Dropstone Farms

Sad news today about lemon prices, which have doubled or more. It’s sad because there really is no substitute for lemon in most recipes. Occasionally a light-flavored vinegar will suit, if acidity and brightness are all that’s needed from the lemon, and sometimes you can use another citrus, but in that case it doesn’t really alleviate many of the issues making lemon prices jump, like gas prices and weather damage to citrus crops.

Fortunately for me, I got two little lemon trees this spring, one a year-old Improved Meyer from Territorial, and one older/bushier one from the nursery. The younger tree is still growing its branches and leaves and whatnot, but the older one is pretty robust, except it lost a lot of its leaves when we first got it home. I learned it wanted to be fertilized! So I did that. Now it is happily leaved and it is growing me lots of tiny lemons.

My Meyer lemont ree, originally uploaded by laurenipsum.

Apparently it takes a long time for a tiny green lemon to turn into a delicious juicy cookable lemon, but it also (apparently) blooms and fruits whenever it feels like it, hence the tiny fruit, mediumly tiny fruit, and the blossom, all at once.

Both of these (as well as my fig and bay trees) will come inside in the winters, at least until they are bigger and hardier.

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And it wasn’t even that bad!

I picked a gallon of blackberries on Saturday and on Sunday we turned it into … well … it was supposed to be jam. I didn’t put as much sugar as it called for because I tasted it and it was sweet enough partway through the sugar addition process. But then it didn’t turn into jam, it just stayed syrupy. My mom the Jam Queen said, add the rest of the sugar, and bring it back to a boil, and don’t think too hard, just can it. So I was very careful following the rest of the directions, keeping about a million things on my stove right at 180°, and ladling jam into hot jars fresh out of the dishwasher, wiping rims, placing lids and screwing down rings, then gently placing into the (180°) stockpot. Eight half-pint jars went in and then we turned it up to boil for 15 minutes. On being removed, almost all of the lids popped immediately — yay! seals! — and the last few popped a few minutes later. So I was happy with my eight half-pints of blackberry syrup. We can have yogurt, and ice cream, and waffles and pancakes and crepes … but this morning, it looked as though the jars have cooled into jam after all! So that’s exciting. But I am sure it will be delicious regardless of the consistency.

And just now we have put 5 pounds of peaches into jars, and put it on to boil. Five pounds of peaches makes 3 quarts of canned peach halves in light syrup. I hope they turn out. I want peach scones in February.

Now I want to can everything! What else can I make? Stories, advice, recipes?

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