Loquat trees are beautiful to look at but they also offer a world of food and flavor. Grill Man planted our trees about five years ago. As with most who visit the area, my trees love Fairhope and all it has to offer on our acreage. Lots of clean air, warm sunshine, rain and space to grow. My trees are fat and happy.

Driving around the county, I have noticed other loquat trees everywhere fully loaded with fruit. Granted, dealing with produce on any grand scale is alot of work. It is ready when its ready and it doesn’t matter what you have going on in your life. Produce demands to be picked or it will ripen and fall on the ground. Fruit on the ground will attract rodents and other uninvited guests to your garden.

I am happy to share my loquats but not everyone wants to pick, wash, and process the fruit. I get it, it is labor intensive but what a great way to teach your little ones about nature. A good way to spend quality time with your children and teach then about Mother Earth. Grab scissors to cut the loquats from the tree and large baskets for your fruit. Now, where do I get them?

What if I don’t have Loquat Trees?

So if you don’t have any loquat trees, drive around they are everywhere and maybe the home owner will share. It is possible they will be happy to have you pick them from the tree before they have to remove loquats from the ground. Offer to purchase them first, although they may be happy to give them to you. If they say no, thank them and move on to another tree loaded with fruit.

If your homeowner says yes, be sure to thank them before you leave and don’t make a mess in their yard. Mail them a thank you note to show your appreciation for sharing.

Use the scissors to cut the loquats from the tree and place gently in the basket. The fruit will bruise easily and lose its freshness quickly. DO NOT PICK GREEN LOQUATS OR EAT THEM. Green loquats are toxic and not ready to eat. Only pick what you will be able to eat and process. You can always pick more later.

Prior to our trees, I was not very familiar with loquats. Trees grown from a seed take 8-10 years to bear fruit. Loquat trees grafted from plants may produce in 2-3 years. Definitely go the grafted plant route, so that you’re not waiting forever. Visit the local nurseries to purchase loquat trees.Once you have secured your loquats, what’s next? Before you get your hands dirty, turn on your favorite music. Loquats- Eat, Ferment, Freeze, Preserve, Steep and Share. Wash the loquats several times before you eat any loquat fruit. Do not eat the seeds without researching.

What do I do with loquat seeds?

With a knife cut a slice into the loguat and pop out the seeds. Loquat seeds are brown and you may find one or many. Set seeds aside. I have not made loquat liqueur yet but its on my list for this season. Check out the recipes on Eat The Weeds web site. This recipe looks interesting to me, Getting a Grip on Grappa.

What do I do with Loquat Fruit?

Place loquat fruit into a bowl. Drizzle with lemon and toss occasionally so that the fruit does not change color. Eat while you work. Give your little one an apron and allow them to pop out the seeds and place into a bowl. Explain that they may eat the fruit but not the seeds. They will enjoy cooking with Mommie and making memories.

With the fruit, your options are endless at this point. Eat loquats. Make smoothies. Freeze loquats to process later. Learn to preserve and make jelly, marmalade, loquat leather, margaritas or chutney. Leaves from Loquat tree leaves may be used to make tea. I am sure that they would be good in a cake, fruit bread, salsa for fish, fruit salad, etc

Loquat Cheesecake

This week I made a Loquat cheescake using my St Germain Creamy Cheesecake recipe with the following changes:
-do not add St Germain
-Add 3 Tablespoons of pureed loquat fruit Bake at 325 for 50 minutes. (Use the waterbath method to prevent cracking)

Internet has a world of information about loquats and only waiting for you to google. Loquats are good to eat and offer lots of nutritional benefits. What are you waiting for? Pick em’ if you got em’. If not, go loquat hunting but please remember your manners. I would love to hear all about it.

For more information check out Loquat World.

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My jolly giant has a great green thumb and his efforts produce. At times, it is more than I am able to manage. I offer to share with friends but I typically have few takers. Which leaves an abundance that is hard to manage  with Mother Nature’s schedule. Her schedule and my schedule do not always line up properly to manage the garden and fruit trees. I have learned an important fact.

Produce waits for no one.

Every year, I try to do a better job than the year before to use the offerings or share but it does not always work out the way that I envision. The citrus is particularly difficult due to the time of year that it ripens. I will do better next year!

The citrus fruit is plentiful and requires processing. You can only eat or drink so much juice when fruit is ready on the vine. I have found that freezing is the fastest method for preserving fruit juice. I believe that it retains  nutritional benefits more in the freezer method versus canning.

For large amounts of juice, freezer bags work well. Always freeze in the size container that you may want to use at any given time. In an effort to re-purpose or recycle and limit cost, I save small glass containers from spice jars, pimento jars, horseradish etc. This allows me to save small amounts of juice and freeze different sizes.

Once I have I used up the original item in the glass jar, I will soak in water or run through the dishwasher to remove the label. Then set aside in a designated area until needed. Prior to use, I will run through the dishwasher to sterilize the jar. For citrus juice, allow jars to cool before adding any juice.

Nothing is worse than trying to prepare a spontaneous dish and realize that your missing an ingredient as simple as citrus juice. Citrus juice is used in so many different types of recipes:

Cocktails
Desserts
Appetizers
Seafood
Soup
Salad or salad dressings

One of my favorite recipes that I use orange or satsuma juice in is  It’s Not Your Mama’s Tater Pie. If you like sweet potatoes but want an upgraded version, take a look at this recipe. It is a slice of delicious.  View the dessert section or use this link for It’s Not Your Mama’s Tater Pie

Preserving and freezing your excess will aid in limiting waste and cost. If your purchasing citrus in the grocery store or market it is typically cheaper to buy a bag versus a tiny amount. Fruit and vegetables are cheaper when they are in season. It is lovely reach in the freezer in lieu of a trip to grocery store.

After you prepare the juice, use a marker or make a label to name what type of juice. If you want to go an extra step, measure juice in jar and label on glass.  After it is frozen it is harder to recognize. On the glass jars, I prefer the marker because it is quick and easy.

For many reasons, preserving is a valuable tool for us to learn and blend into our homes. It is another way to recycle and help our environment  by utilizing glass containers that we already have from purchases. It only takes an extra step  or two to start.

Shout out to Alexa for Meghan Trainor for a upbeat-get-your-body moving song. I need this music to keep me moving while I process this citrus.

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