Tennessee Gun

Tag: vegetable

  • How to Make Vegetable Rennet

    How to Make Vegetable Rennet

    Kitchen DIY: Vegetable Rennet
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    Most cheese was historically made with animal rennet, nowadays, a lot of cheese is made with a mold based rennet.

    It is possible to make a vegetarian rennet for those that are either vegetarian, vegan, or who do not have the resources to make animal based rennet.

    Today we will make a DIY Vegetable Rennet out of Thistles.

    The biggest problem with vegetable rennet is that it becomes bitter in aged cheeses.

    This means it should not be used with raw milk, or cheeses like cheddar that need aging to build their sharp taste.

    List of plants used to make a vegetable rennet:

    • Thistle
    • Fig
    • Yarrow
    • Ground ivy
    • Lady’s Bedstraw,
    • Nettle
    • Pineapple
    • Artichoke

    Since Artichokes and Thistles are in the same family, we will show how to make rennet using them, but as a rule of thumb if you crush and extract the sap from the greenery any of the plants above you can use it to thicken milk.

    Material:

    • Thistle flower head when it has turned brown, but harvest it before the plant produces the thistle down, in which case it is too late.

    Or

    • The Purple head of the artichoke before it makes the head

    Equipment:

    • Dehydrator
    • Pot

    Procedure:

    1. Dry the flower heads and pick off the purple stamens.
    1. Boil water and drop thistles into the water and let steep into a thick dark tea.
    1. Strain off the liquid. This is now thistle flower rennet.
    1. The rennet can now be added to warmed milk to curdle it and begin the cheese making process.

    Note:

    Most cheese recipes using commercial rennet are in the teaspoon/tablespoon amounts, I started using a traditional recipe amount, but ended up using ½ cup of my homemade rennet to get a good result.

  • How to Make a Healthy Vegetable Tian

    How to Make a Healthy Vegetable Tian

     

    52 Unique Techniques for Stocking Food for Prepper
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    This is a “clean” french recipe.  Genny is very interested in clean eating.

    Now when I was trying to grow organic in the front yard and buy grass fed beef direct from a local farmer she thought it all tasted funny, but now that she figured it out its a good idea….

    LOL – I am just happy she converted….

    So Genny found this recipe and cooked it a couple of times to decide she liked it and now she wants to share her recipe for basic vegetable Tian.

    This is vegetable Tian recipe has some flexibility.  You can manipulate the vegetables a little bit if desires.

    Genny told me I could not replace them with beef, chicken, and bacon so it is not THAT flexible.

    Genny’s Vegetable Tian:

    Ingredients:

    • 2 tablespoon Olive oil or Ghee
    • 1 large yellow onion
    • 2 garlic cloves
    • Zucchini
    • Yellow squash
    • Potato
    • 2 medium tomatoes
    • 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
    • Salt and Pepper, to taste
    • 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (if desired Genny omits if its only for herself)
    • 2 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan (If desired)

    Procedure:

    • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
    • Lightly grease a round casserole dish with olive oil
    • Mince Garlic, Dice Onions, and thinly slice all other vegetables
    • Heat half of the heat olive oil in a skillet.
    • Add chopped onion and garlic, cooking until soft and fragrant, 5-7 minutes.
    • Spread the onion and garlic mixture on the bottom of dish.
    • Evenly arrange the sliced vegetables on top, alternating as you go. Once you get all the way around, continue layering to fill the middle until no open space remains.
    • Drizzle all over with 1 Tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
    • Cover with aluminum foil and bake covered for 30 minutes.
    • Remove aluminum foil and sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan.
    • Return to oven and bake uncovered for an additional 15 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown.
  • The Beginners Guide to Preserving Food at Home

    The Beginners Guide to Preserving Food at Home

    Book Review: The Beginners Guide to Preserving Food at Home
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    A wonderful thing is happening in home kitchens. People are rediscovering the joys of locally produced foods and reducing the amount of the grocery budget that’s spent on packaged items, out-of-season produce, and heavily processed foods. But fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables don’t stay fresh and delicious forever – they must be eaten now . . . or preserved for later.

    For all the vegetable gardeners facing baskets overflowing with bright tomatoes, and for all the dedicated farmers’ market fans and CSA members, The Beginner’s Guide to Preserving Food at Home has the simple solutions that turn overwhelming bounty into neatly canned tomatoes, jars of jams and jellies, and crispy-tart relishes and pickles.

    Organized in a friendly, food-by-food format, readers will find freezing, drying, canning, and storing instructions for each vegetable, fruit, and herb. In many cases, several ways to freeze or can a food are described, and there are often other preserving suggestions as well, such as making juice or fruit leather.

    In the book The Beginners Guide to Preserving Food at Home everything is written with busy people in mind: these are the quickest, most efficient methods for preserving summer’s bounty. Up-to-date information and clear, step-by-step instructions show even absolute beginners the way to a fully stocked pantry.