Fall Updates!

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I know it is fall time here.. made the apple butter (as shared on my last blog post). And my tomatoes are ripening! I’ve picked about 60+ pounds so far. The first 40lbs have been turned into spaghetti sauce. I made and canned up 10 jars a few days ago and did another 10 jars last night…



The next batch will be made when my current 20lbs have ripened up a bit more. I have them sitting in a sunny window right now..



You can find my spaghetti sauce for canning recipe here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/spaghettisace2forcanning.htm  I still have lots of tomatoes on the vines and as they ripen up I will be moving onto salsa. I’ll need another 40 to 60lbs for the salsa. After that if there are still tomatoes coming on I plan to can tomato sauce.

On Thursday Tobin and I went and got our winter hay for the goats. With only 3 goats now I don’t need a whole lot but none the less it felt good to get it purchased and in the barn.

There is still wood to gather in but we currently have more than enough to keep us warm and toasty for the winter...



All sure signs that fall is quickly approaching. However other than these signs and the cool mornings and evenings we are enjoying and basking in some very lovely weather. The sun has been shining non-stop and no rain is in the forecast at this point. We are still enjoying very summer like days here in the Pacific Northwest.

With the weather as beautiful as it has been the motivation to start school with the kiddo’s is just not there for any of us. I’m guessing I’ll start as soon as I have to build a morning fire to take the chill off the house.. or the end of the month .. (whichever comes first :) .. We have enough rainy, cloudy, cold days here that keep us inside and are perfect for school work. For now we will soak up the sun and warmth a little longer.

This morning I got up and saw my canner sitting in the kitchen (from canning spaghetti sauce last night) and felt the need to put it to good use today. I currently have some red & black beans cooking on the stove and plan to make a huge pot of chili and can it up. My supply of home canned convenience foods is looking pretty slim and I love the ease of having home cooked healthy meals ready to go on my shelves. I’ll share about that in my next post.

Have a blessed day on your (city or country) homestead today!
 

Comments

  1. Bec - Farmers WifeSeptember 15, 2012 at 10:09 PM

    If it wasn't for the inspiration I get from your posts, I would never have given canning a go. Thanks for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 16, 2012 at 11:15 AM

    Your sauce looks wonderful! I would love to hear more about how you can your chili. I'm assuming you cook it in advance and then seal the jars well.

    Have you seen Canning Granny's recipe for canned pork-n-beans or almost what I'd call baked beans? I want to try that one as well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. CrystalSeptember 16, 2012 at 11:53 AM

      Hi Shara! I will be doing a blog post (hopefully this evening on the chili)... I have not heard of Canning Granny.. I did a quick Google search and found her.. fun blog! Her recipe for pork n beans looks similar to mine for navy bean and ham soup: http://homesteadinghomemaker.blogspot.com/2012/07/canning-navy-bean-ham-soup.html ... one difference I see is that I like to cook my beans a little before I can them. I'm not a big fan of canning dried beans without cooking first.. they are never tender enough for my own personal taste.. :)

      Crystal :)

      Delete

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