The garden is putting out a lot of vegetables now, so while Darrel continued spinning honey, I was attempting to make a dent in the garden.

Squash, of course, is always abundant but we also are getting quite a crop of ancho chiles and jalapeño peppers. I was looking online for something to do with the squash and decided to try squash relish.

Squash Relish

8 cups shredded yellow and zucchini squash
2 cups chopped onions
2 Ancho chiles, chopped
2 Red Peppers, chopped
3 jalapeño peppers, chopped

Mix together the vegetables with 3 tablespoons of Diamond kosher salt. Allow to sit for at least 1 hour. Place in colander and drain well.

Mix together in a large, non-reactive pot, and bring to a boil:

2 cups sugar
2 cups Distilled vinegar
2 teaspoons celery seed
2 teaspoons mustard seed
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

Add vegetables, bring back to boil, and cook for 15 minutes.

Boil pint jars and lids for 5 minutes, and add hot relish mixture to within 1/2 inch of top. Screw on lids. Place in hot water in a water bath canner and bring to boil. Process for 15 minutes.

Courtney walked in just as I was finished putting the mixture in the jars and said it smelled awesome. It was a little too sweet for my taste, and not spicy enough, but I think it will be great on many things like bratwurst and hamburgers.

Then I started thinking of making something that wasn’t sweet and more like sauerkraut. Sooo, I made some squash kraut.

Squash Kraut

Shredded yellow and zucchini squash (I used about 2 of each for 2 quarts, but it all depends on how big they are and how much you want to make.)
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 jalapeños, shredded
Diamond kosher salt

Place about a 1/2 cup of squash, a pinch of garlic and jalapeños into a sterilized quart jar, sprinkle with salt. Keep adding until almost full. Using a wooden spoon handle, pound the squash down into jar. Continue adding and pounding until you are able to push the squash down and it is covered by liquid. Slide a thin knife around edges to remove air bubbles and make sure squash is covered with liquid. I then placed a grape leaf on top and pushed down again. Grape or oak leaves will help keep the vegetables crisp.

Let sit for a couple of days, burping lid each day, until the flavor suits you. Then refrigerate for up to 6 months or so.

I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Oh, yeah, and while I was doing this, Darrel’s brother brought over 2 cases of peaches and Darrel picked a large bowl of green beans. It never ends.