Minor roadblock

Day before yesterday, after dinner, the tomatillos were finely chopped, onion, garlic, jalapenos, lime juice, salt, chili flakes added to a pot to make the simmer sauce. The recipe says it makes 2 half pint jars and I was doubling it, but it looked to me like it was going to make at least 5 or 6 half pint jars after it cooked down. Because it was a small quantity canning, instead of the big canner, I just pulled out the largest stockpot that had one of the deep strainer inserts and started heating up the jars and water. Grabbed the box of lids and a hand full of rings and started setting up. When I opened the box of lids, there were only 4 left, scrabbling through the basket, there were wide mouth ones still boxed, but no more regular mouthed ones. We turned everything off and drove down to the village store, they always have canning supplies. Well, they didn’t and said they can’t get them. Generally when I can, I write in marker on the lid, the contents and date made after they have cooled, and I save a few used lids to use on jars of leftovers or ones going in the freezer as they don’t have to seal. The drawer of used lids had three that weren’t written on, maybe I hadn’t canned with them. I marked those three lids and used them, the recipe had made 6 half pints and 1 quarter pint jar. I figured if for some reason they didn’t seal, I would know which three jars they were and just stick them in the freezer.

All 7 jars firmly sealed, but I was left with the issue of not being able to get lids. The grocer in town doesn’t have any, the village store doesn’t have any, I won’t go to a big box store in these times. About a decade ago, I bought reusable canning lids and wasn’t very happy with them so I sold them, but hoping they have improved, a went online and purchased a few dozen to have on hand. I still have wide mouth lids, but don’t can much with them.

Late yesterday afternoon as I was making dinner plans, I realized that the window sill full of tomatoes either needed to be frozen or used, so I scored the blossom ends and poured boiling water over them and set about to make pasta sauce. There was an eggplant in the refrigerator and an 8 oz container of fresh mozzarella, so eggplant Parmesan seemed like a good dinner option. The tomatoes were peeled and chopped, the oregano I picked a couple of days ago, a handful of drying basil leaves, a bit of fresh Thyme and Rosemary, some onion and garlic and all set to simmer while I prepared the eggplant for the oven. A slightly drained ladle of the chunky sauce was put in the bottom of the baking pan and while the sauce continued to simmer down, the eggplant baked and a pot of water boiled for Cappelini, a salad made, vinaigrette mixed and dinner was ready. The extra sauce was put in widemouth pint jars with plenty of headroom to expand, lidded and put in the refrigerator overnight to cool down. This morning, they were added to the supply of pasta sauce already in the freezer. I would prefer to make enough to can at one time, but the tomatoes aren’t coming in fast enough for that and there are no lids. With the chest freezer in the basement and the refrigerator freezer, I will just freeze jars this year.

When the reuseable lids arrive in the mail, I will can more pizza sauce with the next batch of tomatoes and have lids for Asian pear marmalade later in the fall, more tomatillo sauce, and applesauce if the deer don’t get all the apples. They have eaten the lower branch tips and all of the apples they can reach. They don’t mess with the Asian pears though.

The garden is providing fresh beans again, a bag shared with daughter who couldn’t find seed for a second planting. I will pick them again today or tomorrow and blanch another batch for the freezer. I am always thankful for whatever the garden gives. The more I freeze and can, the fewer groceries I need to buy shipped in from parts unknown during the off season. I started a dozen spinach plants indoors since it is slow to germinate and the weeds are quick to germinate in the heat and rain, I want to be able to find it when it is planted outside. If we don’t have an early frost, we should have beans, peas, carrots, spinach, maybe a few kale plants to carry us into the cooler weather. There are a few more ears of corn forming, I hope they are more developed than the 4 that were from the first two surviving plants. I don’t think planting sweet corn is worth my time when we don’t care for it frozen and I can purchase it 2 for $1 or $1.50 during the season. Maybe I will return to planting popcorn next year. We will have to purchase our pumpkin for pies this year, every time I planted seed this spring, something ate the small plants before they were more than 4 or 5 leaves in size. Last year, the 3 plants nearly overtook the garden.

Keeping Busy

As event after event have been cancelled for this year, I must keep busy.

All of the fiber festivals have been cancelled, some are trying virtual; the Agricultural Fair in our Village, the huge street fair in Blacksburg, the retreat that I love to attend, the trips to visit our kids and to the vacation spot of my youth, have all had to not be held this year for the health and safety of the proprietors, vendors, and the participants.

Added to this, the weather has not be typical. I am generally not mowing grass this time of year, or only doing so rarely, but it has rained and rained some more and in a week’s time the grass gets so tall and so thick that the riding mower has trouble getting through it. Last evening, after a dry day, the front and part of the east side yard were mowed and it was as tall as if I hadn’t mowed just a week ago. I will try to finish today once the dew and fog burn off. The rain has made this a cucumber, pepper, and basil year, but the tomatoes are not doing very well. My single leader up a tall pole idea was good, but they are too close together, shading each other and being shaded by the asparagus ferny tops. We will get enough for pizza sauce, maybe one more big pot of tomato sauce, but not the quantity of years past. The refrigerator and shelves are full of pickles. Two more baskets of basil are drying, one already dry and jarred for winter.

The oregano was pruned and put in a basket to dry and the plant moved from the half barrel to the herb bed in the new walled garden while the soil was still damp.

Enough tomatillos were picked today to give me the quantity needed to make a batch of simmer sauce and since about a half dozen more jalapenos were clipped, it will be the spicy version. That will be made later today as dinner prep is easy tonight.

The summer reading has been mostly Appalachian fiction, some of it historical fiction, and a book recommended on the spindle group in a conversation.

When not cooking, gardening, or reading, I continue to spin on the Jenkins Turkish spindles. I find the process soothing and calming and can spin anywhere; in my stressless chair, on a porch, in the car, in the kitchen while waiting for the next step in the cooking process.

I guess I will have to find a use for all the yarn I have created since I won’t have Holiday markets to vend in this year. Many of the yarns are in my Etsy shop, but it isn’t seeing much activity during this time either.

At times I stay busy, at times I get low and cry over the losses, especially not being able to visit with our children and grandchildren. We are ever so grateful to Son 2 and his family for reaching out and making a stop near enough for us to meet our youngest grandson, even though it was masked and socially distanced. I know we aren’t alone in this, but that doesn’t make it any easier to accept.

Conundrum

With various businesses closed or on appointment only basis, I have met a snag. My Driver’s License has to be renewed by my birthday in November, but the DMV requires an appointment. I would renew online, but the email I received indicated that I couldn’t this year. As a senior citizen, I would of course prefer to renew online, but since that isn’t an option, I looked into scheduling an appointment. The earliest appointment I could get was November 2, three months away. By then we may be in total lock down again. Under the current circumstances, a one or two year renewal online would be a compromise. I don’t know what will happen if they go back to Phase 1 and are totally closed down again. I guess if that happens they will either have to have a grace period or allow online renewal.

Yesterday it rained most of the day and again today, so gardening isn’t getting much attention. I did get carrots planted and had already gotten peas planted. I still need to get some spinach in if it will stop long enough to work a patch of soil. Each trip to the garden ends up with an armload (or basket if I remember) of produce. The cucumbers are still producing, but not in the quantity as before I pruned them. Some corn has matured, but the ears are a joke, about half formed. Tomatoes are ripening and peppers are forming. The Thai and Seranos have to ripen to red before I will harvest them. The jalapenos are being quick brined still and stored in the refrigerator. Most of the shelves in the refrigerator will end up with ferments and pickled peppers and cucumbers. With just the two of us, the door holds the condiments and cheese, the three drawers most of the rest of the food, so the shelves can be used for the pickles and flours.

One more harvest of tomatillos and I will have enough to make a batch of simmer sauce. I modify the recipe to add some jalapenos to it to give it more kick.

We got up early this morning to get to the Farmers Market before the crowds, our routine since we started going back to the market is to go there first, then go somewhere to get a bagel or drive through breakfast to eat in the car. The early market means more selection as well as smaller crowds. It is safer to shop there rather than the grocer, it is outdoors, number of people in the market regulated, and masks are required. I only saw a few people wearing them improperly under their nose. I have a couple of vendors that I head straight for, to get cheese and butter, meat if on the weekly list, produce if I need something different than the garden is supplying, and finally bagels, then out the gate. I miss staying and chatting with my vendor friends and shopping friends, but I can be in and out in under 10 minutes and everyone is using touch free debit card payment. As I was headed from cheese to meat today, I saw figs. I love figs, but my little fig tree didn’t produce this year, so I bought two little cartons, about 9-10 ounces total. I ate one fresh, but chopped the rest and made a tiny canning of fig preserves. It only made 3 quarter pints. If they have some next week still, I might get more and make another small batch. It doesn’t take long, 45 minutes chopping and sitting until the sugar is dissolved, about 10 minutes cooking, and 15 minutes in the water bath.

The grapes still aren’t ripening and the chickens discovered them. I will have to put a temporary fence around the vines until they ripen or I won’t have any.

Yesterday while it rained, I pulled out the sewing machine again and cut and sewed 6 larger masks for hubby. He had two others that he likes to wear, but with his beard, they didn’t provide good coverage, so I added a panel to the bottom of them to bring them down under his chin as well. He now has 8 that I feel are large enough to make him safer when we are walking or going to a drive through for food occasionally. Beginning a day or two ago, the university started a 10 day move in process for students. Students living on campus have to be tested for COVID prior to moving in, but that means that the population of town will explode now. It will not be as safe for us to do our own shopping unless we can get curbside delivery. Hopefully, early Farmers Market runs will still feel safe.

Stay safe everyone. With schools opening and flu season approaching, I think we will return to feeling totally isolated. The statistics that show total cases doesn’t tell us current cases, so you don’t really know how bad it is where you live.