Canning: A Typical September Weekend

Ahhh, September.

All my children went to school this year, something that I still find unbelievable!

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised by the often-repeated question posed to me: "Wow, what's it like with no kids all day??" I'm sure many of them really wanted to ask me when I was going to get a "job"! But that is a post for another day. Ahem.

Mainly, I filled the September days the way I always do - in the kitchen, often with my sister-in-law Kyla, standing over a canning pot! Even though we have go it down to a fine art, it still wipes me out by the end of the month. At this point, I am okay not seeing a fresh tomato for a while. At least not one that I have to peel anyway!

Once I add everything up, I will post my canning yields for the year. There is always more over the next few months, but not major undertakings like in September. I wrote it down last year and it was fun to check back this summer and see what all I accomplished. I wish I had posted it, because now I need to hang on to that paper list!

Until then, a few glimpses at what surrounds my family during this busy, busy month...

For school, Shea had to make an About Me page. Under his mother, he wrote "busy in the kitchen"!! Not surprising right now!

When we run out of space inside, the jars get "downgraded" to the back porch! 

**Now that it is October, and life is settling in somewhat, all these jars have found new homes for the year in our cold room, or kitchen cupboards. What a big job that was!

Celebrating: Maya is a Teenager!

We are celebrating my niece's 13th birthday today! 

Her birth was the first I witnessed. Before I had even heard of the word "doula", let alone become one. What a long birth it was, too, only one birth in my doula career matched it! We set up shop at the hospital and it was a place of celebration. The whole family filled the waiting room, friends too. My mother-in-law brought us a picnic for the birthing room. I still cannot listen to this song without getting choked up. We listened to it all throughout that birth. (re: the link...I love that she is singing it at the Grammy's a few days before Maya's birth!)

 My sister's pregnancy was not planned, and was...hmmm...controversial in my family, shall we say? But this babe was meant to be with us. We all raised this girl in her early years. She taught me how to be a Mama before I became one. She taught my sister a whole lot too. Dare I say she changed the course of her life. 

Now Maya is an amazing big sister,  giving Brynn all the love and attention and care that we lavished on her all those years ago. She's such a great kid. I cannot believe she is a Teenager!!

at the Folk Fest with us this past summer...

I made her a cheesecake. The mother of all cheesecakes, by way of The Barefoot Contessa. That woman knows her way around a dessert! 2 1/2 pounds of cream cheese, a boatload of organic sugar and eggs,  and frozen raspberries from our garden. And love, of course. She deserves it.

We love you, Maya Papaya!

xoxoxoxo

Cooking: Garlic Scape Pizza

How to make a simple, delicious, pizza, without leaving your house:

 Roll out your favourite pizza dough as thin as you can. 

 (Sometimes I have my own dough in the fridge. Sometimes, like today, I have a thawed batch from Calabria Bakery down the street. Sometimes I use a pizza stone, but sometimes, I just oil a sheet pan, and sprinkle it with cornmeal. Sometimes, I do a lot of things. Sometimes, I read a book all day and eat popcorn. But I digress...)

 Spread the dough with Garlic Scape Pesto, which you found in a little jar in your freezer, where you stashed a few last June when your garlic patch came to life. 

 Tear some whole, home-canned tomatoes into shreds with your hands and sprinkle them on top of the pesto. 

 Top with mozzarella from your fridge (especially yummy when homemade, which this was not) and a light grating of parmesan. Feta is also delish. 

 Tear up some thinly sliced back bacon from Sloping Hill Farm, and add it to half of the pizza, so you can offer your children a slice when they get home from school. You will be loved. 

 Drizzle a bit of olive oil, and a fine pinch of sea salt flakes. 

 450 degrees for 10 minutes, or until it is as crisp as you like it. Please bake on the bottom rack of your oven for the best crust results! 

 Dig in.

Baking: Pumpkin Waffles

These are a family favourite.

I always stock up on sugar pumpkins in the Fall and keep them in my cold room. Then I periodically roast a couple of them up, puree, and freeze in recipe-sized batches. Mainly in 3/4 cup amounts for this particular recipe! 

 If we have any in the house, we add a dollop of whipped cream on top of these waffles. That, along with dark grade maple syrup, makes these ultra-decadent. I can only ever eat one waffle. My kids eat 2, usually. Jay eats 3 or 4, sometimes more. It makes my stomach hurt, watching it! But oh, he is in heaven as he enjoys these! I think he confuses them with a stack of pancakes... 

 If he doesn't polish off the whole batch, they keep well, and I send them along as a school snack, cut in half diagonally and with a little container of maple syrup for dipping. I get extra love from the kids on those days.

Enjoy.

Pumpkin Waffles

1 3/4 cups milk (I've also used almond with success)

3/4 cup pureed pumpkin

1/3 cup oil

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup lightly-packed brown sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

Mix wet and dry ingredients separately, then stir together. I usually whisk the whole thing smooth, then let it sit for 5-10 minutes while I preheat my pride and joy (my All-Clad waffle iron). 

Oil or spray your iron to prevent sticking.

Serve with real maple syrup (dark is delicious!) and, if you really want to kick it up a notch, a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream.

makes approx. 12 waffles, depending on the size of your waffle iron.

Cooking: An Empty Recycling Box

On Sunday, we had the family over for dinner to celebrate Faire's Birthday. I made two huge pots of soup to keep it simple. The next morning, as I emptied the dishwasher, the top rack was full of clean mason jars. I added them to the top of the fridge, which is where I gather them until I take a bunch down to the cold room/canning supply storage area. 

What a difference. Years ago, a big pot of soup, or tomato sauce, or other one-pot meal would leave my recycling box overflowing with empty tin cans. Now it's empty, and the top of my fridge is cluttered with sparkling glass. I was able to feed 15 people with the contents of my cold room, along with some frozen beef from the farmer's market, the produce drawers in the bottom of my fridge, and the Mason jars in the cupboard, full of dried beans and lentils.

So very satisfying.

And that is one of the many reasons why you will find me in the kitchen, over a canning pot, many of the days in August, September and October.

Loving: What's Great About Today

Clear and sunny skies, making the mountain view from my front window just beautiful, even with power lines and not-so-lovely houses blocking the view.

Time with my nieces, one who is about to turn 13 (!!) and the other a wee 15 months old. Playing with toys my kids have long ago set aside for her.

Knitting projects galore to choose from, just have to make a decision...luckily I always have more than one on the go!

A hot cup of tea and the first module to absorb, from The Whole Kitchen Workshop.

So incredibly excited to start this journey.