2014 Journal

This was an off-year for us. Many things were happening and we just were not able to get as much canning done as we would have liked.

 

Tally for 2014

  • Applesauce - 14 quarts
    Apricots - 28 quarts
    Beef Stew - 17 quarts
    Chili - 6 quarts
    Nectarines - 30 quarts
    Onion Soup - 20 quarts
    Peaches - 34 quarts
    Strawberries, frozen - 20 quart bags

 

Story of 2014

  • Frozen Strawberries - 20 bags
  • We got our strawberries from our friends at Verdant Ground . They were absolutely beautiful berries. We did up 20 bags of frozen. Probably last us more than a year!
     
  • Peaches - 34 quarts
  • We picked our own from King Orchards and it was a little weird. We knew because of the weather that we would have a limited window to pick. The day we went out we picked Nectarines and Peaches. The Nectarines were full ripe, but the Peaches were very early so they had to sit around for a week to ripen. They ripened strangely, we had about half of them full ripe on one side and rock hard on the other...odd. However, they ended up being pretty tasty so...
     
  • Apricots - 28 quarts
  • Again we picked out own from King Orchards . Apricots are easy to can and this batch was wonderful. It was a beautiful day, the fruit was ready, and we got a nice haul. Spent the next day canning and we are set!
     
  • Nectarines - 30 quarts
  • These too were You-Pick from King Orchards . These are also an easy pack and we picked these at full ripe. They got canned right away and are very good!
     
  • Chili - 6 quarts
  • Whenever we make chili, we put up whatever is left over. This batch we got 6 quarts, not a lot but we'll be making more!
     
  • Onion Soup - 20 quarts
  • This was a new recipe. As always, I made a batch first to check the recipe. Everyone loved it. I wasn't sure as I did not want to use butter when browning the onions as I usually do. So, just a little oil, into a roasting pan, and cooked them that way. Worked good, tasty broth, delicious. I'm looking forward to eating this in the dead of winter.
     
  • Beef Stew - 17 quarts
  • Another first time canning. This was pretty straight-forward, standard stew recipe. Yum.
     
  • Applesauce - 14 quarts
  • This is an annual staple, mostly for my parent who love it. We harvest feral apples in the region so it's really inexpensive.