Thievin'

I couldn't just let those plums fall off the neighbors tree this year. No way! I sent Andy up onto the roof of the barn to pick what was ripe and then I made him promise to go up again to get the rest in a week or so. :) 

I didn't think we had as much as we ended up with (which was 12 pints and 3 quarts!). They leaked and floated to the top, but after troubleshooting and calling mom-in-law, Robin, they sealed and should be safe to eat and save. The floating is more than likely caused by me not heating the fruit before adding it to the jars, and the leaking is because I overfilled the jars with syrup. Matilde enjoyed licking syrupy fingers and gave me a smile of approval. Andy is now trying to figure out where we will store the jars. 

Blueberry Treats

The girls and I had a great time picking blueberries with Grandma R and our friend, Alix. Our share to bring home was two gallon bags full of large, ripe blueberries. Alix passed along a great cobbler recipe and I found another recipe online for a yummy blueberry lavender butter. Both were super delicious and extremely easy to make! I am pretty sure these recipes are keepers. 💙

However, I may need a canning refresher soon because lately my seals have been leaky and I'm nervous to keep them shelved. The seals "pop," but I still pass the jars along to friends, neighbors, and family to enjoy before they (possibly) spoil. I'd rather share our harvest than suffer from botulism. Wouldn't you?! 

Apple pie in a can.

Thought I would listen to Granmo when she suggested I can apple pie filling. I thought it sounded way too good to be true- pour, heat, and serve! Too tasty and delicious to be healthy that's for sure! Can't wait to try it out. Thank you Granmo! 

Grape Juice

We tried our hand at grape juice. It was before I bought the cheese cloth. Haha 

We'll see how it goes when we crack open these quarts. It might take a LOT of Sprite to cover the pulpy taste. Cross your fingers! 

Canning dreams...

4 out of 5 isn't bad.  I received a ton of helpful advice from family and friends about last night's mishap. However, I do feel that the jar may have been flawed, well, along with my overfilling. My mother-in-law suggested I freeze the extra bit of tomatoes, so I'm not tempted to overfill. I'll remember that for next time. Our diced tomatoes look yummy and ready to eat whenever I need that little extra. There are also a ton of tomatoes still on the vine ready to be canned into salsas and sauces soon enough.