Canning Plan 2014

Last year we made a wish list of what we thought would be great to can. We mostly looked through cookbooks and magazines to see what was actually able to be canned then just wrote down which recipe we wanted to try. We have kept track of what we used to most of and what we need to make more of this year and we still have a few jars that we just never really got around to trying. There were some things that sounded great but we either haven’t gotten around to eating or can’t figure out how to use yet. We kept this list in a tiny little notebook and I added notes as we tried things or if we needed to make more.

This year we are talking a slightly different approach and we made a list that includes things that we know we love to use and definitely need to make more of as well as things we found we bought a lot of and want to try canning at home and things that we just want to try out. Some things are just a type of food like kumquats or stock, others are new techniques like pressure canning or marmalade. I also started a new journal that is a bit more substantial than a little 3x4 notebook tucked in our canning cabinet. I am hoping to use it to expand on things we have already canned so that once we try them I can add little ideas. Like that our peach pie filling was delicious and smelled like summer when we opened it but maybe next year we should increase the ginger or add crystalized ginger before it goes in the oven to get some extra bite.

I want to try to focus on something new every month this year. Either a type of food like citrus or maybe a technique like pickling for the whole month and see what we can come up with. Join in if you are interested, or let me know if you have any ideas. I’ll try just about anything.  Our canning wish list for 2014 is here.

30 days of circles

Photo challenge number 2 will be 30 days of circles starting tomorrow. I cant  wait to get started. Here is my inspiration and my only boundaries for this challenge. 

circle[ sur-kuhl ]

noun

1. a closed plane curve consisting of all points at a given distance from a point within it called the center. Equation: x² + y² = r².

2. the portion of a plane bounded by such a curve.

3. any circular or ringlike object, formation, or arrangement: a circle of dancers.

4. a ring, circlet, or crown.

5. the ring of a circus.

6. a section of seats in a theater: dress circle.

7. the area within which something acts, exerts influence, etc.; realm; sphere: A politician has a wide circle of influence.

8. a series ending where it began, especially when perpetually repeated; cycle: the circle of the year.

9. an argument ostensibly proving a conclusion but actually assuming the conclusion or its equivalent as a premise; vicious circle.

10. a complete series forming a connected whole; cycle: the circle of the sciences.

11. a number of persons bound by a common tie; coterie: a literary circle; a family circle.

12. an administrative division, especially of a province.

13. a parallel of latitude.

14. meridian circle

15. a glass or metal disk mounted concentrically with the spindle of a theodolite or level and graduated so that the angle at which the alidade is set may be read.

16. a sphere or orb: the circle of the earth.

17. a ring of light in the sky; halo.

verb (used with object)

1. to enclose in a circle; surround; encircle:Circle the correct answer on the exam paper. The enemy circled the hill.

2. to move in a circle or circuit around; rotate or revolve around: He circled the house cautiously.

3. to change course so as to pass by or avoid collision with; bypass; evade: The ship carefully circled the iceberg.

verb (used without object)

1. to move in a circle or circuit: The plane circled for half an hour before landing.

2. to iris (usually followed by in or out).

Idioms

1. Slang..to prepare for an all-out, unaided defensive fight: The company has circled the wagons since its market share began to decline.

30 days of self portraits

This morning I took my last self portrait in my 30 day self portrait challenge. I have a few favorites and overall I really enjoyed this challenge. It felt really good to spend a few minutes everyday doing something that was out of the ordinary. A few of my favorites

                                                                   All 30 self portraits

    

 

Tomato, tomato, ginger

     

Cored, Blanched, peeled, chopped, cooked and canned. My first summer of tomato canning and it was pretty successful. Thank you so very much to the wonderful produce guy who sold me 35 pounds of Roma tomatoes for $15 when I only asked for 20 pounds. I am now almost completely out of canning jars. I Only have 4 oz and a few half pints left . Most of my canning this year has been done using Marisa McClellan's cookbook Food in Jars. Today I canned 6 quarts and 6 pints of chopped tomatoes, 3 quarts and 2 pints plus a half pint of marinara and 1 half pint and 2 half pint jars of pickled ginger with bay leaf and black mustard seeds. 

        

                                  

 I've always loved the pickled ginger that comes with sushi and thought. Would try my hand at making my own, I used a few different recipes for all over. In the end I used  my own combination of spices and vinegars. 

                   

Pickled Ginger with Black Mustard Seeds

 1 cup rice wine vinegar

 1 cup white vinegar

 3/4 cup sugar

 1 tbs salt

 1 lb ginger (sliced paper thin)

 2 tsp black mustard seed (divided)

 2 bay leaves

Peel ginger and slice as thin as possible.( I used a mandolin) toss in a medium bowl with salt and let sit for an hour. After and hour drain and rinse the ginger slices. Put vinegars salt, sugar and bay leaves in a medium sauce pan and beta over medium heat, stirring until sugar and salt dissolve. Bring to a boil and add ginger slices for 30 seconds. Remove from heat and let cool while preparing your jars. Divided  mustard seeds between jars and using tongs or a slotted spoon pack ginger into your jars. Once the jars are packed pour remaining liquid over the ginger. Use a chopstick to loosen any air bubbles and refill with pickling liquid leavin a 1/2 in head space. Wipe clean rims and seal jars to finger tightness and process at a rapid boil for 15 mins. ( I added a small slice of beet to the pickling liquid as it was heating to add color.)

on being selfish

 

This month I have been taking a self portrait everyday.  Inspired by the challenge put out by the lovely ladies at A Beautiful Mess. I started a little late and am not  quite done yet. I have been feeling somewhat disconnected from everything lately. Work has been very busy and things at home have been even busier. The last couple of years I have been spending a little more time trying to get back to doing more of what I love to do and less of what I don’t love to do. It was kind of hard to find a balance for myself after I had Lu and still worked my crazy schedule. I tended to feel like I had no time for myself because I would come home after working an opening shift and feel like a normal person having dinner at home and playing with Lu then I would have a closing shift the next day and spend the morning cooking dinner for everyone to eat while I was at work and trying to relax. I didn’t get both of those things done most days and more often than not it was the relaxing part that didn’t happen. One thing that I remember from growing up was always eating dinner together, so I have always tried to get up at the same time as Scott and Lu so that we can eat breakfast together everyday. Sometimes I can get up without a problem and other days it a little tougher but it’s still my favorite part of the day. I get to see everyone for at least a little bit before they go to work or school even if I don’t get home until they are asleep. I used to think that my irregular schedule was the worst thing in the world and that it was making things so stressful for us at home and that I was going to miss out on so much of the firsts for our new family. It wasn’t easy at all in the beginning but I came to realize that I was making things harder for myself. I was standing in my own way most of the time. I wasn’t making time for myself which was making things so much worse than it needed to be. Now I think my schedule is almost a benefit. Yes, I work a lot of weekends and nights but I also get time in the morning before a closing shift to do whatever I want to do and still make dinner for everyone. When I work at night on the weekend I still get to spend half the day with everyone. The weeks that I have days off in the middle of the week I can get errands done alone which takes half the time and then we get to spend more time together when I am not working. Things are not perfect and yes I wish that I didn’t have to come home to everyone in the house being asleep some nights and I wish that we could spend every Saturday and Sunday together at the beach or a the park. For right now we seem to have found a balance that is working and getting better everyday.

       At the beginning of this year I sat down to think about what my resolution would be for the year, I had no problem coming up with a huge list of things that I wanted to accomplish for the year, in fact I think my list was more than anyone could really get done in a year and still have any sanity or hair left. That list kind of just sat there for a few days and then I threw it away. I had this huge list of things to do but not something to be resolute about. That list was just a group of things not something that would actually make anything different. I wanted to come up with something that would actually meet the definition of  resolution, so I got out my dictionary and found out what it actually means… Resolution : firmness of purpose; the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute: She showed her resolution by not attending the meeting. So for this year I decided that my resolution would be to be selfish. Make time for things that are important to me, spend time when I have it with the people I want in my life, don’t worry about everyone else all the time, focus on what is best for my family and me, and most importantly make sure that I am doing things that make me happy because they make me happy not because they will make someone else happy or because I should do them.  So far its been going really well, I am more relaxed, we have been spending a lot more time relaxing together and not feeling like we have no time to spend together and I have gotten even more done so far  this year than I did last year or the year before when I set out the year with a huge list of things to do.

   So I am being selfish this year, but in the end It has really resulted in being more of a family and spending even more time together than we ever did before, with the same schedule. Hope you are having the same kind of year.

National Donut Day

Today is….

 

I have officially been making donuts every weekend for 21 weeks now. I have baked so many flavors of donuts it’s kind of hard to remember them all. Luckily I have a picture of ALL of them! There have been a few duds and a few that have been more than delicious, I have combined recipes from all over the place, mostly from my pintrest donut board.  I have been using this mini donut pan and this toaster oven to make them the whole time. Happy Donut Day! I hope you get to enjoy a sweet treat today!

 

Watering the day away

                     
                                 Watering the Veggies from Kathryn Van Bourgondien on Vimeo.

I think she could spend all day watering the garden and never get tired. It's the first thing she wants to do when he gets home from school. Straight out to the backyard! It looks like we will have lots of veggies this summer. 

#foxandbunny volume 3

Volume 3

#foxandbunny Volume 2

Volume 2 has arrived, enjoy.

#foxandbunny

I have been trying to come up with a new way to document Lula and how much she is growing everyday. On Christmas morning she found a few fun masks in her stocking and she loves them. I have been trying to come up with an idea like our weekly pictures that would be fun to have al together for the whole year again. I have finally settled on a comic book! I am super excited About how much fun it is to make and how much fun she is having with the masks. Keep an eye out for a new volume at least once every 2 weeks! Please enjoy the first volume...