It could be.
Though, I said that at the beginning of October, and since then I’ve put up nearly 25 quarts of tomatillos, tomatoes and assorted green tomato pickles. So who knows what a few more days will bring. I AM still on the prowl for some good deals on cranberries. It was supposed to be a bumper year for them, and I have yet to see any. I’d like to make a batch of Cranberry Chutney yet this year if I can.
But for the most part, I think canning season is over. What I have left in the garden is carrots, beets and greens- not things that you can in a boiling water canner. Unless I pickle some carrots. but we like those for fresh eating.
But overall, despite the wonky weather, it was a productive growing season. Here is today’s picture of the basement pantry with all the home canned goods.
Isn’t it lovely! I did much better at putting up this year than last year- and that is despite missing a few things. All those empty jars were earmarked for applesauce and canned peaches. We never got around to ordering our Michigan peaches due to finances this year, and the apples were more costly than gold. We went to the orchard once and picked enough apples to make one pie, and a few for fresh eating. And that was it. Next year we’ll have a better year, and the peaches and applesauce will make it to the shelves.
I made more jam this year than last year- more varieties, I should say. But the salsa tally is quite a bit less over last year. However, since we still have quite the number of jars carrying over from last year, I think we’ll be just fine on salsa. We may have a little more restraint, though, when it comes to sharing. First priority will go to those who actually return the jars. I can’t believe how many cases of pint and half-pint jars I had to purchase this year.
Anyway, I wanted to share this picture today, because it’s one of my happy places. I walk past this almost daily- either to do laundry or get to the freezer. I can’t walk past these shelves without pausing and smiling. I’m most excited right now about the tomatoes. I harvested all the green ones at the end of September, and began plotting pickles and fried green tomatoes, because I didn’t think they’d all ripen. Lo and behold, every single one (that hasn’t already been turned into a pickle) has ripened. I’ve had so many tomatoes that I’ve run three batches through the canner and now have 11 quarts and 7 pints of canned tomatoes on the shelves. I don’t think I’ve ever harvested all my green tomatoes before- usually I let the frost take them. Clearly, I won’t be making that mistake again! I may have enough yet to do just one more batch of salsa, but I’m thinking they will probably go into the last batch of fresh tomato soup.
So what have you put up this year? I would love to know. There’s nothing like enjoying all the hard work of the harvest come January or February. Fresh, homemade biscuits slathered with homemade jam? Or a lovely ham baked with a glaze made from mustard and Zesty Red Onion Jelly? Or a batch of nachos, loaded up with homemade salsa. Bring it on. I’m hungry.