Prickly Pear

I was taken with the light on the prickly pear when Bunker and I took our walk this morning. It started the wheels turning. I looked up how to harvest and use the fruit to eat, make syrup and jelly.

We have a few of these in our yard, so I decided to see how hard it would be to pick them and prepare them for the recipes. 

The tiny little hairs called glochids really hurt and are hard to find and get out. One of the tips was to cut a plastic water bottle and use that to grab the fruit. That worked great!

The next step is to burn the glochids. Tongs and the gas stove were put to use on this step. This also makes pealing the skin easier. I took out the seeds even though they are edible. 

I haven't gotten past this step. A lot of work goes in to getting a small amount of fruit but I am determined to make syrup so I can create some exotic cocktails. 

The next thing to learn is how to use the paddles....not as motivated on that one though.

I am grateful to learn about the plants that are plentiful in our area.