Ingredients:

1 cup dried barley

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1 crisp apple

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 bunch watercress, large stems removed, roughly chopped (about two cups)

3 tbsp minced red onion

3 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

1/4 cup olive oil

1 cup sheep’s milk feta cheese, crumbled

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the barley and 1 tsp salt.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer until barley is tender and cooked, about 40 minutes.  Drain into a strainer and rinse barley under cold water.  Set aside to drain thoroughly.

2.  Meanwhile, place the sunflower seeds on a baking sheet and toast in oven until fragrant, 5-7 minutes.

3.  Chop apple into small dices and drizzle with lemon juice.  Combine barley with watercress, apple and red onion.  In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp lemon juice, the lime juice, olive oil, and 1/2 tsp salt.

4.  Just before serving the salad, mix the dressing into the salad.  Top with the feta cheese and sunflower seeds.

serves 6-8

Hey sweet friends,

We wanted to let you know (though some of you know already) that on  Monday, April 4th, (tomorrow!!) Chef Paul and Mike Mintz have offered to give us a class on mead-making and hard apple cider making.

GROOVY!

Julie Sennott has, again, generously offered her fabulous kitchen, our usual gathering place for the Canning Club. (Thanks Julie!!)

Here are the Details:

Monday, April 4th,  7-9 @ Julie Sennotts house (53 Bolton Road)

Bring nothing but yourselves — but if you plan to attend you MUST  RSVP.  We are limited on space so only the first 25 can come this time (we promise to offer it again if needed)  and there are only a few spots left.

To RSVP, email Jen Sundeen at jennysundeen@gmail.com

UPDATE :  THE MEAD MAKING CLASS IS FULL!!!  IN FACT OVER-SOLD!!! WOW, YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!!!  FOR THOSE THAT DIDN’T GET IN ON THIS ONE, TRUST WE WILL DO IT AGAIN……THIS IS ONLY  THE BEGINNING……

I made these labels that you are welcome to use.  I am working out the printing of them  as we speak — but here is the .jpg for you to download and print on whatever label sheet you can configure it for.  Let me know how it works for you…If I can get it all working I am hoping to have some spares on hand tomorrow.

-Rochelle

Clara Endicott Sears bestowed many admirable gifts to the town of Harvard, the Canning and Evaporating Club being one of them.  She created this Club as an outreach organization back in 1918, sending canned fruits and produce, as well as dried food, over to the soldiers during World War I.

Canning and preserving locally grown fruits and produce is a timeless process – both meditative and, when done with friends, full of comraderie and that sense of going back-to-basics.  When we read about the Club, and realized this year marks the 50th anniversary of Clara’s death, we thought it would be nice to reinstate the idea of gathering together in a kitchen and preserving our own fruits of the land.

Sooooo……We invite community friends and neighbors to gather to either learn or teach the art of jamming…or to just enjoy the company of local folks.  Our first jam session will be held Monday June 7; arrive anytime from 11:00 to 7:00 at the Old Post House, 53 Bolton Road in Harvard.  Bring your equipment and ingredients with you (See post below)  Plan on a good hour and a half for jamming.  We hope to meet once a month through harvest season.

We are also searching for any of Clara’s old canning or preserving recipes; any suggestions on where to look are most welcome.  Also special thanks to Fruitlands Museum for providing us with these beautiful old photos and information about the original Canning and Evaporating Club!

Looking forward to a bountiful harvest season and new adventures in the kitchen this year!

We Be Strawberry Jammin’….

Nothing speaks of Summer’s beginnings as does the strawberry.  We thought strawberry jam would be a great way to kick off our first jam session… easy for beginners, still fun for more seasoned preserve-makers.  Join us at 53 Bolton Road with the ingredients and equipment listed below.  (It might be best to stow everything in a laundry basket or box.)  For this recipe we won’t be doing a water bath, so no worries about actual canning pots; we’ll give that a go later in the season!  And feel free to alter/add to our suggestions (i.e. rhubarb, cointreau, etc…):

1 box sure-jell or pectin

2 full quarts of ripe strawberries

7 cups sugar

measuring cups

wooden spoon

large mixing bowl

cutting board

sharp knife

glass canning jars

new lids and rims

large 6 quart pot

drying cloth

PLUS anything else you can think of as necessary for having a good ol’ fashioned time.  See you Monday June 7th!

vintage Sure-Jell photo from RecipeCurio.com

Strawberry Jam, taken from the Sure-Jell packet.  Tried and true.

Ingredients

2 quarts strawberries, cut and crushed to yield 5 cups crushed berries

7 cups sugar

1/2 tsp butter

1 box Sure-Jell powder

Directions:

Pour crushed berries into large boiler

Measure sugar into separate container and set aside.

Stir package of Sure-Jell into strawberries.

Add butter.

Bring berries and Sure-Jell to a full rolling boil, then add sugar.

Stir constantly.

Stir in sugar, quickly.

Return mixture to a full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat.

Skim foam from top with metal spoon.

Ladle quickly into jars that have been cleaned and preheated.

Clean rims of jars with clean hot cloth.

Place heated lids (lids that have been placed in simmering water for 1 minute) on jars and tighten rings.

Turn jars upside down for five minutes to seal.

Return jars to upright position and let cool completely before storing.