thedigininja, my neighbor dehydrates a lot of what she grows. My grandmother use to dehydrate things in the oven with only the heat from the gas pilot light. She would put veggies and fruits on a framed screen my grandad made for her. She would take a wooden spoon to keep the oven door open a tad.
I have not tried that though even though our gas stove at the cabin does have a pilot light.
On another note: Just canned 11 pints of basic spaghetti sauce from 20#'s of a neighbors tomatoes he gave us. My basic (Actually it is my grandmothers recipe) spaghetti recipe goes like this:
20 #'s of ripe tomatoes 5-6 cloves of thinly sliced garlic 1/4-1/2 C sugar to taste
1-4 Tsp to taste 1 C Shopped onions 1 C sweet pepper
1 fist of dried parsley 2 Tbsp Dried Oregano 2 Tsp ground Black Pepper
1 Fist of fresh Basil 2 Tbsp Olive Oil 1 C White raisins (Optional)
Wash tomatoes. In a large hotel pot add a dozen or so crushed tomatoes, turn heat to medium and crush tomatoes. Once crushed tomatoes heat up start to clean and quarter the other tomatoes. Add to pot tomatoes till all 20#'s are in the pot. Cook till they all disintegrate. About 1 hr. Then cool down to 100 - 115F degrees to be able to handle easier.
While your tomatoes are cooling, in a large frying pan put OO and saute onion, garlic, pepper, parsley, oregano and pepper*. Once the onions are translucent throw in the fresh cut basil and stir.
In another pot set up your hand crank miller set to puree mode. Ladle your cooked tomatoes into the mill and grind away. Periodically take out seeds and skins from the mill. Once all tomatoes and sauce are pureed turn on heat to medium. Once you start to get a boil turn heat down so you just get a slow "blurp...Blurp". Slow boil. Stir every 15 minutes as it will burn a small amount on the bottom of the pot. Cook until 50% reduced - 6 or so hours. The last 1/2 hour of cooking add sugar and salt to the sweetness you are looking for. (Salt enhances sweetness). When done add the raisins. I had a Italian mother who always added white raisins. It adds a different layer of taste.
Up into hot and sanitized pint or quart canning jars. Wipe jar lids and apply lids that had been thrown into 180F degree water. Fasten scre tops to only finger tight. Cook in pressure cooker for 15 minutes at @ 11 pounds of pressure.
This is the basic spaghetti sauce that my grandmother use to make. Now you have the basis on those cold wintery days for many Italian favorites.
* I always de-skin the pepper by roasting on a open stove top flame and then wrapping in news paper -
Let stand 15 minutes. Then unwrap, skin, de-seed and cut up into cubes. You DO NOT need to do this!
I do it just because I am anal.
