This week
Suckers For Home Made Lollipops Unite! How To Turn Unpaid Child Labor Into Sweet Profits
15 August 2010
Notes on delivery for the week of Aug 19 2010
New this week.
- Grapes (Concord and white) from R. Breedlove (lines 55,56)
- Pyramid of goat cheese w wood ash (line 119)
- Heirloom Multicolor Cherry tomatoes (line 103)
- Organic mescaline lettuce (cus everyone’s is dyin’ line 65)
- Fresh seafood this week (line 221-231)
Hello Arganicans,
As we are closing in on the end of one blazing summer very welcome signs of cooler seasons are appearing. This week the first local grapes we are coming from Rodney Breedlove (lines 55, 56). Harvesting grapes and making wine has always been to me a benchmark of fall. I have not checked with my wine making friends yet but this crazy hot dry summer must be producing some very nice flavor concentrated grapes. In gathering the wild cherries this year I have found them noticeable sweeter and very abundant- I assume there is a connection. The Concord grape has always been a staple for grape lovers with is strong no nonsense grape-ness and deep purple colors. Although we do hope to bring in some of the favorite local winemaking grapes soon – we can all start experimenting with the robust Concord. At our farm we have an arbor that is half wild grape and half Concord. The vines are ancient and they give up very few grapes. Still it is enough to make a small batch of wine or vinegar and some very sweet treats. I usually get the kids to spend an afternoon picking grapes upon the promise that we will make lollipops out of the harvest. It is really easier than you think and quite a fantastic motivator for cheap labor. Had it been a century or two ago I would have paid them in rum.
The basic process is to reduce the sugar enhanced grape juice to candy concentration after a very slow reduction on the stove. The purple color and flavors are lost quickly if the temperature gets even slightly too hot. Managing that is the only real challenge. When the thickness is just right we make hot candy twists that we then wrap into a large disc shape. The disc is pressed flat to about 3 to 4 inches in diameter and when you jab in the stick you have a very large all day sucker. Just taking the grape from the vine to the candy in one afternoon is quite a spectacle for the kids and shows clear value for their efforts. See the following link for how to make a basic lollipops go to here. I usually get them to pick enough for me to do a sidecar of about a gallon or two of vinegar or wine. If you are interested in trying your own vinegar- just check out this link. If you are looking for a mother to get the vinegar started- I have a great batch from last year that was really my finest to date. Adding a bit of this vinegar to your sterilized batch of grape juice should start a top notch bacteria colony. I am out of town currently but will try to help those ambitious few who throw down on some vinegar this year. Just send me an email. If there are not too many takers – I can send a small vial of my great vinegar to get you off on the right track.
On other notes: Everyone really should try the newly released Albemarle ash cheese from Caromont. This not only tastes stunning but being pressed into a pyramid –it also is beauty to the eye. This fresh goat cheese is handmade with a layer of salted vegetable ash in the center- quite remarkable. (line 119).
We are traveling this week – trying to squeeze a little getaway in before the summer ends –so I will keep it short- Happy local eating’s from Dominique, Rachel, Praggie Tom, Jamie, Rebecca. Joe, and the entire Arganica team.
