Sunday, June 22, 2008

Making jelly and canning!!!

This is jar cakes. Diane turned me on to them. I went on line and found other recipes and gave them a try.What you see here is pumpkin, zucchini, and strawberry, They(hubby) has eaten all the applesause, and they are working on the blueberry ones too.. These are great to have around and they are good for a year. These are the right size for a bed time snack or a dessert for a late supper. These are so easy to make and seal. I'm planning to make lots more for this winter.
This is figs on my fig tree, seems to be quite a few on there, I'll be picking them soon.

Isn't this a pretty site? I now have 19 of these little feathered friends. I started out with 29 eggs. Some weren't fertile, and some just didn't hatch. Normally it takes 21 days for chicks to hatch. These made an appearance in 18 days. This in an 11 day old chick.This is blueberries... I have been picking for about 2 weeks now. I may get a handful one day. Or a pint the next. They come off a few at a time. I have 4 large bushes, and they are different varieties.By the time one is through, another starts getting ripe.

This is some of the berries I have picked.(time to clean out the freezer)
This is some of the canning I have been doing. I can dried beans and peas when they are on sale.
Sweet corn is being sold in some of the vegetable stands too. I have white beans, black eyed peas, cranberry beans,pinto beans, split-pea soup, beans and rice, and home made vegetable beef
soup.
This is one of the blueberry bushes that I am picking from.(me and the robins)
This is some blackberries I picked this morning. This is only about 1/2 gallon. They are just starting to get ripe here, they are about 2 weeks early this year. Where I pick is snake and chigger infested. Long pants and tall boots are required. The name of the place is Rattlesnake Ridge, it is well named. I make lots of noise when I'm there to run the snakes off. Copperheads don't run!!! I try to keep a long stick in case I have to educate a snake or two. Chiggers and ticks are very bad this year. I've seen more snakes this year than I've ever seen. A neighbor was weed eating our backyard and killed a copperhead. We live in town........
This is some tomatoes of of ours, they didn't have a label, they seem to be a small variety.

So this is what I've been doing besides cooking out 2 or 3 times a week. Washing and hanging out clothes.(my white sheets and towels)Doing the rest of the laundry, and everything that goes with keeping house for 2 (some-what) grownups, and 2 kids(ages 12 and 5).
I have been making a lot of homemade yeast bread, french bread and rolls and dough-nuts. I love homemade yeast doughnuts.Cinnamon roll are good too.I made long flat loafs for sandwiches too. They were good. We shared with the neighbors Thursday night so she wouldn't have to cook.She doesn't cook as well as her husband and they both put in long days at work, They also have 3 kids to feed bathe and put to bed. We set up my tent and put a table and 6 chairs and a small table and bench in the tent for 3 of the kids. We had cold sandwiches a veggy tray and strawberry shortcake for desert . It was all good. :)Had very little clean up and the bugs couldn't get to us.

I've did a little sewing lately too. I'll try to post some pictures on here next time. I'm a little tired now,and I need to go pick berries again in the morning . So I'll bid you a good night and God bless you all. Donna

12 comments:

Diane@Diane's Place said...

Dang, I'm TARD just reading about all that, much less doing it!

I thought figs got ripe pretty much all at the same time, but I noticed in your picture that there's all different sizes on your tree, so they should be getting ripe at all different times.

Looks like you've got several roosters among your chicks. You should really be able to tell pretty soon.

I like your new header picture. ;o)

Have a good week, Sister. Good luck with your berry pickin' and be careful of the snakes and chicks and tiggers. ;o)

Love and hugs,

Joe

Aunt Jenny said...

You have SURE been busy!! I love canning jar cakes too, and I am totally out right now. I can do thta while I wait for ripe stuff...you are sure ahead of us here that way..nothing ripe yet here!!
We are supposed to have another warm windy day tomorrow..so my laundry will sure be flappin in the breeze..I need to get that wringer washer planted full of flowers too. I used one for laundry for 6 years straight and loved it...up until about 7 years ago when it died big time. It was real old. More work for sure..but I loved it...no one offered to help with the laundry back then.

Perri said...

good grief, the more I read, the more I felt like a slug wanting to crawl back into my bed. All of that fresh goodness looks yummy.

Jess said...

I'm like them...man you must be tired! Hey where did you get the chickens? Just wondering...and how do you get the jars sealed after you bake the cake? I know I know.... mom does all that cooking and i still have no clue how to can...pathetic.

Jess said...

Very cool....thanks! I might want those recipes! Of course I would have to hide them...Jason would eat them all before winter ever got here!

Michelle-ozark crafter said...

You have been a very busy girl! Love the baby chicks! So adorable but they sure grow fast! I want to have a gooseberry bush and some blueberry bushes some day.

kansasrose said...

OK girfriend send me some of that Arkansas GUNG HO you have!!! Whewwww wee ya put me to shame. You are one dynamo woman! Like Joe said..I'm dang tard readin' all this. Been dodgin' too many tor-nah-das lately I guess. lol Oh hon your blueberries, figs, blackberries look beautiful. I'd love a fig tree..what kind grows there? I wonder if it is too cold here for figs.

Got my sour cherry jelly settin up now...Hon, you have got one fine lookin' pantry there. I have to confess I am green with envy at your beautiful canned foods :);)....no really hon... I know you work hard and rock it out. Just like your sis Diane...you gals are kitchen divas. I'd love the recipes for the beans and rice. Do you add spices to it? Is it like a red bean/rice mix? Sure sounds good! Hey! I'm gettin; me some chicks soon! I maybe be asking you for advice on them. I have a guy that I used to work with that raises chickens going to set me up. We have to build a tractor with a top that will lift up, cause of all the dang predatory wildlife, not to mention the neighbors hunting dog that kills chickens around here! grrrr....So you gonna use em for meat, eggs or both? Do you can chicken? Chicks are so cute!

Your breadfs sound wonderful. Sandwhiches, veggie tray is my kind of summer eating. I'm saving back some wheat, gonna grind it for the flour. Still waitng on harvest. DH said rats ate tons of wiring in the combine..he had to replace. Gross. I hate rats. We need more cats I guess.

Have a great week Donna! Loveya, Jen

Jess said...

He said no it was probably the mexican crew...the other 3 crews were all out of town drilling...
Jason was in Hickory Ridge most of the day.

Sam said...

Wow! You have been busy! And how incredible that you can just go outside and grab berries and figs to eat. Amazing! (Don't you just love city-folk and our disbelief of nature?? :-)

Although I have to tell you that I would NEVER go to a place named Rattlesnake Ridge. Never ever! Just this past weekend I saw a snake in my mother's yard and I ran away SO FAST! I wish I had some of your strong, Arkansas blood!

How nice of you to cook for your neighbors! It sounds like you had a lovely meal outside.

Have a great week,
Sammy

Peggy said...

I agree with everyone else. I am wore out just reading about your day! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I am loving reading yours!

Anita said...

I LOVE canning things, but the tornado took most of my jars and we don't have much to can around here this year.. hoping for sandhill plums for jelly, but I don't think I'll be doing much else...
I love the picture of the shelves full of your canned foods... very pretty!

kansasrose said...

Hey hon...when you get the time I'd love to have the jar cake recipes. Only when you have time though..I know how busy ya are. Hugs and Love, Jen