Making Italian Squash Chips

After many iterations making vegetable chips, we succeeded in making some that are as good as any commercial chips. My brother gave me the recipe, lent me his food slicer and four batches later I'm an expert. It takes less than an hour to slice five long Zucchino Rampicante squash (Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds) into discs, marinade them in a mixture of:

1. 1/2 cup of pureed garlic
2. 3 Tablespoons of olive oil
3. 2 Tablespoons of cumin
4. 1 Tablespoon of smoked paprika
5. 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne
6. 3 Tablespoons of lemon juice
7. (optional) 1 Tablespoon of turmeric

102 Ounces of Zucchino Rampicante Squash

The Electric Toastmaster Food Slicer Processed Five Squash in 10 Minutes!

and arrange them on dehydrator sheets. Disc thickness that worked best for me: 1/8 inch. Insure each squash chip is covered in spice and place closely-packed on teflon or silicone sheets on dehydrator trays. I tried placing chips directly on grates but they tend to wrap themselves around the wire - although they do make fancy fluted chips that way (that don't pack well). Dry for 8 hours at 115 F and then flip each one and dry another two hours, or more if they are not yet very crisp. After removing the stem and blossom scar, 100 ounces of fresh squash made 8 ounces of crisp chips! They lost 92% that was water! Both thickness and diameter were greatly reduced so the flat chips easily pack into a quart zip-lock bag.

Close-packed Squash Slices on Teflon Sheet

Same Sheet as Above, After Drying 8 Hours

Another Sheet Before Drying

Same Sheet After Drying

Saving Food: Apples, Cabbages, Peppers and Beans

It's November 17 and we still have a few dozen bushels of great tasting apples on four Granny Smith trees. 

One of Four Granny Smith Apple Tree Without Leaves But with Hundreds of Apples

We've given away many bushels, dehydrated more and have quite a few bushels waiting for processing. The few heavy frosts we've had haven't touched them. It's hard for me to see them go to waste, though they do help deer and other wildlife thrive. We have a year's supply of applesauce canned and 30 gallons of cider brewing or bottled but have run out of brewing vessels. Every few days I slice and dehydrate 40 or so apples into two gallons of chips. I'll probably pick another ten bushels before they freeze and store them under cover in the garage where I dehydrate them. When it gets way below freezing, they and the dehydrator will need to be transferred to the basement. 

Gallon Bags of Dehydrated Apple Slices and Other Drying Experiments

Three 5-gallon Carboys & Two 6-gallon Pails of Juice Fermenting 

Cabbages did not fair as well as the apples. I had to trim off the top leaves that were damaged by frost. The rest of the heads were still very crisp and hopefully will turn into great sauerkraut (white cabbage) and kimchi (red cabbage). The kimchi also has a few pounds each of garlic and sweet and jalapeño peppers mixed in for flavor. We have a total of seven gallons of these raw veggies slowing fermenting in the garage to extend their time to maturity while we eat more than a dozen fresh cabbage heads and pounds of peppers.

A Few Red Cabbages with Top Leaves Trimmed Off

Cross Section of A Red Cabbage

Five and Three Gallon Crocks Filled with Fermenting Cabbage and Other Veggies. Tops Are Weighing Down Plates That Keep Veggies Submerged in Brine.

Beans are easier to preserve than fruits and vegetables that have to be cut, shredded or squeezed. They simply have to be shelled and spread out to dry. Peppers, too, can be hung out to dry, and look good in one corner of the kitchen. Need a little heat in a dish? Pull one off and crumble it into the pot!

Scarlet Runner Beans in Various States of Drying

A Ristra of Alice's Favorite Hot Pepper (from a fellow seed saver) Hanging Out to Dry