Summer '09 / My Addiction to Home Canning

So the Fall is upon us now, and we have had a wonderful Summer... it went by so quickly!

The one thing that has become obvious as the year progresses is that I have developed a serious problem- I can't stop putting things in jars.

So far this year I've made / preserved:

Pickles

Pickled Beans (twice)

Pickled Peppers (three times)

Pickled Okra

Peaches (canned, frozen and dried)

Zucchini Chips (dried)

Tomatoes (dried)

Fig Preserves

Green Tomato Salsa

Regular Salsa (twice)

Cream Corn (frozen)

Pepper Jelly (twice)

Muscadine Jelly (twice)

Vegetable Soup (twice, frozen)

French Onion Soup (frozen)

Beef Stew (in a new pressure-canner)

Only a couple things needed to be added here and there that we did not grow, like spices or some carrots, etc., but for the most part, every ingredient was fresh from the field. (Peaches and figs were not from our farm, but right off the tree and into the jars the day they were picked.)

Here are some pics from the foolishness:

Peaches ready for the freezer.

Jars of pickles and peaches.

Dehydrator stacked with tomatoes, zucchini, and bell peppers... bell peppers DID NOT work!

My friends the Gordons' fig tree!! It is HUGE!

Figs I picked and preserved.

Tomato bounty!

SALSAA!

Muscadines right off the vine.

Crushed...

Cooking them down...

Jelly!

Fresh veggie soup!! Almost EVERYTHING from the garden!

Ready for the freezer, and my belly!

Peppers!

Must wear gloves... hot stuff!

Pepper Jelly... mmmmm!

Pickled peppers and beans.

Stringing peppers to dry.

Pepper sauce.

Group shot (all in one week!)

Beef stew!

Stew in the pressure canner.

Another group shot...

We have loved eating and sharing all of our summer bounty from the garden, it is so wonderful to have all winter long!