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Hello everyone! Just thought I would drop a quick post here to let you all know that we are so grateful for our new subscribers here! We three ladies have been quite busy over the last few weeks and have not made time to record but we will (hopefully) be doing that very soon! It is honestly feeling a little challenging to settle on a topic as my mind has been all over the place lately.
I think it has also been a very emotional time for many of us, anger, fear, worry and a bit of sadness at what our folk are faced with today and in the coming years. I for one have been keeping up with the news, staying up too late, and not taking the best of care of myself and my body. I plan to change that.
Yesterday Doug and I stayed up late around a fire looking at the stars and talking into the night. Many revelations and brainstorming about our life, this existence, our goals and plans for our family's future. It was a nice way to spend the evening. We also managed to get some tomatoes canned in the dark.
Earlier in the day I had skinned and stewed a couple gallons of tomatoes from the garden and I wondered if we would be able to complete the task. We set the large propane burner on the front porch. Using the canning kettle, we filled the jars with the rich, bright red, aromatic stewed tomatoes. I ended up with a total of 9 jars. Now I just need to repeat the process several more times.
If you haven't had home-canned tomatoes, you're missing out. They are absolutely delicious. No store bought version can compare. First I take a medley of ripe tomatoes from the garden. Some of them are "paste" tomatoes, some are small, large, or "slicers". I use a mix. Then I dunk them in boiling water followed by ice water which helps the skins slip off. I then core them and add them to a large pot. Once the pot is full I stir and simmer for 1 to 3 hours to reduce some of the liquid. This simmering really strengthens the flavor. I then pack scalded, hot sterilized mason jars and place the jars in the canning pot for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the jars. Full instructions can be found in one of my favorite books called "Stocking Up" by Carol Hupping.
Every year when I begin the canning, drying and preserving, I am reminded of the lovely song by Iowa-born musician, Greg Brown, "Canned Goods" ...
Other plans for preservation include drying a seasoning mix with basil, thyme, rosemary, sage, and parsley. I am also making lacto-fermented pickles, which I will post a recipe for here within the next day or two.
It is also getting to be time for wild chanterelle mushrooms and I hope we might find some of those and dry them as well. I will also be drying tomatoes and canning beet pickles.
I hope this message finds you all well and enjoying the bounty from the land in some way or form. Stay safe out there, loves....
~~~Vasalisa~~~~
I think it has also been a very emotional time for many of us, anger, fear, worry and a bit of sadness at what our folk are faced with today and in the coming years. I for one have been keeping up with the news, staying up too late, and not taking the best of care of myself and my body. I plan to change that.
Yesterday Doug and I stayed up late around a fire looking at the stars and talking into the night. Many revelations and brainstorming about our life, this existence, our goals and plans for our family's future. It was a nice way to spend the evening. We also managed to get some tomatoes canned in the dark.
Earlier in the day I had skinned and stewed a couple gallons of tomatoes from the garden and I wondered if we would be able to complete the task. We set the large propane burner on the front porch. Using the canning kettle, we filled the jars with the rich, bright red, aromatic stewed tomatoes. I ended up with a total of 9 jars. Now I just need to repeat the process several more times.
If you haven't had home-canned tomatoes, you're missing out. They are absolutely delicious. No store bought version can compare. First I take a medley of ripe tomatoes from the garden. Some of them are "paste" tomatoes, some are small, large, or "slicers". I use a mix. Then I dunk them in boiling water followed by ice water which helps the skins slip off. I then core them and add them to a large pot. Once the pot is full I stir and simmer for 1 to 3 hours to reduce some of the liquid. This simmering really strengthens the flavor. I then pack scalded, hot sterilized mason jars and place the jars in the canning pot for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the jars. Full instructions can be found in one of my favorite books called "Stocking Up" by Carol Hupping.
Every year when I begin the canning, drying and preserving, I am reminded of the lovely song by Iowa-born musician, Greg Brown, "Canned Goods" ...
Other plans for preservation include drying a seasoning mix with basil, thyme, rosemary, sage, and parsley. I am also making lacto-fermented pickles, which I will post a recipe for here within the next day or two.
It is also getting to be time for wild chanterelle mushrooms and I hope we might find some of those and dry them as well. I will also be drying tomatoes and canning beet pickles.
I hope this message finds you all well and enjoying the bounty from the land in some way or form. Stay safe out there, loves....
~~~Vasalisa~~~~
