Preserved

Mom and I used Labor Day weekend to take another shot at this canning and preserving business.  Last year it was pickles.  This year we tackled a much more reasonable quantity of cucumbers, and added tomatoes to the mix.  We canned tomatoes, and also made salsa.  It took us all weekend to get it done.  Friday night we peeled garlic (and peeled garlic, and more garlic, and more garlic), washed dill, washed cucumbers, read and reread our pickle recipe and canning tips, loaded the jars in the dishwasher, and talked through our process.

Most of Saturday was about pickles.  But we were much more efficient and organized than we were last year.  We also did one batch of tomatoes before heading out for dinner.  The tomatoes were a pain in the butt...they have to be in the canning bath for SO LONG.  Especially since we were canning at 7,500 feet above sea level, we had to add another 20 minutes to all the canning times. 

When we got back from dinner we were over it for the day, so we watched a movie instead.

Sunday was salsa, which was easy and fun.

This past week we made and preserved applesauce and apple butter.



Sadie watched movies and played, and mostly let us do our thing.  And every year I'm hoping she'll be able to (and interested) in helping more and more.