My Best Recipes for Preserving the Summer Garden

Simple recipes and tips for preserving your summer garden through canning, freezing, and fermenting.

I think there’s a common misconception that spring is the busiest time of year in the garden. There’s no doubt that it’s a hectic time. With soil prep, seed starting, hardening off plant starts, and repairing all of the things that were hidden by winter. But I’d like to pose the argument that the harvest season is just as busy, if not more so.

As much as I hate to admit it, I’m the world’s worst for being so burnt out by the end of the season, that I end up giving the chickens more than their share of the garden harvest, simply because of my negligence in preserving everything before it spoils.

If you can relate (please tell me you can) then hopefully this recipe roundup will give you some inspiration to get in the kitchen and preserve your garden harvest in ways that you will actually want to enjoy all year long. 
You’ll be thanking yourself come January when you’re craving some garden freshness!

Hot Pepper Jelly

This hot pepper jelly is the perfect addition to any charcuterie board, and makes a delicious glaze for pork loins.

Fermented Radishes

My quick and simple lacto-fermented radishes are a delicious garnish for salads, tacos, and sandwiches. Plus, fermented foods are a wonderful, and necessary, addition to our diets for optimal gut health and immune function.

Fire Cider

This recipe is a staple in our household. It’s an old-time remedy to all that ails you, and one that you don’t want to be without!

Preserving Basil

Basil is my favorite herb scent. It takes me back to when I was first beginning my garden journey and a dear friend gifted me a basil plant to get me started. It lit a spark in my gardener’s soul, and the scent has been powerful to me ever since. I tend to plant waaay too much of it for that reason, so it’s important to know how to preserve it!

Saving Your Greens

Greens are another crop that I tend to overplant. Once they come in, they just keeeep cooomming. I justify this by giving my wasted bits to the chickens, but when I’m on my game, this is how I use them.

Fermented Pickles & Onions

Fermented pickles might sound fancy and complicated, but they could not be any easier! Pack some spices and sliced cucumbers (and onions in this case) in a jar, top off with saltwater, let it sit out for a few days. Badabing badaboom, ya got pickles! And healthy ones at that!

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Where I Purchase My Supplies

If you’ve ever canned or preserved with cheap lids and supplies, then you understand just how important quality products are. They make all the difference when it comes to your harvest actually lasting. There’s nothing more frustrating than working your tail off in the kitchen, and not hearing those lids pop at the end of the day.

Here are a couple of my tried and true sources for preserving supplies:

Azure Standard

Azure is my one-stop-shop for the highest quality, natural products available, and where I place my bulk grocery order each month. They’re an independently owned company that ships their products all over the country, and have garnered a huge following in the homesteading community because of their prices and standards.

Year of Plenty

This business is run by a family who operates a small homestead in Pennsylvania and sells top-quality products that will take your home-fermenting game to the next level.