Pomegranates!

Well Autumn is here and that means the surf is picking up out at North Shore (6-8 feet this weekend). Of course that doesn't matter much to Emily or I anymore because we live in Southern Nevada. It also means the pomegranates are in season and ready to be picked! For all you Hawaiian's or foreigners, pomegranates are about the size of a grapefruit with a tough red rind. Inside are pleasant little juicy globe shaped seeds with a taste similar to a cranberry. They're very high in antioxidants and very much in demand. They sell for $1.50-$3.00 each right now.

Anyway, we're blessed to have about 20 fully mature pomegranate trees on our (my parents) property and have been greatly anticipating their harvest. They were fully ripe by the end of October and last weekend Dad and Uncle John came down with a big press juicer and we spent a Day picking and juicing the pomegranates. I drove my tacoma truck in the backyard and we filled the bed to full capacity. After picking, we cut the fruit open and threw them in the juicer. When it was nearly full we'd stick the wood top in and start cranking it down until the pressure was near 300 psi. Each batch provided 4-5 gallons of juice and we probably got about 20 gallons altogether. Emily and I took about two gallons and the rest of it went to the relatives and my sibling. It's pretty potent (usually a bit on the tart side) stuff to drink straight so we mix about 1 part juice to 2 parts water with 1/4 cup sugar to get a heavenly little fruit drink.

Last night Emily and I looked up some jelly recipes and made a dozen 1/2 pints of pomegranate jelly for gifts and for the fridge. It was our first time making jelly and it turned out pretty good.