wild garlic. It's my favourite spring ingredient that I like to preserve for winter. It is so easy and you can easily keep it in the fridge for a year, but it never lasts that long at our home.
Wild garlic season is very short, and there are only a couple of weeks when you can harvest it. It should be mature, but it shouldn't start flowering yet. You should always leave at least three leaves per plant to make sure that it will survive and come again next year.
We have large fields in the forest only about 15 minutes walk from our home, and I've been going there regularly for the last couple of weeks to find the right moment to harvest. And it's now!
The leaves are big enough, but not too old yet, and there are no flowers buds yet. The flavour is going to be just right.
I have harvested about one kilogram which takes ages as the leaves are so light. I was careful not to step on the plants, but it was nearly impossible as there were too many of them.
When I came home I washed the leaves and dried them up with a towel. A few years ago, I made a huge mistake to put them in the dehydrator. I got amazing seasoning for soups and other meals, but I couldn't get the smell out of the apartment for a few days. It smells like garlic and it hanged around for a long time 😊 I have low blood pressure, so I couldn't go to the kitchen as I was getting dizzy.
Last year, I learned to preserve it in olive oil and salt, and it's what works the best for us.
You need to dry the leaves thoroughly, and then cut them in stripes. Maybe it's a good idea to listen to your favourite music as it takes time.
More, more and more...
Well, maybe it won't take so much time for you, but my husband wanted to help me, and I couldn't refuse him, and as you can see from this photo he likes symmetry and perfectionism, so drying of the leaves became a super long process 😊 But I would take quality over quantity anytime!
Once the leaves are finally ready, we can start with the preservation. You will need a sterilized jar, olive oil and salt. Yes, it's that easy!
I sterilize my jars in the oven to make sure that they are really clean because I don't want the wild garlic go bad.
I poured a bit of oil in the jar first.
Then I pushed some leaves until they were covered with oil and sprinkled some salt on them.
I continued layering until the jar was full. It's important to push down the leaves to remove air bubbles, but don't put too much as the leaves will spread out a bit and push the oil out. It happened to me last year and it got messy!
And this is the finished product! It's in the back of the fridge, so that my husband doesn't see it and start eating it too early. He loves it, and once the jar is opened it's gone in no time.
So far, I have two big jars ready, but I'm planning to go harvesting again to make some pesto too. That's worth trying as well. You can also sprinkle it on your salad, or add them in your stir fry. It's delicious as topping for soups. In the end, the possibilities are endless!
If you live in a country where you can get wild garlic you should not wait too long because its season will be over soon.
See you next time!