Tomato Dust is powdered gold! You can add a pinch to soups and sauces to give it an extra tomatoey-zing, yet it also thickens because it is essentially a powered tomato paste. Add it to a spice mixture for a dry-rub marinade on meats, or use it as a seasoning to sprinkle over sautéed veggies. Obviously, you […]
I had a cookie sheet piled high with Roma tomatoes that I rescued from the rains, and patiently waited for them to ripen, so I could make my husband his favorite canned tomato salsa. Today they were red and absolutely perfect! When canning tomato salsa, it is crucial to remember that tomatoes are pretty borderline […]
We’ve been eating a lot of granola lately, and this maple granola is by far the best! It actually tastes like crumbled up oatmeal cookies. I’m not sure how it started, but somehow my kids got hooked on cereal. I suspect the cereal addiction began as an easy answer to pre-dawn requests for breakfast, bleary-eyed […]
Tonight I had my first official canning class! I held a private lesson with my good friend, Captain Aidian, who has quite the prolific pear tree. I packed up my canning gear (and the kids) and headed over to his kitchen. Just look at these gorgeous pears! I spent some time with him explaining the principals […]
Here in Lake County, we are world famous for our Bartlett Pears! By the time the pears ripen, canning season is in full swing, and this year I wanted to try a few new flavor combinations. Chai spices and pears just seem to be a heavenly pairing, as the star anise, cardamon, cloves, cinnamon, ginger and […]
Seriously, nothing makes your house smell more amazing than a bubbling pot of pear butter. Mmmmm… fall has arrived. My friend and I had just canned a pile of pears, and saved the skins and cores to cook down into a saucey-juice, which I then simmered further until it reached it a thick, caramelized pear butter. […]
I’m excited to announce that I will be holding small canning classes in my Cobb Mountain home! It is only September, which means we still have lots of opportunities for fresh, local produce. Many of you have shown a strong interest in learning canning techniques, so now is your opportunity. My kitchen is cozy, so […]
Canning tomatoes is the delight of just about every gardener/canner, we dream of having bucket loads of vine ripened tomatoes to put up for the long winter. I have about 10 plant this year, and all of them have just been limping along, barely producing enough to make it feel like summer (it is a […]
My daughter turned 5 this summer, so of course I wanted to make her an Elsa Dress to wear to her “Frozen” birthday party! I actually had to make the dress because at the time you couldn’t buy one to save your life, thanks to the unprecedented “Let it go!” insanity and short supplies from China. […]