Squirrels

It is summertime here in Central Missouri, and our garden is in full swing. We've got ripe tomatoes, green peppers, onions, corn, red peppers, cucumbers, jalapeno pepper, zucchini. Yes, our cup (or should I say our five gallon bucket) runneth over, so to speak.

And although we are pretty big eaters, even we can't keep up with the multitude of vegetables that ripen nearly every single day. So, every year about this time we turn into squirrels, storing our food for the long winter to come. We can beef. This will be delicious come winter-time when I make beef and noodles.


We also make beef jerky. This is Cole sprinkling the seasoning mix on the sliced beef. It has to sit for twenty-four hours, soaking up the seasoning before we put it in the food dehydrator.

This is what we do with GREEN BEANS!!!!!

So far this year, we have only canned 31 quarts of green beans. By the end of gardening season, we will have canned about 125 quarts of green beans and yes, we will eat all of it. As a matter of fact, last night I cooked my last can of '08 green beans. I told my mother-in-law that I felt like a "squirrel" putting up food for the winter. She said we were "ants." You know, the grasshopper plays around all summer, but the ant puts up food so it can survive the long, cold winter. For some reason I would rather think of myself as a squirrel than an ant. Hmmmm. I'm sure there's an issue there somewhere.

This is what we do with CORN!!!!!

Doesn't all that look delicious???? So this winter, when its freezing cold and the snow is falling outside we will be sitting at the kitchen table, warm as toast, and enjoying all the fruits (or vegetables) of our labor. If you haven't had the pleasure of eating homegrown fruits and vegetables, you really are missing something. Yes, it's hard work. Yes, you get hot and sweaty and itchy picking vegetables out in the garden on a summer day in July. But I'll take my home canned or frozen vegetables over Del Monte any day! So, plant a little garden in your backyard. Grow a tomato in a five-gallon bucket. I promise you won't be disappointed.

In case you're wondering what we've done with all those ripe tomatoes and green peppers, and onions, and red peppers and jalapenos, well, so far we've canned 40 pints of salsa. Pictures to come later!!!!!

And, still to come . . . . . . PICKLES!!!!!