It is that wonderful time of year when all of the hard work on your garden throughout the year really pays off. It is also the time when everything becomes ripe all at once, resulting in more produce than you can physically eat before it starts to go bad.
While this may seem a bit frustrating after you have waited all summer for the delicious freshness of a tomato from the vine, the beauty of this inundation is that you have the opportunity to preserve these tastes of summer to savor on a cold winter’s day.
There are certain things that I prefer to preserve over others. For example, pickled zucchini or summer squash is not something I prefer; however, there are many kinds of pickles that I love. I also adore dilly beans, canned raw tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato puree, peaches in light sugar, peach relish, salsa, pepper jelly, pesto, corn and of course jam.
There are three methods of preserving that I utilize: freezing, drying and canning. I think certain items do better with certain methods of preserving. Freezing is of course the simplest, but once you get the hang of canning it is really quite easy.
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I discovered this recipe last April in one of my food blog wanderings. I was looking for new interesting dishes during the time of year when fresh local vegetables are scarce, but just starting to appear out of greenhouses. I was looking to use up the last of my frozen corn from the previous year, before the bountiful new year began, and this dish lent itself beautifully to such an endeavor.
Over the course of this summer I have made this dish several times with all fresh local ingredients, and it was spectacular each and every time.
