whoa! it’s been a whirlwind of a month! i’ve been busier than i’ve ever been. i won’t go into details but if a picture is worth a thousand words (or ahem, 85,000!) then here you go:
photo bennett sell-kline
i haven’t been back to my beloved berkshires, and more importantly, my beloved garden since august 21st to be exact. (ugh!) it feels like those lazy summer days i dreamt about last winter remained just what they were – a dream.
some people in my life find it hard to believe i do what i do, and i garden, and i preserve the bounty, and i roar over here and here about it – and here and here too!
but you know what? i love it – all of it!
so i hope you’ll stick around even during those times when my paws are busy with other thingz, and i can’t be around here quite as often.
’cause you know, eventually i’mma give you something like this:
lemon basil nectarine preserves
as crazy as my august was, i couldn’t bear to let nectarine season go by without getting some of these little sweeties in jars. one of my fave preserves from last year was nectarine preserves with summer savory and white pepper.
for this batch i used the following:
4 pounds nectarines
4 & 3/4 cups sugar
3 lemons
large bunch lemon basil
i followed exactly the same technique as last year’s recipe, but because of my buzyness, i left the fruit macerating in the fridge for 2 full days and nights.
bury the lemon basil in your just simmered fruit on day one, keep it in there throughout the maceration process, then take it out just before you put it on the stove day 3.
the combo is brilliant – if i do say so myself.
back in the saddle again peeps, back in the saddle…
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85,000?!? Holy socks! That it amazing, Tigress; congratulations!
And nice to have you back.. and nectarines with lemon basil sound equally amazing. I still have to get more peaches in jars: and now I want nectarines too!
Ooh, jealous! I would probably have loved to be at whichever party you produced/were at. I am sure the dj rocked! Thanks for this recipe, I don't see too many nectarine preserves. I know Im odd, but I prefer them to peaches.
kaela – thanks! good to be back.
maureen – i prefer nectarines to peaches too, maybe its the fuzz factor.
In my opinion, the nicest thing about gardening/food growing is precisely the fact that it doesn't give a rat's ass about how busy you are at any giving time. It has its progression trough the seasons and it keeps going. So we have to take time to attend to its needs. I am really busy too, summer or no summer (except december, but not much gardening then) but I find it really relaxing to have to carve out time to do the harvesting and preserving and gardening…
Excellent! Glad you're back, hopefully to the pastoral place. What a party. I've been jammin' peaches and also nectarines with basil and rose geranium and lavender (finally blooming). Last year's nectarine raspberry jam was awesome. Get those local herbs to volunteer.
olga – i agree completely!
karen from prospect: the pantry – peach lavender sounds awesome!