Planting season!

Time to rotate my crop, till my dirt and plant for summer harvest! I sowed some of my transplant seeds yesterday, Tomatoes, Bell Peppers, Zucchini and strawberries. I took some of my freshly turned organic soil, and filled egg cartons (they are biodegradable and transplant right into the garden easily), you can also use the little pots they sell at Lowes for planting and transplanting seeds. I like the egg cartons because I always try to use what I have on hand before buying new stuff. I filled each egg pot with soil and put 2 seeds in each spot. Water very carefully so you don't cause the seeds to move, then keep the soil moist. You don't want to drown the seeds, but they have to stay wet. I placed mine in the warmest spot in our house in front of a window. After about 2 weeks I will start putting them out in the sun for a couple hours a day before actually transplanting. This will help toughen them up for real weather conditions (wind, direct sun, heat/cold changes ect). I used this same process last year and was very successful.

I had a very successful winter crop of Broccoli, Cauliflower, Carrots and Bell Peppers until our freeze at the end of February (which finally killed off my peppers). I have been so busy with work the last 6 months I didn't do much blogging about my winter crop... it did well though!I have a few pictures of what remains in my garden, I have some Cauliflower and Broccoli still growing, and a few carrots still growing. 

My seeds are doing well so far, I love watching them popping up through the dirt. So much fun. I will probably wait another week or so, then transplant them outside.

Cinnamon Peach Jam Recipe

I told you I had peach jam recipe's coming for you. I like to take recipes and transform them into something different, add a little touch to them to make them my own.  When I made Peach Jam, I thought "hmm, what can I add to this to make it better?". Over the holidays a friend brought peach pie which in tasting a bite I realized had spices in it (cinnamon, nutmeg ect).  That's it!!!   I added just enough cinnamon that it's not overpowering, but adds enough flavor to taste it. This recipe can be altered to make regular "Peach Jam" without the cinnamon, but I loved the addition of cinnamon to the peach jam.

If you make it, let me know what you think! I love hearing about alterations to change recipe's or make them better. In the meantime,  Enjoy!


Cinnamon Peach Jam 

Ingredients
*3 1/2 pounds peaches (8 to 10), peeled, halved, pitted, and cut into chunks
*3 cups Sugar
*1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
*2 tbls Cinnamon
*1 tsp Allspice
*Coarse salt




Directions
1) Working in batches, pulse peaches in a food processor until chunky.
2) Transfer to a small saucepan, and add sugar, lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
3) Boil, continuing to stir, until bubbles slow, foam subsides, fruit rises to the top, and jam sticks to a spoon when lifted, about 12 minutes.
4) Fill your prepared cans 1/2 inch from the top, remove air bubbles and put your lids on.
5) Process for 10 minutes (adjust for your altitude). When they're done, carefully take them out and let them rest on a towel on your counter for 5 minutes and listen for the "ping". Success!

Peach Crazy! Canning peaches recipe

PEACHES!

In August, peaches start to ripen. Whether you pick your own or buy them from your local farmers market or produce stand, fresh peaches are a delicious summertime treat. They are one of my kids favorites, so much so that we recently planted our own peach tree. In just a couple short years and we will have our own home-grown peaches!

I went to Harry and David a when they had peaches on sale for $0.10/pound. Naturally I bought 50 pounds of peaches - for $5!! Can you believe that? In retrospect I wish I had bought more... Shoulda-Coulda-Woulda!

So as you probably guessed, my next few blogs will be recipes involving peaches! I will be canning sliced peaches today. Then I have two great peach jelly recipe's to share as well in upcoming blogs so stay tuned for those!

For now, I canned sliced peaches. I use these in all size jars, small ones that I send to school with my kids for their lunch or snack time (their teachers help open them), and large ones that I can open and use for peach cobbler, or when I have a lot of kids over there is a larger quantity of peaches to share. I don't use added sugar to my canned peaches, I feel like fruit has enough natural sugar in it, and is sweet enough that adding more is just unnecessary. (If you chose to add more for lite syrup you would use a ratio of 3 cups water/1 cup sugar).

It takes about 5 good sizes peaches or nectarines (or about 10 plums) to fill one quart jar. An average of 17½ pounds is needed per canner load of 7 quarts; an average of 11 pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pints. A bushel weighs 48 pounds and yields 16 to 24 quarts — an average of 2½ pounds per quart.

Canning Sliced (or halved) Peaches
Ingredients
*5 pounds peaches
*Canning supplies

Preparing your peaches and jars
1) Carefully wash and rinse your jars. I used both pint and quart jars this time, just make sure you process for the correct times.
2) Put the "caps" in a small pan of water on the stove and bring to just below simmer. Let them sit there, keeping hot, while you get ready to use them.
3) Bring a large saucepan filled 3/4 with water to a boil and fill the sink with cold water. This is to remove the peach skins.
4) Carefully put some peaches into the boiling water and leave the heat on high for about 20 seconds. I take mine out with a  slotted spoon. It seems to work the best. Put them into the cold sink.
5) Using your paring knife to help, slip the skins off the peaches. If the skins don't slip off easily, either the peaches are not ripe enough, or you need to scald them a little longer.

Directions
1) Slice the peaches in half and twist the two halves apart and remove the pit. You can then slice your peaches (or leave them as halves). I like to cut mine in slices because that's how my kids prefer to eat them. You can also cut them in halve, or diced in chunks, then place them into your clean jars.
2) When it is filled up to the bottom of the jar threads with water, carefully wipe off the rim of the jar with a damp clean cloth, put on the cap and screw on the ring firmly. Not too tight!
3) When the water is boiling in the water bath canner, then start counting the time. They need 25 minutes for pints and 30 minutes for quarts. Here they are after coming out of the canner.
4) Incidentally, leaving the sugar syrup out has advantages. It's less expensive to do, healthier  and they really do taste amazing. Peaches are so sweet by themselves you don't really need to add all that extra sugar. You will love it! It is also much easier and quicker to do.

I have found that when canning anything, once you get your "system" set up, it's easy. Think it through carefully, prepare everything you'll need and proceed. Enjoy!

Transplanting seeds!

So I finally the last of my beds filled with dirt so I could transplant my little seedlings! I bought these little white garden stakes off amazon (100 for $6) and my girls helped me make tags for all the garden items so we would know what everything was. We just wrote on them with permanent marker. (UPDATE: after a week they started fading drastically). We then picked out our transplant plants that seemed to be "thriving" the best, and planted them in the garden. The kids got to help with the transplanting and watering. I have 2 large garden beds, 2 small garden beds and several pots. I am picking up more buckets/pots today.

What are we growing you ask? Well, as of right now, almost everything is organic. So far we have 2 rows of purple dragon carrots, 2 rows of regular carrots, 1 full tomato plants, 1 cherry tomato plant, 6 bell pepper plants, 1 sweet pepper plant, 2 cucumber plants, 1 watermelon plant, 4 strawberries, 3 broccoli, 1 cauliflower, 1 celery, 11 tomato transplants (roma and beefsteak), 4 green bean, 2 blueberry bushes, 4 marigolds, and 2 citronella plants (hoping to ward off some of our mosquito this summer). It's a pretty good start, right?

White Chicken Chili- Pressure Canning Recipe

My first recipe post and I am so excited about this one, it is a favorite in my house. First let's talk a little about the reason we need to use a pressure canner and not a water bath. When I first got started with canning, I had no idea what the difference was, and why it was SO important to know. Canning any low acid foods (all unpickled vegetables, vegetable stocks, meats, beans ect) require a pressure canner The reason for that is that although botulism bacteria is killed at the temperature of boiling water, botulism spores can survive that temperature. The spores can be eliminated by temperatures hotter than boiling water, which requires a pressure canner, or by creating an extreme pH (pickling).
All acidic foods - fruits, pickled vegetables, sugar preserves, and tomatoes with a little added acidity (lemon juice, vinegar, or citric acid) - may be safely processed in a boiling water bath.

So today I am pressure canning white chicken chili. It is simple to make, and delicious!

Ingredients
1 tbls extra virgin olive oil
2 chopped bell peppers (I used one red and 1 green for color variety)
3 heaping tablespoons of minced garlic
1 can diced tomatoes (or equivalent of fresh diced tomatoes)
1 7oz can of green chilis
3 to 6 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
16 oz of chicken broth (can or box)
3 cups of water
1/2 -1 cup of corn (your preference how much your family likes corn)
3 decent sized chicken breasts (boil simmering in about 2 inches of water and some Cumin and chili powder until you can easily shred them)

3 cups dried great Northern Beans (or other white variety)
1 cup Black beans, rinsed well.


Directions:
1.) Prepare pressure canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.
2.) Heat extra virgin olive oil with onions and garlic, cook until soft.
3) Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4.) Ladle hot chili into hot jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.
5.) Process filled jars in a pressure canner at 10 pounds pressure 1 hour and 30 minutes for pints, adjusting for altitude.
6) Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.