Why, Hello My Little Peach

I took a break from grapes yesterday and tackled some of those peaches that have been patiently waiting for me.

Peach pie filling

3 lbs peaches (peeled, cored and sliced)

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp crystallized ginger

Mix together and stuff into 1 quart and 1 pint jars. you an freeze or process in a hot water bath for 20 minutes.

you will need tapioca for a thickening agent when you go to use the filling. 3-4 tablespoons. (if you want your pie to have a lattice top, mix tapioca with only 2/3 of the filling, place the 1/3 without on top of the 2/3 with. This will prevent the tapioca from getting hard)

If you want to use this filling for something other then pie. Make up some buttermilk biscuits for breakfast. Heat peaches in a sauce pan, adding 1 cup heavy whipping cream to every pint of mix. Pour over hot biscuits, and watch as everyone devours it and begs you for your share.

Tomorrow is my turn to post at Woman not dabbling, I have been going over and over what recipe I should post. Here's where you can help. We all seem to be knee deep in some sort of produce, what one do you need a recipe for. I will use the most commented produce as my subject, and post a not so normal recipe for it tomorrow.

Not Grounded!

Grapes

Juice

boil

strain

sit/wait

Squeeze

pectin/boil

sugar/ boil/sterilize

ladle

can

hate grapes.

Maybe it's a nightmare and I will wake any moment.

I might end up grounded

I'm 30, and I still have ten years left on my grounding, but after yesterday, that might just get extended.

My 4 year old son had pre-K screening yesterday, so I didn't get to my mother's until after 10am. We got to work on those grapes, putting a very small dent in them. 4 lbs seems to be nothing when working with so many grapes. I taught mom the recipe, and we got 9 half pints put by. I left because I had to meet my oldest and middle sons at home after school. I called my mother later in the evening to see if she had blown herself up, my mom has been canning for years, no worries there. She had went out to buy more lemon juice and ended up with a huge water bath canner. This thing holds 9 quart jars.

Mom, you are using and electric range, it might be too big. It could break your coil.

But she was willing to take that chance. Then asked if she could double the jam recipe.

Nope, sorry. You should never double a jam recipe and never use quart jars to can it in. It will not jell correctly if you do that.

Now I had a grumpy mama on the phone. The joys of gleaning have passed. Its fun to gather, but then. . . then you have to process it all before it rots. And that takes time and back soreness.

So, if I don't see you tomorrow, I've been grounded.

My Mommy and me

Many of you already know who my mother is. She did a wonderful job guest writing for me when I had lost my computer. She could have gone all parental on me and dragged up some very embarrassing info. Ah, but let us not tread in that direction.


Instead allow me to take a moment and tell you how my mother and I work together.

Yesterday, my youngest son, my mother and I went on a little trip. We drove an hour south from my house to the apple orchard on Eden. There we were confronted by a 200 lbs weimaraner (maybe not 200lbs, but she is a very fat dog) and we proceeded to fill the back of her car with 250lbs of red delicious apples and 30 lbs of peaches. We were quick and efficient, clearing out all the fruits we could reach and shake down. We did this in under 2 hours. Then back to her house where we unloaded and headed 30 minutes east to raid her s-i-l's grapes. We easily gathered 150 lbs of those. Once back to her house, we separated grapes which seemed to take much longer then the actual picking.

Now my mother is addicted to gleaning. On the way home, we discussed knocking on peoples doors that had apple trees rotting in their backyards and see if we could take them. My husband laughed when I told him and informed me that if I wanted to go into the apple butter business, that gleaning would take 70% of the overhead out of the picture. hhmmm. . .

Today my mother and I will be making grape jam at her house. My mother and I work well together, but we can be odd. We behave almost as if we are drunk without actually drinking. Those poor firemen that were forced to listen to us that one night.

Keep your fingers crossed that we don't end up losing half our skin to a fire bomb of purple goo.

I thought, This is it!

I was noticing yesterday, that Mama's udders look rather full for not being separated from her calf. Uma is now 7 months old, and cows are typically weened at 6 months. Uma had shown signs of disinterest the other day, when I had allowed her back into the pen with Mama, she didn't go running and crying to her, nor did she nurse while I stood out there. Instead Uma had turned around and mooed at me as if she wanted back in.

Back to yesterday, I went out to milk Mama, thinking , this is it! I can start milking her twice a day from now on. I got Mama in the stanchion, got her and Uma some creep, and set forth, merrily milking my cow. I had pulled out about a quart of milk, when I heard Uma come running into the barn. I prepared for the head butt she like to inflict on me (she loves to play). It didn't come. Instead she ran to the far side of Mama, stuck her head through the stanchion bars, and started nursing at a frantic pace. As if I was going to steal it all!

Uma is one possessive calf.