A Slice of Heaven on Earth

For the second time this week we went blueberry picking, but today is the only day I remembered to bring the camera.  Wednesday's picking was not nearly as abundant as today, that coupled with the fact that the price per pound was much higher by over a dollar means we will not return to that location.  But TODAY we went to Blueberry Hill in Acton, ME and the picking was AWESOME and very reasonably priced per pound.  Hubby was able to pick, he just got stuck a few time and had to call the tow truck, ME, to help push him out of the ruts! 

Here are a few pictures, as usual the photos just aren't the same as being there.........

Here are a few goodies from MY garden and the blueberries from Wednesday's picking..............

Now I'm off to make something with the rhubarb!

When Life Gives You..........

.........black raspberries, make jam!  Sunday our oldest son brought home a bag of fresh picked black raspberries, just enough to make jam.

So yesterday morning I took out the pot and set out the ingredients........berries, sugar, pectin.  I filled up the canner, put the jars in the dishwasher to rewash and heat up and got to it!

Most important when making jam, the measurements should be exact (or very, very close) or the jam will not "set" and you will have sauce instead.  After washing the berries, I crushed them with my potato masher and put them on to boil with the packet of pectin.  It needed to be a "full rolling boil" .........

Then I added the sugar and stirred constantly letting it come back to a boil, once at the boil I set the timer for one minute, then voila you are ready for the next step...............

Into the hot jars (from the dishwasher or you could run them upside down under very hot water), the jars need to be hot so they won't crack from the hot jam you will put inside them.  Ladle the cooked jam (it will be liquid at this point) into the jars, wipe the rim, place the lid and band, then they are ready for a "bath" in the canner.  While I was making the jam I had my water bath canner on to heat so it would be ready for the jars, I usually bring it to a boil and then back to another boil after adding the jars and set the timer for 10 minutes according to the directions on the pectin packet.  Here's the finished product.......

As it cools it will "set" and should be the consistency of jam.  Sometimes that doesn't happen and it could be due to a number of different factors, the weather, not measuring the berries or sugar correctly, or not bringing it to the boil.  Remember you can still use it as sauce if it doesn't set and try again!  It's not really difficult to make jam, just takes a little time (not much) and a few supplies.  If you decide to try canning please take a moment to do some research as I left out a few prep steps like boiling the lids before you put them on the jars, etc. (this post was to demonstrate how fairly easy it is to make jam, not as a complete how-to)   Water bath canning is fairly easy, but NOT all things can be water bathed and cleanliness is important when canning.

Last night I finally finished the remaining bags that will be donated to Caring Unlimited........

Hope you have a terrific day, I'm off to research soap making!

The Results.................

The first attempt at making yogurt was for the most part successful.  It set up nicely and the texture was nice, but the taste was a little too TART for me.  I will do a little more checking, but from what I have been told it was because I let it "culture" to long, so the next batch I will only leave for 7 hours.  Here are a few photos of how it looked................

It is really hard to see that the texture is fairly smooth!

A few weeks ago while blog hopping I came across a post that talked about keeping it real, well here is what my kitchen area looked like on Saturday morning, I was too lazy to clean up before bed! 


A photo of the "canning" corner in my kitchen, it's where I have the boxes of jars, the canner, etc. waiting for the next batch of whatever I'll be making next! I just felt it made more sense to keep everything up and out instead of wasting 20 minutes digging it out of it's storage space.

 Another "keeping it real" photo........the nasty rings that are currently on my stove top from the canner, I will be canning more so I felt it was a waste to scrub until I was finished canning season.  I may have to cheat and scrub if it gets any worse or if my mom comes for a visit, LOL!

Last but certainly not least................Could you please take a moment to check out Marydon's blog, read the post (and link she provides) and if you are in support (I think you will be) then leave comments, for each comment $1 will be donated to the cause. 

Off to tackle several quarts of black raspberries!

Yogurt Making & Other Creations

Today I decided that I would attempt to make my first batch of yogurt with my newly acquired yogurt maker (see my August 7th post).  FYI, you don't need one to make yogurt, it just makes it easier to keep the temperature even.  I started off by looking up some YouTube videos on yogurt making, watched a few,  then read the directions from the package of "Yogourmet starter" and felt like I had enough information to get started.
The ingredients, milk & yogurt starter..........................

The supplies are very basic, something to measure the milk, a pan, a spoon, a candy thermometer, containter(s) to put yogurt for "fermenting", and a place/method to keep it an even temperature for "fermenting".  

After measuring the milk, in my case 4 cups, I poured it into the pan and put the heat on low.  I started very low and went a little higher (but still in the low range), you only want the temperature to reach 180 degrees, not boiling. 

Stirring, drinking, and reading................

It is important that you stick around while it is heating, you need to stir frequently and check the temperature.  After it reaches 180 degrees, you take it off the heat and let it cool to approximately 75-80 degrees.  I used a packet of powdered starter (the Yogourmet), I took out a little of the cooled milk and mixed the 'starter' into it.  After mixing well I poured it back in with the rest of the cooled milk.  (Sorry, I forgot to take photos of this part)  Then I poured the milk mixture into individual small jars and placed them into my yogurt maker.  I set mine for 9 hours.........stay tuned to see how it turns out. 

There are MANY variations and I am sure that I will be "tweaking" my batches each time until I get it just right.  You can use a yogurt with live active cultures instead of a "starter" packet, there are also other cultures you can purchase.  You can use whole milk, 1%, 2%, skim, or raw milk, the number of hours you let it set in the maker will also vary depending on your taste, a lot of this process is personal preference.  If you have always wanted to try making your own do some research and go for it!

Earlier this morning I made some Pizza Sauce with some tomatoes that were ready from my garden.  I did cheat and use a store bought mixture to add to the tomatoes (Mrs. Wages brand),  it tasted pretty good.  That was in the canner while I started the yogurt.  It only made 4 pints, but was a great use of a small amount of tomatoes!

Another experiment that I started at the end of last month.........

No I didn't start drinking, it's Homemade Vanilla..........consisting of a fifth of vodka and 4 vanilla beans, I cut the beans "open" before I put them into the bottle.  Now I just need to wait a few months to use, it is already smelling like vanilla..........Considering the cost of a tiny bottle of store bought vanilla this is going to be relatively inexpensive.  The vodka cost 10.00 and each bean was $2.50,  for a total of $20.00 I would say it's a bargain! 

Later I hope to finish up at least two more quilted bags for Kathie's Challenge, I have one done and the supplies to do two more, maybe three if I can round up a couple more strips for the straps.  The bags will be donated to our local chapter of Caring Unlimited (domestic violence program) where in turn they will be given to "new arrivals" filled with necessities!  Of course in my usual fashion I procrastinated only have this afternoon and evening to finish them up (we have known about this challenge for several months).  At least I have one done in case I don't get the others finished, or I can just drop them off to Caring Unlimited myself.

Found Little Brother............

Decided to take a ride today and check out an Estate sale that was advertising canning supplies, I need a few more pint jars.  Here's what I found.................

Some for canning.......

Some for decorating............



A 22 quart pressure canner, (the price on the box was $99), it is in almost new condition, just needs a wash...........

A few books to add to my learnin' library...............

A yogurt maker, I've been thinkin' about trying to make some of my own and have been checking out the prices.  This brand is what I was looking at, the glass jars are missing but it's clean and the instructions are included.  I can buy new glass jars or maybe use some of the small canning jars I have, I'm testing the timer, etc. than I will see if I got a deal.  Brand new this one is about $39, the price was right ($1) and worth a try.

Last but certainly not least is "little brother", a 5 gallon crock with lid......

I was so shocked when I saw this crock, I asked what they wanted for it, are you ready................$2, yes that's right TWO DOLLARS!  I actually paid $30 for the whole lot so I think I did well. 

Off to clean my treasures and put them away!

Ran Out for Sugar and Came Home With...........

Needed more sugar for this...........................

I came home with these goodies.......

I have been patiently waiting to find a medium sized dresser for just the right price, the mirror doesn't go with it but the price was right!!  I was pleasantly surprised that an old key that I had worked on the locks on the two smaller draws in the dresser.  

I did manage to get the sugar and finished my day with 10 pints & 1 quart of Dill pickles, 15 pints of Bread & Butter pickles and 9 more pints of zucchini relish to join the ones from the day before. 

Guarding the Flock

While working on a few little things around the coop I had the opportunity to take this picture. 

With Rudy and Midnight watching over them I am hoping the "girls" will be safe from harm!

Off to make more relish and some B & B Pickles.

The Wonderful Smell of Canning

Right now my house smells like onions and vinegar, I love the smell of the house when I make relish and pickles! The rest of the family is happy that the windows can be wide open and will be happier when I'm finished and the smell goes away.

The weather is wonderful, so wonderful I decided to get some cukes to make Bread and Butter pickles.  So this beautiful bounty will soon be tasty pickles!

Wish I could say that I grew the cukes, but I did support a local farmer when I bought them.  The plan is to make the garden plot large enough to grow my own next year, maybe I will try onions and garlic too!

I still have enough of this.................................

../..to make a second batch of relish.  The zucchini came from my mom's garden the red pepper and onions are from the grocery store, the green pepper came from a local farm, unfortunately mine are not that large.

Right now my house smells like onions and vinegar, I love the smell of the house when I make relish and pickles!  The rest of the family is happy that the windows can be wide open and will be happy when I'm finished and the smell goes away. 

Summertime

Eating lots of this.....................

Doing a little of this.........................

Reading these..........................

Turning this into a yummy relish...................

Hope you are enjoying God's bounty this summer.