SEE FISH DEHYDRATE

by Stefanie—fish #2

I, like my mother fish, have matured in my gratitude for the harvest and the amazing abundance of the the earth. (See post "See Fish Muse"). Today I have a hard time seeing any of that abundance go to waste. I distinctly remember--in my less mature years--having a bad attitude about growing and picking the garden, canning and freezing food. It seemed to take so much time and effort when food was so readily available and cheap at the store. I remember my mom, grandma, and great-grandma teaching me lessons on gratitude, thanksgiving, and self-reliance by consistently taking the abundance year after year and preserving it--never wasting it--for the future. Their values as well as their persistence and patience with their posterity have come full circle in me as I now see the valuable lessons and blessings that this kind of work brings.

I have some somewhat obnoxious Italian prune trees growing wild on a hillside in my yard. We cleared the hillside of most of them a few years ago, but they are persistent and determined to grow there. Every year they produce an abundance of small plums that fall and make the ground a mess. I don't necessarily like them but appreciate that they will grow and produce without any effort on my part. Since I have a hard time seeing things go to waste, I'm always trying to figure out what to do with these plums. Most years I make fruit leather out of them. This year was no exception, but I was extra proud of my leather this year. It turned out just like I remember my grandma's fruit leather that I used to sneak out of her food storage room. This was possible because I was able to use her dehydrator instead of my oven. My aunt inherited this this dehydrator--that I'm taking serious advantage of--but if I had known how much I would love it, I would have begged my grandma to will it to me. Anyway, I not only made plum leather but plum/peach, peach, and peach/strawberry. It's as easy as blending up the fruit in your blender, pouring it out onto a tray, and letting the dehydrator do the rest of the work. I've discovered that fruit leather really isn't a food storage item because it disappears all too quickly around my house.

I also dehydrated tomatoes from the abundant crop my brother grew this year. I don't like tomatoes--mostly a texture issue--but I love these. I also don't like mushrooms but enjoy them chopped, tossed in olive oil and seasoning, and then dehydrated until crispy.

Another thing I like to use the dehydrator for is sprouted grains and nuts. When you sprout wheat for instance, not only does it greatly increase the nutritional value, but it also increases the ease with which you digest it. Basically you soak it overnight, let it sprout for 12-24 hours (just until you can see the bud on the end swell), and then put it in the dehydrator to dry it back out so you can grind it. I also soak raw almonds overnight to sprout them and then dehydrate them. They taste so much better this way and are much better for you. Keep in mind that high temperatures destroy the enzymes in food, so keep the dehydrator under 115 degrees. I've got mine turned down to 100. Unfortunately the lowest my oven will go is 140 degrees. If you don't have a dehydrator (and can't borrow from someone like I do) then still give dehydrating a try in your oven. It's a good skill to know and is easy and satisfying!

Get healthy and stay healthy!