A little while ago, a friend showed up at my door and asked if I was interested in taking on a large and time consuming project.... like NOW. Well, sure... what kind of a project might that be? This friend was in the midst of a move and had harvested her garden but had no kitchen in which to preserve and enjoy the fruits of her labor. So, in to my house were brought the many bags of tomatoes and peppers and onions. The tomatoes needed to be used immediately, they were super ripe and ready and could not wait to be used, so bright and early the next morning, there was canning in my kitchen. I've never canned anything in my life. I had no idea what I was getting into. I borrowed all of my mother in law's canning supplies and set out to work with the help of my lovely mother, without whom we would never have finished, and my friend whose vegetables we were canning. I didn't realize that canning was something that needed to be organized, thought out, and done in um... smaller batches. We made two dozen jars of stewed tomatoes and some cilantro-lime salsa that turned out to be more of a cooking sauce/marinade because of the accidental extreme amount of lime that I used. Whoops. But it's perfect for making some Cuban food with some black beans. Mmm.
This canning stuff is a massive amount of work and I now have an enlightened sense of admiration and appreciation for those who do it regularly. Also, my kitchen might be the worst kitchen for the canning process. Noted. Never again in my kitchen.
In the aftermath of the canning ordeal, I got a flat of organic strawberries and a mass of honey in my order from the lovely Azure Standard (my new favorite way to grocery shop... love it. Bulk organic foods that are extremely cost effective and delivered right to my town? Yes, please!) and made some jam. Some freezer jam. It turned out beautifully, so yummy. No more canning for me. :)
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