I've been keeping myself pretty busy, obviously!
The strawberry season is winding down, but I was able to get myself going this past weekend and make TWO batches of strawberry jam!
That bumps our total to twenty jars of strawberry jam (since we opened one already and ate it). What does one do with that much jam, you may ask? I'm not sure, since jam is not one of those crucial staples here in our house, but as I was canning I kept hearing this voice in a very clipped British accent going through my head:
"Dear me, Jenkins! It's the apocalypse! Thank heavens someone thought ahead to make jam!"
I found it rather funny...
Anyway, like I said before, I'm doing this for the experience more than anything else. Now, if I had some massive garden out back and was able to can fifty quarts of tomatoes or something like that, THEN I would feel like I had accomplished something. We go through so many tomatoes each week, it would be a great help if I were able to can my own.
Oh well. Strawberry jam it is.
In other food news, after watching this video umpteen times (points if you see the picture of Madonna and Child!) **You may want to click through to see this on youtube instead... I can't get the width right..**
my kids started asking if we could ever have tabbouleh. I've made it before (from a box) and truth be told, they hated it. However, they asked several times, so I decided to do a "theme night." I got a recipe for tabbouleh, falafel, and pita bread, and started cooking. We paired it up with some Turkish music:
...and had a fantastic meal! I have to say, homemade tabbouleh and falafel (and pita bread) tastes a WHOLE lot better than boxed stuff...
Does anyone else do theme nights, or are we just a bit weird over here?
7 comments:
Congratulations on all the jam! Now I have to make some more so I can keep up with the "Ouizes". And I'm glad your tabbouleh came out well even without mint. Cilantro's way better anyway...
I can't believe I used to hate cilantro! I used to think it tasted like soap, as I recall...
I think I'm all jammed out... at least until blueberry season... oh, and Reilly saw the marmalade recipe I sent to you, so she wants me to try that, too (yeah....)
Now, if I get even enough tomatoes for ONE can, I'm coming over to your house so you can show me how to do this!
Wow, that jam looks great! We're just heading into strawberry season here so I just made my first batch over the weekend. It turned out so well - I just love strawberry jam. We eat it on pancakes and waffles as well as toast and PB&J. I make it with the Pomona's pectin (which can be bought in bulk online) so I can use a lot less sugar.
I'm making tabbouleh and pitas on friday night, but no falafel. But that does sound good... I haven't had falafel since I worked in Santa Cruz and used to go to the Falafel House for lunch sometimes.
Hey Ouiz, ever think of finding a farmer's market to buy tomatoes in season to can? I *might* do that this year. Our little garden is fun, but hardly generates enough to can.
Good for you on the canning front!
Amber, this is the second time I've heard Pomona's pectin mentioned... I think that's my cue to look it up online and get some! I can't stand the "over-sugariness" of normal jam, and even the "less sugar" recipe is too much. Thank you for the suggestion!!
SCG, that is a good idea. Our illustrious town finally has it's own farmer's market! (can you believe it?) So far there's nothing much out there except strawberries and goat cheese, but hopefully that will change as the summer comes.
(I am so sorry to leave an unrelated comment. I couldn't find another way to contact you.)
I just wanted to make sure that you knew that your blog is featured as a site on the Catholic Gadget (Catholic Family Toolbar). http://www.catholicgadget.com/
I ordered a half pound four or five years ago directly from the site - http://www.pomonapectin.com/ - and it still works well. It says on the packaging that it lasts indefinitely. I still have a little less than a cup left at this point. I am running out of the calcium powder though, because once you dissolve that in water it only lasts 3-4 months. I wish you got a little more of that when you order.
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