How to Can Peaches In August, peaches start to ripen and hang heavy from the branches. Whether you pick your own or buy them from your local farmers market or produce stand, fresh peaches are sticky, sweet summertime treats. Early varieties of peaches are generally available in late July or early August. Later varieties should be available through mid-late September. If you buy or pick large quantities of fruit, it's a good idea to spread it out in one layer so you don't end up with a mushy mess when the fruit starts to ripen. I also add a small bowl of apple cider vinegar (with a couple drops of dish soap) to the mix to keep the fruit fly Keep Reading
Basic Basil Pesto recipe
Basil Pesto Recipe Whether you pick it up at your local farmer's market, grab a bunch at the grocery store, or grow it in your own garden, basil is summer at its best. This is the time of year when those beautiful green plants really explode with aromatic leaves. Basil loves direct sunshine and lots of it. Our dreary June weather had my basil plants threatening to pack their bags and head to Arizona, along with half the people I know. Thankfully, we've seen enough sun in July to convince my basil to stick around and start producing those glorious green leaves. If you're having a rough day, head out to your garden and take your aggression out Keep Reading
How to Can Sweet Cherries {A Step-By-Step Guide}
After a few fun-filled days around the Fourth of July spent in Lyle, Washington last year, my little family headed over to Maryhill, Washington, land of vineyards, orchards, hot weather, and wind turbines. We had one thing on our minds: sweet cherries. My sisters had stopped by the Maryhill Fruit Stand earlier in the week. They kept talking about how they bought a bag of cherries and ate it before they even made it back to the car, the fruit was so sweet. U-pick was just $1 a pound (apricots, too). My husband and I had talked about picking cherries for years; we needed to track this place down. Pulling up to the fruit stand, the sign Keep Reading
How to Make Homemade Chicken Stock
Homemade Chicken Stock Making homemade chicken stock is a super simple, versatile skill to have in your kitchen tool belt. In fact, if I had to pick just one frugal habit that consistently saves a significant amount of grocery money, while delivering a superior product, making homemade chicken stock would be it. If you are on a tight budget, trying to figure out how to cut back on expenses, food is a tough category. Your family is probably kind of attached to the whole 3-meals-a-day routine and beans & rice only get you so far. To make those grocery dollars stretch as far as possible, try this: At the beginning of the week, roast 2 chickens Keep Reading
Making the most of your local farmer’s market
Farmers' Market Tips & Tricks Many of the Portland/Vancouver area farmer's markets open up soon. Enjoy these tips. Our local farmer's market kicks off its season in the beginning of May! Looking for one near you? Go here. We love wandering through outdoor markets and buying our food directly from the people who grow it. Whether it's listening to the local bands, watching strangers and bumping into friends, checking out the bins of beautiful produce, or just enjoying the way my husband's eyes light up when crenshaw melons are in season, I love everything about small, local farmer's markets. Okay, not everything. Some of those music groups can Keep Reading
Why I Can (and you can, too)
This is a re-post from a previous year. A few weeks ago, I posted a step-by-step guide to canning peaches for beginners. I was all set to follow it with several more basic canning tutorials. Next up, tomatoes! However, as I was pulling out of the Growers Outlet parking lot last week with 400 pounds* of tomatoes in the back of my van, it hit me: This is not normal behavior. In fact, the guy who loaded all 18 boxes even tried to intervene. "Uh, ma'am, have you ever canned before? Because... this is a lot of tomatoes. Are you sure you're up for it?" I assured him that I was splitting the order and the work with 2 other people. He still laughed at me as Keep Reading