Dehydrated Baby Food: Sweet Potato, Pumpkin, Squash

This post has moved--Click here to go to Dehydrated baby food: Sweet potato, pumpkin, squash

Yogurt Leather

This post has moved.  Click here to go to Yogurt Leather

Make Your Own Dehydrated Baby Food

This post has moved.  Click here to go to Make Your Own Dehydrated Baby Food

Dehydrating Celery

This post has moved.  Click here to go to Dehydrating Celery

Dehydrating Carrots: Steam Blanched or Not

This post has moved.  Click here to go to Dehydrating Carrots

Fabulous Fruit Leather (Even if You Dry it Too Long)

This post has moved.  Click here to go to Fabulous Fruit Leather

Dehydrating Lemons

This post has moved.  Go to Dehydrating Lemons.

Dehydrating Pineapple

Pineapple is one of those foods that are really well suited for dehydrating.  They are easy to prepare and get super sweet when they're dried.  Great for snacking or putting in trail mix, granola, breads, etc.  I'm sure you want some, so here's how you do it.

First, get a pineapple.  Or two or three.  I just had one.  If you're doing two or three, you'll want to wash your hands frequently as you're cutting them or wear gloves as they are highly acidic and it will start burning your hands.

Peel, core and slice your pineapple.  There are tools for this, but I just use a knife.  If I did a lot of pineapples, it would probably be worth getting the peeler/corer tool.  I cut the top and bottom off, then cut the peel off, then cut it in half from top to bottom, then cut each half in half (so the whole pineapple is quartered), then cut the core section off each quarter.  Then I cut each quarter in half again before I started cutting the chunks.  You can make your pieces whatever size or shape you want.  If they're all close to uniform thickness, they'll dry more evenly.

Now, put your slices on the dehydrator tray.  Pineapples have such a high acidity that there is no need to pre-treat them with fruit fresh or other stuff.  In fact, I've used pineapple juice as a pre-treater for other fruits before.  Not perfect, but it preserved color better than just drying them without dunking in pineapple juice.

I dehydrated the slices with the blueberries since I had extra trays available.  135 degrees about 16 hours in my Excalibur dehydrator.  They were crispy.  If you don't want them crispy, just check them more often than I did and turn the dryer off when they're at the chewiness you like.

They come off the trays nicely.  Put them in whatever you're storing them in.  Hide them from the snackers or leave them out and let them get eaten.  Yes, that's the whole pineapple in that pint jar minus about 6-7 chunks we snacked on before I got the picture taken.  Strange but true.  Dehydrating is like magic. Yummy magic.

Dehydrating Blueberries

This is one of those projects that was really so easy it shouldn't deserve its own post, but here it is anyway.  Dehydrating blueberries.

First, get some blueberries.  It really doesn't matter how many, but the more the merrier.  Wash them and pick out any that are squishy or bad.

Now get a pot of water boiling.  If you've got a collander that can fit into a pot, use that pot.  It doesn't have to be too big, but you'll have to dip the blueberries in and pull them out, so get a pot big enough to do that.  I only had a little collander that could go in the boiling water so it was a little awkward, but it worked.  I just did then a few at a time.  It would have been really quick if I could have dunked the whole bunch at once.  I put a hot pad on after this batch.

The blueberries need their skin cracked so the moisture can escape and they can dry.  You're going to crack the skin by dipping them in the boiling water for 15-30 seconds and then pulling them out.  It's easier than putting a little slice in each berry for sure.  The berries darken up in the water.

After the berries are out of the water, put them on your dehydrator trays, spread them out so they're not all piled on each other, and dry them. 

In my Excalibur I dried them at 135 degrees until they were chewy but not soft.  It took overnight plus about 3 more hours the next morning--probably 16 hours total.

They can be used in pancakes, muffins, granola, etc. or just eaten plain.  I had to hide these because they kept getting eaten.  Yummy and super easy way to preserve blueberries.  Little wrinkled balls of goodness.

Enjoy your dehydrated blueberries as long as you can keep them hidden from the little snackers. :)

Making Banana Chips by Dehydrating Bananas

Sorry for the trouble, but this post has moved to our new blog location.  Click here to go straight to Dehydrating Bananas.  Thanks!

Dehydrating Frozen Broccoli

Frozen vegetables are perfect for dehydrating.  They've already been blanched prior to being frozen and you can usually just dump them out on your dehydrator tray frozen and start drying.  Super easy.  This weekend I dried some broccoli.  Broccoli is kind of large and thick straight out of the bag, so I let it sit on the counter and thaw a bit, then cut each larger chunk into 2-4 smaller pieces.  You'd want it smaller anyway when you're going to eat it, and exposing the center of the stalk makes it dry faster.

I loaded them on the dehydrator trays.  One big 56 oz (3 lb. 8 oz.) bag of broccoli florets filled three dehydrator trays.  Then I put the trays in the dehydrator.  Because of the bulk of the floret heads, I loaded the trays every other slot in my Excalibur dehydrator.  This is one of the benefits of this particular design of dehydrator--you can stick your trays in wherever you need to to accommodate whatever it is you're wanting to dry.

Then I ran the dehydrator overnight.  I didn't count the hours, but I wanted the broccoli good and dry.  They should be crispy, not leathery.  Here they are when they're done.  That empty spot is where hubby snitched one.  He likes to try out the dehydrated goods right off the tray.  These were "tasty, but the stem is pretty tough" in case you were wondering.

There you have it.  Super easy.  That whole giant bag filled three pint jars once it was dried.

And another shameless plug--I'm a dealer for the Excalibur dehydrators.  Let me know if you're interested in one.  I'll have a page up to order at some point, but in the meantime, just send me an email and I'll get you pricing.

I'm on a Podcast!

What? You don't know what a podcast is?  That's okay mom, I didn't know either until about a year ago.  Really.  Anyway, if you've ever wanted to listen to me talk about preparedness for an hour and hardly let the host get a word in edgewise, now's your chance.  Matthias at The Prepper Podcast had the opportunity to listen to me go on and on and on and he's kind enough to share the recording of it with all of you and anyone else who wants to listen.  You don't even need a "pod" to listen to it.  You can download it or just click play on the Prepper Podcast site.  Easy.  So go here and have a listen while you're fixing dinner or folding laundry or whatever.  :)  Enjoy!

Freezing and Dehydrating Corn: Choose Your Own Adventure

You know I could post this as two posts, but the only difference between freezing and dehydrating corn is the last step, so for simplicity I'm just doing one post with two possible endings.  Kind of like the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books.  You read those didn't you?  I really liked the original #8 if I remember right.  I figured out how to get through the wild west town, I believe it was Deadwood City, without dying and then just chose the same adventure every time I read it so I never died.  Yep, I'm that adventurous.  Anyway, back to corn.

First thing you'll need is a bunch of corn.  However much is fine.  Depending on the variety of corn you grew, it can lose it's sweetness pretty quick after it's picked.  There's an old saying that goes something like "don't pick the corn until the water's boiling".  That never works around here, so we just get what we get when we get it.  It's also best for flavor to pick your corn first thing in the morning or late in the evening, not the middle of the day.  Ummm, yeah.  I pick it after I get the kids to school.

Shuck your corn and wash off all the little stringy corn silks as best you can.  Some folks are real particular about getting the strings off (me) and some don't really care much about getting every little string (my kids).  Then boil up some water and blanch the corn on the cob by dropping it in the boiling water for 6-8 minutes.  Mine didn't want to stay down so I put a bowl on top of it to keep it in the water.  (this new blogger typing thing is going to take some getting used to)



Pull the corn out of the boiling water (I use tongs) and put it into some cold water.

Once it's cooled off, you can cut it off the cob.  There are some fancy tools out there to get the corn off the cob.  I'd like one.  I just use a knife and cut down the cob in strips.  I do it on a cookie sheet so it will kind of hold the cut corn kernels and I can get a pile of them before moving to the next step.  Don't cut too deep or you get nasty tough cob bits in your corn.

Now you have your corn cut off.  If you'd like to store it in your freezer, continue reading.  To dehydrate it and store it on a shelf, scroll down a little more.  (You won't die with either choice, I promise.)

FREEZING:

Scoop the cut corn into freezer bags or vacuum seal bags in a quantity that looks like one meal's worth for your family.  A little less for a couple, a bunch for a big family.  Or you can measure and do each bag at about 2 cups and have around a pound of corn per pack.  Whatever works for you.  Seal your bag, sharpie your date on it and put it in the freezer.  Easy.

DEHYDRATING

Put your cut corn on your dehydrator trays and dry until it's hard and crispy.  Remove and store in a jar, vacuum pack bag, bucket, whatever you like to use to store your dehydrated goods.  Mark the date on it.

This dry corn is for rehydrating in soups and whatnot, not for grinding into cornmeal.  If you want to dry corn for cornmeal, just let it dry on the cob without doing any blanching like this.

There you have it.  Choose Your Own Adventure #379: Corn ;)

Drying Corn

I planted some corn this year that was supposed to dry and be ground for cornmeal. I didn't read that it has a 110 day growing season, which we barely have here, and I didn't plant it right at the beginning of the season, so when it wasn't dry by the first hard frost, I called my extension agent who told me it was okay to leave the ears on the stalks through the frost. So I did. Then a couple of weeks later, I pulled the ears off the stalks and pulled the shucks back to expose the corn kernels which STILL were not dry. It was really cold that day, so I just tossed all the ears in the wheelbarrow and drove them to the shop where they could stay "inside". However, they weren't going to dry all piled on each other, and the shop gets pretty darn cold which is not conducive to drying corn ears. I knew the ears had to come in the house where it was warm enough for them to dry, but there's quite a few of them and my house is only so big (well, actually it's pretty darn small), and the places I'd like to have a bunch of corn hanging around are even more limited, so you know that saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention"? Well, I took some clothesline and strung it from nail to screw to nail to different nail to another screw that were already sticking out of the rafters in my furnace/freezer/storage room in sort of an ADHD spiderweb pattern. Really random--I just didn't feel like pounding my own nails in to make it all nice and neat. Then I clothespinned the ears of corn to it. Now they are happily drying in my storage room using space that I didn't have anything else in (and I thought there was no such space in my house).
Okay, that picture kind of stinks if you haven't been in my storage room--hopefully you can make it out. The corn is really dark red--it's called Bloody Butcher corn. Don't you think RED cornbread or RED corn tortillas will be fun?

Dehydrating Peppers

I put up a post on the Utah Preppers site on Dehydrating Peppers. Check it out--pretty easy and totally useful, especially if you like peppers or planted way too many of them ;-)

I promise I'll be back for some regular posting after the harvest season slows down a bit!

Dehydrating Shredded Zucchini

In the past I have dehydrated zucchini by slicing it and then drying the slices to add to soups, etc. I have also sliced it thin and sprinkled seasoning on it and dried it to make "zucchini chips". They weren't bad, but they weren't something I wanted more of--maybe I didn't use the right seasonings--it's been a while, I really can't remember what I sprinkled on them. Might be worth experimenting with again. I've also frozen zucchini in 2 cup packets so I can make bread with it later, but freezer space is limited around here.

So this year I'm getting a little wild and I'm dehydrating shredded zucchini. Now in theory this should be able to be added to breads like fresh zucchini. Maybe you'd need a little extra liquid in your mix or maybe rehydrate the zucchini first? I've never tried it, but here's a recipe for zucchini-rhubarb bread using dried shredded zucchini from Mary Bell's Food Drying With an Attitude. Maybe you could substitute more zucchini for the rhubarb if you don't have it, or just use this recipe to figure out about how much liquid, etc. you need when using dehydrated zucchini instead of fresh. If anybody has experience baking with dehydrated zucchini, I want to know how it went!

Mary Bell's Zucchini-Rhubarb Bread

3/4 cup dried shredded zucchini
1/2 cup dried rhubarb flakes
1 1/4 cups water
3 eggs
1 cup butter, melted
2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups nuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease two 7 by 3 inch bread pans.

In a small bowl, combine the zucchini, rhubarb, and water, stir, and let sit 30 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add butter, sugar, and vanilla and stir. Add rehydrated zucchini and rhubarb, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Stir again.

In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to egg mixture and blend well. Add nuts. Stir.

Divide batter into two prepared pans. Let sit 15 minutes before baking to allow flavors to mingle.

Bake 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool on wire racks.

So now we have that out of the way, here's how to dry your shredded zucchini. First you need a zucchini or two or three or however many your garden or friend gives you. (On a side note here, you know you don't have any friends if you have to buy zucchini during the summer.)

Then shred your zucchini using any method you want. You could peel it first if you want to, I left the skin on--it's kind of pretty that way. A food processor is really nice here. Mine is old and the lid doesn't latch right anymore, so it's kind of dangerous for shredding stuff. I still chop in it--I just have to hold the lid down while it's chopping, but shredding is not all that safe, and $35 for a cheapo new food processor just isn't in the budget, so if any of you are looking to offload a food processor, let me know and I'll give you my address to ship it to :)

Anyway, back to the procedure. I used a "salad shooter" we got a gazillion years ago and it shredded the zucchini without too much trouble. Next, put your shredded zucchini on your dehydrator trays. The less overlap you have, the less it will stick together at the end, however, it dries so crispy you can just kind of break it into bits after its dried anyway, so I didn't worry too much about having each strand separated from the next. In fact, I didn't worry about it at all. Just put the zucchini on the trays and kind of spread it evenly over the tray.
Dry at 125 degrees for about 5 hours. Here's the same tray after the 5 hours. Where did all the zucchini go? Crazy. Dehydrating is like magic.
On one tray I measured 2 cups lightly packed shredded zucchini and it came out to be a scant 1/2 cup of dried shreds.
The whole dehydrator full of zucchini shreds fit in a quart jar. Amazing. Into the food room it goes and someday when I'm feeling adventurous (after I've used all the frozen zucchini) I'll try it in bread. It could also be added to about anything you're cooking (ground beef, soups, etc.) just for some added nutrition. Use your imagination here.

Dehydrating Cherries

Here's the second post in the cherry series coming at you through the magic of blogger scheduled posting while I'm camping.

Dehydrating Cherries is pretty easy, but does require that you have a cherry stoner unless you really want to cut the pits out of every cherry (NOT recommended unless you really have nothing better to do with your time, which I can't imagine).

Step one is to wash the cherries. Yep, that's the same wash the cherries picture from the canning cherries post.
Next you'll run the cherries through the handy dandy cherry stoner--mine is made by Back to Basics and clamps to the counter edge. The cherries go in one side, then you push the plunger and it pushes the pit out into a little container and the pitless cherry falls out the other side. It gets hung up every once in a while, but most of the time works pretty slick.
Next, cut your cherries in half and put them on your dehydrator trays so the cut side is up. This preserves the juice in the cherry as it dries.
Once the trays are full of little cherry halves, start the dehydrator. Depending on how large your cherries are and how humid your climate is, it takes from 13-20 hours to dry cherries.Dry them until they're like old raisins. Still sticky, pliable, not crispy, but not meaty.It took 2 1/2 trays of cherries to fill a quart jar. Dehydrating is like that. You do a lot of work and it ends up taking up very little space, which is good for storing lots of food, but not so good when you look at it and say, "I did all that work and that's all I have to show for it?" I was going to do some fruit leather with the cherries also, but the dehydrator was busy drying plain ol' cherries, so I froze a bunch to work with later.

I love to eat dehydrated cherries straight or put them in homemade granola type cereal. They are more tart than eating the cherry raw. They could go anywhere you would normally put a raisin, so cookies are fair game also. Yummy!

Dehydrating Onions

Sorry for the trouble, but this post has moved to our new blog location.  Go straight to Dehydrating Onions! Thanks!

Easy Jerky from Elk or Deer/Venison

This post has moved to our new blog address--Click here to go straight to the instructions for easy jerky. Thanks!

Dehydrator

A dehydrator is a fantastic tool for food preservation. I have used mine to dry green beans, corn, zucchini, tomatoes, apples, apricots, strawberries, herbs, actually anything that gets in my way when the dehydrator is out has the chance of being tossed in the dehydrator and dried.

I have only owned one dehydrator--it is an Excalibur and I love it. Here's the pros and cons:

Pros:

It's really big--I can dry lots of stuff at one time.

Adjustable Temperature.

Timer (this way I can dry stuff while I'm sleeping and it doesn't get too dry).

I can dry large items by leaving some trays out to make more space for what I'm drying.

The heater/fan is in the back instead of on the bottom--the bottom is smooth so it is really easy to clean up.

The trays can go in the dishwasher (top rack only I think).

Cons:

It's really big--so if I'm only drying a small amount of stuff, the dehydrator is the same size as if I'm drying lots of stuff.

The internal temperature is not as even as it is advertised, so I do rotate trays from the top and bottom toward the middle about half way through the drying process, although you'd have to do this with a stacking type dehydrator also. The rotating process is really simple--I just pull out the two trays I want to swap and stick them back in opposite locations.

Umm . . . . I guess that's all for cons that I can think of. Overall it's a fantastic product.

Looks like the model I have with 9 trays and a timer goes for $249-299 right now depending on where you get it--YIPES! But I've had and used mine for about 9 years and it's just as good as when I first got it--I don't expect I'll ever need another dehydrator. Here's Excalibur's site for more information: http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/