Capturing the Kitchen (vol. 5)

Every week I notice how life's rhythm and the changes of season transform my kitchen. At the end of summer, tomatoes and melons are scattered over my countertops. In the dead of winter, stew keeps our family warm. Homemade sourdough bread is a weekly affair, but cakes are only for very special occasions.

I love being in my kitchen, and I enjoy seeing what other families are creating in their own kitchens too. So what's going on in your kitchen this week? Capture a picture of your kitchen or something in your kitchen and post it on your blog along with some words, a recipe, a menu or even a tip. Share your post by linking up below! The link will be open until next Tuesday. 

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Another one hundred and sixty pounds of tomatoes and forty pounds of pears appeared in my kitchen. It was magic, I swear. The magic stopped there though. It was another week of frenzied canning. My mother-in-law helped me sauce the tomatoes and peal the pears, despite having a broken arm. She's a trooper!

Canning takes time. It takes time to prepare the food. It takes time to fill the jars. I enjoy those parts of canning. But one part of canning that I don't enjoy is waiting for the water bath canner to boil. I have an electric stove and sometime it can take up to an hour for my water to boil. It seems like such a waste of time and energy. This week I made an important discovery. A lovely lady from a nearby produce farm lent me her outdoor propane burner for canning. I couldn't believe that my water would start boiling after only five minutes of being on the burner. I was so impressed. I will need to invest in one of these for next year.

This year I canned my pears differently. Instead of making a light syrup with water and sugar, I used water and honey instead. I followed the recommendation made by the National Center for Home Food Preservation and made a light honey syrup using a ratio of 9 cups water: 1 cup honey. I am happy with the results.

After a week of canning I was ready to relax. We left home to visit friends and family for Thanksgiving weekend. We had such a great time and we were spoiled with lots of delicious food. I would have taken pictures but the food was tucked away (in my belly) by the time I thought of it.