Wishing For Pine Needles

Flour Sack Monday: Waiting

I so enjoyed participating in {this moment} on Friday that I think I will continue them and make Mondays the new day for the Flour Sack!  (Yes, I know 'Flour Sack Monday' doesn't have quite the same flowy alliteration as 'Flour Sack Friday', but I also suppose that it doesn't really matter, does it?)

This week I'd like to focus on the concept of waiting.  This concept, which is seemingly forgeign to my generation, was quite normal for our grandparents.  If they didn't have money for it, they didn't buy it.  Instant credit was not a way of life for my grandma, who recalls not being able to participate in Girl Scouts because her parents didn't have the money to buy her the uniform. She accepted that.  It was all she knew.

And do you know what?  She survived.

So waiting is something we strive to practice a little more around here.  We try to make the distinction between what we really need and what we really want.  (Sometimes this line gets quite fuzzy!)  Sure, we buy what we need.  But we have found that sometimes, if we wait long enough, even things we want just happen to show up! Take these canning supplies, example....

When a friend mentioned her grandfather was looking for a new home for his canning supplies,  I jumped at the chance.  I have always wanted to invest more in canning equipment, but it's never been  the right time for our budget.  I was hopeful that if I waited long enough some supplies would turn up.....at a yard sale, thrift store, Craig's list or in some other buget-concious way.

And low and behold, along with all of these jars and lids, this grandfather gave me a beautiful pressure cooker!

Finally, I have one...thanks to a generous man who wanted to see his canning supplies in a home where they are appreciated.   And this was well worth the wait.

(Now...I just need to figure out how to use it.....)

Happy Monday to You!

 

a new favorite Holiday

Yep, Labor Day.  I just love it.  Especially when its one like we just had here in our part of the world.  Blue skies, crisp, cooler air, and 72 hours of wonderful nothingness....

 

A peaceful, morning coffee with my dear husband, who has been working his fair share lately...

 

...and no more training wheels!

 

 

This boy getting his very first haircut while a misty-eyed mama (and an entire street) watched....

 

...and this gal working on her very first quilt.  (More to come on this project soon...)

 

Oh, and lots and lots of canning!

 

 

So, yes, around here we love Labor Day.  Nothingness, even productive nothingness, is a rare gift in this time of life where it seems as though we are spinning our wheels more often than not.

For a lovely, crisp, breezy 72 hours, all was right with the world.

"This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."  Pslam 118:24

 

the Flour Sack Decision

Back when I started this little experiment, I had high hopes for a thriving, little second blog devoted to the general concept and history of "less is more."  But as time trickled on, however,  I realized that I simply could not mange two blogs.  (What was I thinking???!)

Since this subject has become an interest and a hobby of mine/ours, I really didn't want to abandon the idea altogether.  After pondering my predicament over this summer, a wonderfully simple solution finally dawned on me!

If I was only going to devote Fridays to the Flour Sack Experiment blog anyway, why couldn't I just do it here at Wishing For Pine Needles instead?  

So, there, it's settled.  From now on, Wishing For Pine Needles will feature Flour Sack Fridays! 

Because I don't have a great Flour Sack topic at the moment, I leave you by sharing one thing we won't have to buy for a very long time...

STRAWBERRY JELLY!

(I will leave the former Flour Sack Experiment blog live for now, so please feel free to browse through those past posts...)

Preparing Apples Times Two

This harvest season, for the first time ever, we have dabbled in the art of preserving food.  Thanks to the help of my friend, our first venture with tomatoes was a success.  I have thoroughly enjoyed heading down to the food storage shelf in the basement while in the midst of a recipe, only to come back up with a beautiful jar of canned tomatoes.  It makes the meal taste better.  (And I'm not just saying that!)

I have visions of my backyard brimming with vegetable after fresh vegetable, and the girls and I taking a week in early fall to harvest and preserve them.  A good portion of the basement would be turned into a pantry of sorts to accommodate our bounty.  We could even sell our wares at the farmer's market. The girls would, of course, be in charge of the supply, demand and the management thereof, and would thus receive a lesson in both economics and entrepreneurship.

Will this happen?

Because I like to "never say never", maybe it will.

But really?

Probably not here and now.  (Our dear pine trees like to produce lots of shade which prevents our yard from being conducive to a farm-size crop.)

But, even so, we can watch and learn.  We can take those opportunities that come our way and preserve until we can preserve no more.

Like a day picking crab-apples from the neighborhood trees which would later be turned into jelly and sold to benefit a charity.

 

 

An event that went well into the evening...

 

And one rare morning, it was me.  Just me and a bucket full of apples, a mug of hot coffee, a clean house and the music up a bit louder than normal.  It was really one of the most peaceful of moments -  coring, peeling, cutting, thinking...(and maybe even a little singing.) 

So, little by little, we are stocking our pantry, learning new skills, and are eternally grateful for the blessings that God has given us.

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."

I Corinthians 10:31

Canning for the First Time

I recently spent a glorious, crisp late afternoon with a good friend, which is enough fun in and of itself. But we didn't just chat and laugh and drink Diet Coke like any old time. (Well, I guess we did do all of that.)  But, we also canned 9 quarts of tomatoes!  

This is incredibly exciting to me.  I have wanted to acquire this skill for the longest time, but never knew quite how to learn.  Well, it just so happens, that I recently discovered that my friend and neighbor, who I see just about everyday, has been canning for her entire life with her mother and grandmother.  What do you know?  Practically in my own backyard.

I went to the local farmer's market and bought a box of canning tomatoes.  They had some blemishes on them which are cut off during the process and makes the tomatoes less expensive.  I am pleased to say that I did add some of my own tomatoes to the mix, which will make them taste all the better, I'm sure!

We started by washing out the jars and placing them in the oven on a cookie sheet at 250.  We left them in the entire time it took to prepare the tomatoes.  Also at this time we put the lids in a saucepan to boil on the stove.  This sanitizes them. 

Next we rinsed the tomatoes and put them in a clean sink filled with scalding hot water. This kills bacteria in addition to making the skins split open so it peels off easily.

    

Notice the steam coming off of the water?

After the skins split, say 10-12 minutes or so, take the tomatoes out one at a time, peel the skins, cut out the core and the bad spots, and cut it up coarsely.  It goes directly into a big pot.

See how the tomatoes are all still chunky?  Next, bring these pots to a boil.  It is important to stir constantly so the tomatoes don't scald.  (If they do, that's grounds for throwing the whole batch away because they will have a burnt taste.  Yuck.)  As they boil, the tomatoes will start to break down.  The liquid will look milky and frothy while this is happening, but will eventually go back to being clear.

We let them boil for probably a half an hour or 45 minutes.  When they are almost completely broken down and the liquid is clear, then they are ready to go in the jars.

It is important to remove the jars from the oven using a clean towel, and to not touch the rim at all with your fingers.  We poured the tomatoes into the jar using a canning funnel. The trick is to fill it no fuller than the bottom of the funnel.  When it is filled, get a lid (from the boiling pot of water) with a fork and dry it with a clean towel.  Also, dry the rim of the jar with a clean towel. Again, no fingers on anything. 

Once the lid and screw cap are on, pick the jar up very carefully and upright and screw the lid on as tight as you can possibly get it.  Set it on the counter very carefully, and wait for the lid to pop!  (That sound became music to my ears...)

This method is called Open-Kettle canning.  I suppose it's because you cook the tomatoes in an open kettle?  

Even after the lids have popped, the jars need to remain in the same place for 24 hours. After that, they can be moved to storage and enjoyed for as long as they last! (Mine are still on my counter, because they are so darn cute to look at...)

Doesn't this seem like a very September-ish thing to do?   I hope you are all enjoying your September in your own special ways!