October 20, 2008
Pressed
On my weekly visit to the farmer’s market last Thursday I stumbled upon a seasonal booth. They have these every year; a group of vendors who only come to market at holiday time. This particular booth was selling preserves and oils. I know that preserves are a great way to get your fruit fix in the winter, when a lot of trees are barren, but I’ve never actually attempted to make my own.
They had two particular items that caught my eye: Meyer Lemon infused Olive Oil and Meyer Lemon curd. If you remember, I have a meyer lemon tree in my yard, and am still on the hunt for ways to maximize my bounty. My orange tree is ripening up, my pomegranate tree looks just about ready for harvest, and my meyer lemons are going to be plump and orangy-yellow within a month.
So I’m really curious about making some fruit preserves and some home-bottled flavored oils.
Right now I’m hunting for glass bottles and jars that I can use. Pretty vintage glass ones would be nice (provided they still have seals). You can boil the glass to sterilize and then you’re good to go.
I’ve found two methods for creating flavored oils:
cooking the oil and bottling or
cold pressing the oil
The heating method involves sauteeing the oil and herbs/juice/spices before straining it into a jar and sealing. This oil will keep for up to two months in the fridge.
The second method simply involves bruising the herbs/squeezing the juice/chopping the spices and putting them into the bottle with the oil, allowing it to sit for two weeks. The second method takes longer to make, but doesn’t run the risk of burning the oil.
Here’s my plan for the holiday:
Hazelnut infused oil
Meyer Lemon olive oil
Rosemary and thyme oil
Also, preserved meyer lemons
and jars of lemon curd.
Guess what you’re all getting for a holiday gift?
Filed under: Technique, Recipes
October 22nd, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Ohh damn, I need to try this stuff, Patrice! Maybe we can swap some of my infused vodka for some of this goodness.
-GC