In the lull between blog posts the canning continues with . . .
Last week, I put up the last of the pickles. I'm sure some of you are only too glad to hear this, as I ramble on way too much about pickles! What can I say? I love them! Here they are ready to go into their steam bath. I hope and pray the pantry shelves hold up under the weight of so many jars. Having eaten all the pickles from last year's garden it shouldn't be a problem for too long though. We are already counting the days when these will be ready. Think: Thanksgiving! I'm fairly sure our Thanksgiving prayers will include...pickles. :o)
And here's the result of what began as a tiny seed under a gro-lite back in February. We were standing around in the kitchen marveling over that very fact yesterday. With my hair up and my apron on, and with both daughters helping, we managed to pack and process six pint jars in under two hours. If you've ever done this, you know there are many steps in the process, each one important and necessary, and as we worked through each one our appreciation grew for our great-grandmothers who had none of the conveniences and many more challenges. The one thing we have in common though, is the satisfaction of seeing the end result.
It is certainly easier with three pairs of hands and I'm always grateful to have such cheerful participation. If the weather holds another week, we may have one more batch of tomato goodness before it's time to put the garden to bed and pick up where I left off on a few other projects.
Cute labels from Cath Kidston found here.
Updated 10/4 to add: I just got word that Cath Kidston has a new US online store! That means everything is calculated in dollars and shipping rates are localized. Check it out over here.
