Will I ever finish?

Today I boiled,

and I steamed, and when I was done -

I had canned 9 pints of tomato sauce, 3 pints of clear tomato juice

and 7 pints of freezer carrots!

Don't the carrots look pretty? I've never done freezer carrots before but they weren't hard at all and they smell yummy! As for the tomatoes, I just juice them in my juicer for one hour, then wind them through my vitorio strainer and put in bottles. Then I water bath them for 5 minutes to get the lids to seal. I use this sauce to make speghetti sauce or add with crushed tomatoes. I also can some of the clear juice left over from the tomatoes. It is great to add to your stews, giving a great taste to the stock you already have!

Earlier this week I bottled these pie apples. I still have about 14 more quarts to go, but this was the first batch. They are a little labor intensive and I must advise you to buy an apple peeler and corer (the crank kind works best), otherwise you will be peeling and coring for days! Now here are the recipes for the pie apples and the carrots!

Freezer Carrots

8 Cups of sliced or diced carrots

1 Cube of butter

1 1/2 tsp of salt

2 Tbls of brown sugar

Put everything in a large pan, add enough water that you can see it, but not so it covers all the carrots. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Cool and place in containers and freeze.

Pie Apples

6 qts apples, peeled and sliced

4 1/2 C sugar

1 C Clear gel or cornstarch ( I prefer the Clear Gel)

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp salt

10 C water

3 Tbls lemon juice

Combine all the dry ingredients in a large pan. Add the water and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until thick. In a clean quart jar add about 1/2 C of filling, add apple slices, using a knife to work them down in. Finish filling with filling to neck, leaving at least 1/2 inch space. Repeat until all jars are full. Wipe mouth of jar with a rag dipped in vinegar (helps the sealing process) put lid and ring on. Process in water bath for 25 minutes. Should make 7 quarts.

We have a bumper crop of carrots and apples this year, so I am sure I will be re-using these recipes over the next week or so. Let me know how they turn out for you!

Chris

I won!

Imagine my surprise when I went to visit my friend, Kim Roses' blog at http://www.kimrose.typepad.com/. I won a contest! Didn 't really know I was entering one. I commented on what getting back to school meant to me. With it being Chelsea's senior year and all. Well anyways, any of you who read my blog, know I have been having 'senior' moments over Chelsea's senior year! Anyways, thank you Kim, for the lovely prize. I won her September kit!

By the way, Kim has the cutest online store and she has the cutest kits that are a really great value! Her website is www.expressthemoment.com and she a discussion board there too. We have gals from all over the US on it! So go on over and check out both places! You'll be glad you did! And if you want to come to a good old crop, join Kim on October 24th! We always do alot of great projects and then you just get the rest of the day to crop! I always get alot done! And everyone brings pot luck goodies and we just eat, scrap, visit and have a grand time! You can get more information on the website, if you are interested!

Oh, and Kim, after reading your blog about Heidi Swapp, I went to Scrapalicious yesterday and bought the heart box kit and the Secrets Kit. I was hoping to get the Energy journal kit, but she was out. You'll have to bring your energy journal to the crop so I can look at it!

Well, today, after work, I am off to Michaels to buy some Artsy Urban by Melody Ross. Tomorrow, in between canning apples and tomatoes, I am scrapping! Some me time!

Check in tomorrow, I will be sharing pics of my apple pie filling and tomato sauce and I have a couple of recipes too!

Ta Ta

Chris

Beautiful

I have never tried putting a video on here before, but here goes! I posted this on facebook, but it really touched me and I wanted to write about it here. This is a YouTube Pantene commercial and it lasts 4 minutes. Melody Ross posted it and and I have to tell you, it made me cry. Here is a link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um9KsrH377A

Relief!

Okay, so I know this is boring, but that shows you how boring my life is most of the time! My washer is fixed! I pulled it out today (no small feat since it still had water in it) and when I unhooked the hose some dirt, lint and 2 pennies came out. So I knew there was a clog on the other side of the pump. When Gene got home we tore the back off the machine and he pulled the hose off the other side of the pump. Out popped a coin about the size of a silver dollar that says "Don't quit" on it! Exactly the same size as the opening of the pump! Washer is now getting a work out catching up on our laundry that should have been done Saturday! Had a talk with Chelsea about checking her levi pockets better in the future!

Tomorrow I tackle the apples. I will post my recipe, which is one I got from our Finn Family Cookbook, from Aunt Elaine Finn, my great-aunt. Totally awesome, especially if you like cinnamon! I love old family recipes, they are the best!

Tomorrow is looking up!

Chris

Good Grief!

I woke this morning to snow! I so did not want my first post of October to be about snow! But it is! I even took pictures this morning (the scrapbooker in me) but I can't bring myself to post them. Maybe if I don't post them, it won't be true! (clicking my heels together three times)

Tomorrow, we get to tear my washing machine apart. I have one of those front load Maytag Neptunes and normally I love it! Saturday however, it stopped pumping water out of it. I am hoping for a clog, but preparing for a new pump! Sometimes everyday stuff just plain stinks!

As soon as the snow melts, I will pick my pie apples and make apple pie filling, but I refuse to pick them in the snow! It is supposed to be sunny and dry tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed!