Preserving

One of my first objections to this whole scheme was "What the crap are we going to do in the winter?" Don't get me wrong, I love winter squash and potatoes, but it seems like that is going to get old really quickly. My husband's answer was, "well, we'll just make our own preserves."

I've been trying to clean up my potty mouth since my son was born, so I won't write down what my first thought on that was. But, the more I thought about it, the more it sounded reasonable. After reading so much about how poisonous BPA is in almost everything food is packaged in (including the lining of canned goods), I was ready to think about alternatives.

Once I was sold on the idea of canning, I went a little nuts. After many trips back and forth to my hardware store and local farm, I came home laden with a 10 lbs of tomatoes, 7 lbs of nectarines, 5 lbs of plums, and 9 lbs of Lodi apples. After scrutinizing the USDA manual, I leapt right in with canned plum sauce and sliced nectarines. The next day I made cranberry and red onion relish and tonight I am making Applesauce.

So, for the last 3 nights after my son goes to bed around 8, I have been peeling, pitting, slicing, simmering, and canning. A note to all those who decide to try this for themselves- buy nectarine and peach varieties that are "semi-clingstone." I made the mistake of buying a variety that was not, and spent about 2 hours just working on getting the stones out of the nectarines. Not Fun!

So now I have filled a whole shelf of my pantry of home canned products and I obsessively check and re-check each can several times a day to see if the seal is still good. I just can't believe that I can actually make something that can keep for a year in my closet! I feel like a squirrel hoarding away for winter.

Here are some pics of me making applesauce from Lodi Apples. This variety is harvested from mid-July to August , cooks quickly, and has a nice tartness. Very delicious applesauce!