Thanks to Wojtek and Aneta from foodconnect.pl for taking these great photos of APPLE TIME last Sunday Sept 23, 2012. We canned about 3/4 of the apples!
PEEL
CHOP
KIDS WERE GREAT!
THE BUSY TABLE
Sep 272012
Sep 212012
On Sept 19, 2012 I held a jam-making party in the local park as part of the M4 Rakowiec community action project organized by the great people at Odblokuj. We made jam from wild elderberries, wild grapes and Antonówki apples from the garden. Wild fruits of Rakowiec! There were some really sweet old ladies there, but sadly I didn’t get any photos of them.
ELDERBERRIES, WILD GRAPES, AND ANTONÓWKI APPLES
GETTING STARTED
CASUAL STIRRING AND A VIGOROUS MASH
A SHOT OF THE POT
THE JAM PASSED THE VAMPIRE TASTE TEST!
Sep 192012
We have kilos upon kilos of Antonówki (Atonovka) apples and we are going to preserve them this Sunday right at the Pixxe Garden. Come along and bring a jar so that you can take some home! 23.09.2012. 15.00-17.00. The garden is located on Racławicka between Grójecka and Sierpienskiego. Directions to the Garden here.
Mamy dużo jabłek Antonówki i będziemy je zkonserwowali w tę niedzielę na działce Pixxe. Przyjdź i przynieś słoik, żeby zabrać trochę z tobą do domu! 23.09.2012. 15.00-17.00. Na ul. Racławicka między Grójecką i Sierpieńskiego. Kierunki tutaj.
Jul 202012
Winemaking is a long term project, so it will be quite some time before I know if it is any good or not. However, I recently entered stage 2 of the process — moving the wine out of buckets and into a demijohn. Here is how it went.
Experiment 1
(Soak flower without sugar, strain flowers, no added flavors). After soaking the flowers for four days, I added a camden tablet, then waited 24 hours, at which point I added the yeast. The brix reading was 23. That is to say, 12 percent alcohol. I put it in the basement where the temperature was between 20 and 25C. I stirred it once in a while and checked the Brix reading once in a while. After about week the Brix was down to 8.5. I let it sit for three days without stirring. The Brix was down to 3.5. I then decanted it into a demijohn, topping it off with fresh water (boiled and cooled). Then on goes the airlock.
Experiment 2
(Soak flower with sugar, added flavors). On June 18, the fermentation began, however, I neglected to take a Brix reading, so I’m not sure what the starting alcohol level was, but by June 20 it was 20. By June 26, the Brix was down to 6.5 and I put it in a demijohn.
It was fun to test the Specific Gravity / Brix / Alcohol level and taste the stuff gradually becoming more alcoholic as the yeast worked its magic.
The bubbling slowed down and stopped around July 11 for Experiment 2 and about a week later for Experiment 1, so now I must simply sit and wait for the wine to clear. This could take months.
Jun 162012
Elderflower Wine Must
I have been doing a lot of experiments with Elderflowers, starting on May 27, when I made some Elderflower cordial for the wild food walk on the Warsaw Escarpment. My friends Wojtek and Aneta posted the recipe here in Polish and English. They made some with honey and mixed it with Krupnik. It was fantastic.
Now I’ve decided to make some wine and champagne before the flowers are gone, but it will be a long time before I know if it worked or not. I collected all the flowers from my neighborhood Rakowiec/Ochota and some close by in Mokotów.
Step 1 is to prepare the must. I’ve made two batches — one will be wine and one champagne. In the first experiment I let the flowers soak for four days, and then added the rest of the stuff. In the second I mixed all the ingredients and let it soak. They don’t have the same ingredients.
Experiment 1
Day 1-4: Soak 500 ml of flowers, zest of 2 lemons in 4.5 l of boiled spring water
Day 5: Add campden tablet & wait 24 hours at room temperature
Day 6: Add 1 kg of sugar, juice of 2 lemons, 1 packet EC-1118 wine yeast
Put in the basement (20C). When wine is at BRIX 7 /SG 1.03, move to demijohn.
Experiment 2
Day 1: Soak 500 ml flowers with sugar, rind and juice of 2 lemons, 250 g white raisins, 4.5 l of hot boiled water with 1/2 cup of strong green tea and 1.3 kg of sugar
Day 2: add 1 tsp yeast nutrient and 1.25 tsp SN9 wine yeast
One day at room temperature, then move to basement (20C). When wine is at BRIX 7/SG 1.03, move to demijohn.