Medlars, Mushrooms, Garlic & Ginger

It's Friday, November 6th and it was truly another beautiful day here!

I happily woke to find the box of Oyster Mushrooms that Brigham brought by last night, as I finished the medlar 'cheese.' This is what you call it when fruit is sieved to remove skin and pips.

Are you familiar with these fruits?

This is the first year I investigated how to prepare them. Which is a bit funny, considering I planted the tree....

They have to wait to be harvested until late November (after a frost), and then need to be 'bletted.' This means they sit until they're pretty squishy. (Entropy at its finest, huh?)

After cooking them down in some water, I passed them through a sieve. Back in the pan with lemon juice and a bit of sugar, to reduce into by half. A highly unusual flavor...not enough to can this time, though.

Next, I peeled and sliced the remaining ginger, covered it with raw honey, and started it fermenting for 2-3 weeks with daily 'burping.'

Why would I do that, you ask?

Super probiotic & digestive assistance!

I was actually looking for a recipe for pickling ginger - and found this idea in the process.

Haven't you noticed that is exactly how life works for you, too? You think you're doing something for one reason....and then the real reason shows up!

Later in the afternoon, I ventured out to run a few errands and popped into Pete's Stand.

I love these guys!

Yes, I planted garlic this year - and processed and planted a bunch. Pete's had such beautiful cloves, though, I felt inspired to try fermenting some of them - into tasty black garlic. Although I'm not entirely sure how intense the processing 'fragrance' is going to be, the dehydrator is loaded up!

There's a reason my Human Design includes: 1-Investigator...

These are the types of projects that feel both productive, useful, and creatively fun....

Sure, I could be glued to the news about the voter sting. Apparently, the legal ballots were marked with watermarks (I'm not sure if the MSM is covering this?). Doesn't even matter.

Now, I'm finishing sauteeing these gorgeous mushrooms...because sometime this winter I bet you'll be by for some mushroom soup, yes?