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first, deciding how to use them. on the agenda: jam, jelly from the peels and stones, chutney, spiced pickled peaches, peach butter, all of which require prepping the canning equipment, jars, lids, pectin, sugar, spices. secondly, freezer bags for storing the ones for cobblers, cakes and baking later. washing all of them. sorting: smallest and greenest ones for pickling. medium ones for jam, chutney and peach butter. larger, riper ones for slicing and freezing. grocery lists, canning lids, ice for blanching.
cleaning the kitchen scrupulously, disinfecting the counters. this is a process that requires a high level of sanitation for the best quality product. last thing you want to do is poison your family after all this frickin' work.
yesterday was the first batch of jam day. I realize why in amish communities and throughout history the domestic work of women was bolstered by camraderie and teamwork, as I do every year undertaking this kind of crap. many hands make short work of tedious tasks. scrubbing, boiling, blanching, slicing, measuring, tending to the cooking. you stand a lot. you get very sticky. humorous company during this labor would have been welcomed. happily ~ total win here~ I avoided either stabbing, slicing, burning, scalding or otherwise injuring myself during the first process. the fates smile upon me for once.
now, you might think what precious, antiquated simulacrum of self-serving pioneerism compells me to do all this with the windfall of peaches? or how I'll do it again in september when my arbor is burgeoningly begging me for clipping clusters of concord grapes for grape jam and grappa, and the 50 year old rhubarb plant requires culling and slicing and freezing for coffee cakes and muffins. or in october when I'll pick the apples off the two trees and slice them for the freezer. truly, I'm not the kind of woman who starry-eyed reads self-sufficiency books about how you can grow your own food easily and cheaply. that my darlings, is total bullshit. there is no easily or cheaply about this.
I think it just boils down to my perturbance at letting anything good go to waste. this frugality will be the death of me. its nice to be able to give the few tolerable neighbors I have a jar of sparkly, unrefined and fully natural tasting homemade something or other. it surprises them, coming from miz technogeekgirl who spends most of her time gaming. if they only knew the fascinating scientific appeal of the brute chemistry involved in making jam, the'd realize I'm not just a domestic goddess playing dress up in t-shirts with "d20 ftw!" pasted across the front.
first batch of jam comes out serenely divine, jars sealed up nicely, jam set spectacularly. I could not stop licking my fingers it was so succulent. despite the fact we should have waited about 12 hrs to access the first jar it was impossible. half a loaf of bread and one empty jelly jar later, we're all content that the picking, fuzz-scratchy and sweating was worth every agonizingly delicious bite.
back to my simple syrups, blanching and hot packing.
cleaning the kitchen scrupulously, disinfecting the counters. this is a process that requires a high level of sanitation for the best quality product. last thing you want to do is poison your family after all this frickin' work.
yesterday was the first batch of jam day. I realize why in amish communities and throughout history the domestic work of women was bolstered by camraderie and teamwork, as I do every year undertaking this kind of crap. many hands make short work of tedious tasks. scrubbing, boiling, blanching, slicing, measuring, tending to the cooking. you stand a lot. you get very sticky. humorous company during this labor would have been welcomed. happily ~ total win here~ I avoided either stabbing, slicing, burning, scalding or otherwise injuring myself during the first process. the fates smile upon me for once.
now, you might think what precious, antiquated simulacrum of self-serving pioneerism compells me to do all this with the windfall of peaches? or how I'll do it again in september when my arbor is burgeoningly begging me for clipping clusters of concord grapes for grape jam and grappa, and the 50 year old rhubarb plant requires culling and slicing and freezing for coffee cakes and muffins. or in october when I'll pick the apples off the two trees and slice them for the freezer. truly, I'm not the kind of woman who starry-eyed reads self-sufficiency books about how you can grow your own food easily and cheaply. that my darlings, is total bullshit. there is no easily or cheaply about this.
I think it just boils down to my perturbance at letting anything good go to waste. this frugality will be the death of me. its nice to be able to give the few tolerable neighbors I have a jar of sparkly, unrefined and fully natural tasting homemade something or other. it surprises them, coming from miz technogeekgirl who spends most of her time gaming. if they only knew the fascinating scientific appeal of the brute chemistry involved in making jam, the'd realize I'm not just a domestic goddess playing dress up in t-shirts with "d20 ftw!" pasted across the front.
first batch of jam comes out serenely divine, jars sealed up nicely, jam set spectacularly. I could not stop licking my fingers it was so succulent. despite the fact we should have waited about 12 hrs to access the first jar it was impossible. half a loaf of bread and one empty jelly jar later, we're all content that the picking, fuzz-scratchy and sweating was worth every agonizingly delicious bite.
back to my simple syrups, blanching and hot packing.
