Canned Applesauce AND Apple Peel Jelly

Good Tuesday Morning everybody!!!! I've been canning and cooking again!!! Of course, I had to share with you guys, because everything turned out so tasty!!!! As you can see, I'm going to start with the Apple Sauce. This recipe has 2 different cooking directions, for either stove top, or crock pot. I've done the stove top once already, and knew it was tasty, so this time, I decided to try the crock pot. As we all know, I love my crock pot.

Canned Apple Sauce

12 Cups apples, peeled, cored and pureed in food processor or finely chopped. (Save those peels and cores)
1/2 to 3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
3 tbsp lemon juice

Peel, core, and slice the apples, then sprinkle with Lemon Juice

Puree the apples to consistency, then place into stock pot or crock pot

Add the sugar and cinnamon and stur (put lid on)

In Stock pot method, stir every few min to ensure apples are not burning, cook for 30 min.
In Crock Pot, cook for 2 Hours.
Then, put into sterilized jars. Then water bath Pint jars for 15 min, and quart jars for 20 min.

This really is tasty, when I've made it and shared with family, they absolutely raved about this.

And now, I knew I wanted to try to be able to get one more use out of those peels and cores before I fed them to the worms (and my worms are just so happy to have gotten such a yummy treat too by the way) I had been seeing all of these lovely jars of jelly made with the fruit peels in the many groups I belong to on FB, and I kept thinking, I know I can do this, how hard can it be???? Well, it wasn't hard at all, and yes I could do it!!!! When my mother in law gifted me with all of these wonderful beautiful red apples, I knew I was going to make apple sauce, and I was even more positive, that I was going to make apple peel jelly. I now have some green apples as well, and am going to be making another batch of something with those, but for sure, will be making jelly again. I just cannot wait to see the color difference. I'm honestly thrilled with the color that this jelly came out.
Now, I've read several different directions for this exact same recipe, so I just kind of went with the one that I liked the best. One requires you to let them sit over night in the water, and one wants you to let them drain for two hours. I went with the 2 hour drain. I just wasn't wanting to get up and make jelly this morning, I was more or less wanting to just have my coffee, and watch a little morning Doctor Who.

OK, so on with the Directions!!!!

Apple Peels and Cores
5 Cups water
1 Box pectin
7 cups sugar

1) Add peels and cores to a 5 quart stock pot. (Now, You will know you have enough if its filled with peels and cores, I used an 8.5 quart stock pot, because well, that's the smallest I own, and mine filled up pretty good)

2) Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes

3) Strain Juice through a cheese cloth, or a jelly bag. You should get about 5 cups of juice. (This is where the directions were different with the recipe's I just sort of meshed together. This is where I let everything drain for 2 hours)(don't squeeze the peels and cores, just let it sit and drain)

4) (optional direction) Let juice sit overnight to reduce sediment. (I had no sediment because I just let it do the slow 2 hour drip)

5) Add 5 cups of juice to stock pot, and gradually stir in pectin

6) Bring mixture to a rolling boil for 1 minute

7) Add in 7 cups of sugar

8) Return to a rolling boil, and boil hard for 1 minute

9) Skim foam and place in hot sterile 1/2 pint jelly jars

10) Process in a water bath for 10 minutes

So, that's it. Honestly, this last recipe probably requires more work than any recipe I've ever done. Now I will admit to you guys, that I had my most handsome husband helping me to peel the apples. He grew up in a church that did apple butter every year, and he had been trained to peel apples in a way, that makes the work go very, very quick...although, we have one of those table clamp apple peelers, and he can work that thing way faster than I can.

Found My camera!!!!

Happy Saturday everybody!!! I finally found my digital camera that I "lost"...turns out it wasn't lost, it was in the bottom of my purse, which sometimes is almost the same thing as being lost.  I took these pictures of the dogs last week, before my camera ended up in the bottom of my purse. The funny thing is, I don't even have a big purse, its a smaller purse to keep this very thing from happening.

As you guys can see, My Trio of pups are getting along just fine. Its not always easy to get a shot of everybody together. Sometimes somebody sneezes, blinks, see's a squirrel, or decides they need to pee.

Its been a slightly busy day here. I set 42 eggs in the incubator, that will be this springs meat. Then of course there is the basic, put gas in the car, get chicken feed, feed the chickens, gather eggs, feed the rabbits, snuggle the babies, wash and put away laundry, fix supper...you get the idea...the best part is, its Saturday night, and that means, new Doctor Who episodes!!!!

Now, here are some bunny pictures from last week as well. They have gotten a little bit bigger since I've taken these pictures, but are still just as adorable!!!

Friday

Happy Friday everybody!!!! Lots of stuff going on around here. I Just finished cleaning the incubator, and setting it up. Right now I'm running it to do the heat and humidity test, to make sure that it will still hold, and that the egg turner is still turning. I'll be able to put the eggs in, in the morning. We are putting a full 42 eggs in there.

I've been working on my quilting. Yesterday I finished putting together another quilt top, and pinning one together that I had gotten done before. I'm planning on getting that one quilted this weekend, and then pinning the recently finished one together once that one is quilted. As soon as I can find where I put the digital camera, I'll get some pictures of everything.

What do you guys have planned for this weekend, the first weekend of fall????

Happy Autumn

Good Morning!!! Fall is here!!!! Soon the leaves will start turning colors, and falling to the ground. I'm hoping to get some good pictures of that this year.

I took the Nest box out of Ethel and Doris's cages. Ethel is my biggest Silver Fox doe, and was really starting to look cramped in there with the nest box, and her kits, who weren't really using the nest box for anything other than a potty. I plan on getting some pictures of everybody here hopefully today as well. Everybody is growing so fast, and it wont be long before my first 4H kid gets their bunny from me, and I'm so excited about that, because 4H is one of the most wonderful things out there in my mind.

Well, that's it for this morning!!!!

Breakfast Pizza

Yes, it tastes as good as it looks!!!! And its quite easy as well...Now, I cook breakfast for dinner all of the time, to me breakfast isn't just for mornings. When I came across this recipe, I was quite excited, because it meant a new way to use up eggs!!! Since I'm getting about 2 dozen eggs a day, they tend to build up much faster than we use them down.
I did double the recipe when I made this, so that if it turned out tasty (and it did) I would be able to have some for Frank when he gets home from work in the morning. he's a night shift worker, and its always nice to be able to have something handy to heat up so he can get a fast bite.  The recipe I'm giving you will only make one, so here we go!!!

1 tube (13.8 oz) refrigerated pizza crust
2 Tbsp. Olive oil, divided
6 eggs
2 Tbsp. water
1 pkg. (3 oz.) real bacon bits
1 cup (4 oz) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese

1. Unroll crust into a greased 15x10x1 in. baking pan; flatten dough and build up edges slightly. Brush with 1 Tbsp. oil. Prick dough thoroughly with a fork. Bake at 400 for 7-8 min or until lightly browned.

2. meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk eggs and water. in a small skillet, heat remaining oil until hot. Add eggs; cook and stir over medium heat until completely set.

3. Spoon eggs over crust. Sprinkle with bacon and cheese. Bake 5-7 min longer or until cheese is melted.

That's it!!! It's just that easy!!!
I hope you enjoy this easy recipe, that uses up plenty of eggs!!! (plus its man friendly)

Around here

Good Morning all, sorry my posts have been so far in between here lately. Things have been a little crazy. Right now we are on the hunt for a new family doctor as ours had to take an unexpected leave from medical practice, and then we've been cleaning out vehicles, and canning, and getting ready for apple season, which I believe is upon us.

This fall, I'm planning on buying several bushels of apples. The plan is to make plenty of apple sauce, apple butter, apple pie filling, and some jelly. I'm going to be boiling down the skins to make jelly so that nothing goes to waste out of the apples. Its going to be a buys month or two, but we will have plenty of fresh apple products for the winter.

I've been working on handling the baby bunnies that are out with their mothers right now. Currently I have one of Ethel's sold, I'm not sure which one yet, because I'm not sure of their genders. I've sold a female to a 4H kid. I really think that 4H is one of the most important programs they have for children. It teaches them so many things, in a very positive light. If I could get involved more, I most certainly would.

Even though its not fall just yet according to the calendar, the weather is saying otherwise. These chilly grey days, are a most certain sign, that fall has arrived. The tree's haven't started turning yet, but that's not far off I think.

What a weekend!!!

This was a crazy weekend here, it was cool/cold in the mornings, and warmish during the day, and then cold at night!!! Its making me not want to take the nest boxes out of the rabbit cages, that need to be removed because the babies are getting too big for the nest boxes. I'm sure that they would stay warm huddled together. They are fully furry, and have their Moms to keep them warm. I'm probably being a bit overly protective with this being the first of my baby bunnies.

Sam, Bella, and Jasper have been spending a lot more time outside. They are fully enjoying the cooler weather. When they come in, they pretty  much so flop down, and sleep the sleep of the exhausted.

Everyday life

There is so much constantly changing and happening around here, that its hard for me to be able to remember what all to share with you all. The baby rabbits are growing swiftly. Its hard to believe that they are going on 3 and 2 weeks old already. I'm watching the older ones hop in and out of the nest box already, with no effort at all. The younger ones, I notices have open eyes, so it wont be long before they are out of the nest box hanging out with their mothers as well.

Bella (the hound) is really calming down a lot for us. Since we have folded up the crate, and put it away, she's changed even more. I suppose she really didn't like the crate. She's interacting with everybody in a much calmer matter than what she was. She took a lot of time, and patients, and love, but we have survived those first months with her. Sam took to her right away as a play buddy, and Jasper has finally accepted the fact that she's not going any place.  I love to watch the different personalities interact.

I've been canning like mad lately. I had to go out and get a few cases of jars, because I had actually used up all of my quart jars. But the other day I canned 9 jars of chicken, and 2 jars of broth, We split that with our friend Aaron, who helps with the butchering, and some of animal housing related activities. I'm so glad that we have his help, because with my physical disability, that is only getting worse as time goes by, I am less and less help. (I have 2 really bad hips, that need to be replaced, but due to my age, 34..they are having me wait as long as is possible.)  The other day my mother in law gave us a big bucket of squash and zucchini, because she can make anything grow, anywhere. I cubed that up with some onions and got 8 pints canned. I believe this is going to be a great winter.

Yesterday, we had to get some mud balls off of some chicken toes. We were hoping that the crazy birds would groom themselves, but that didn't happen, and we ended up with some giant mud balls that was making them walk incredibly funny. There were 4 chickens like that, so Frank caught them, and held them upside down, while I wrapped them with a towel and covered there heads to keep them calm. Then with the help of a water hose, a pocket knife and the back of an ax head, we were able to carefully cut away most of the mud balls. Once we got so close to where the toes were, we soaked down the remaining mud and carefully scraped down to the toenail, and then worked it until it fell off. The first one we did was a buff orpington, who took the longest because we had to figure out the best way to do it, the second one was a Rhode Island Red, who we had figured out better, the third was a very flighty Leghorn, who we had to grip firmly because the towel was not working to keep her calm, and the last was one of the older Easter Eggers who went much quicker, because she was the calmest. She didn't squirm, or carry on, she just let me hold on to her, and we got done with her in under 2 minutes. That was probably the most exciting thing we did all day.

Once we were done with all of the animal chores, we settled in with a movie. We chose an old movie from the 1980's with Steve Martin. That man cracks me the heck up!!! We watched the movie Parenthood, which is truly a hilarious movie.

Well, now that I've filled you in on us, hopefully I didn't bore you all too awful much, and I hope you will all come back and visit us again!!!

More baby bunny pictures!!!!

I decided I needed some baby bunny pictures today, since they are growing so quick!!! I needed to get in and handle Doris's babies some. I've been working a lot with Ethel's kits, but not so much with Doris's. There are some black kits in Doris's nest box, but it was the blue ones that wanted to come out and play. As you can see, they are just adorable!!! The baby bunny cuteness is almost more than I can take!!! I did notice that it looks like I may have a lilac baby in Doris's bunch. I know I have one from Ethel, but didn't notice the one until today from Doris. You can see the little guy in the top picture, its the one in the middle.

Now, I had to share the nifty contraption that my hubby bought me!!! Its a lid and straw that fits on top of a regular mouth canning jar, and is held on with a ring. I thought that was the best thing ever. I was using it to drink coffee out of the other day.

Over the weekend we butchered the 7 young roosters, and an old hen. We knew those little roosters weren't going to get any bigger, because they were starting to get spurs. We went ahead and canned the meat. The way we figured it, it was better than worrying about the electricity going out this winter, and having to deal with stuff not staying frozen.  We are planning on throwing some eggs in the incubator to start getting ready for another butcher.

How Swiftly they grow

Its hard to believe that its September already. I'm not sure where this year has gone, but its gone. We have kept pretty busy in all reality. Between the Chickens, the Rabbits, the dogs, and everything else, time has simply flown bye.
       As you can see my baby bunnies are growing swiftly!!! The one I'm holding in my hand isn't quite two weeks old yet. That is one of Ethel's offspring. The bottom picture are Ginger's babies. They were born on Monday, so the official count for her babies is 5, and it would appear they are all black. Ginger is the first to not give me multiple colors. As you can see, they are very well fed, and resemble baby hippos. (They are simply adorable aren't they?)
     When I went out to feed and fill up the water containers this morning, all of the kits in Ethel's cage were out of the nest box. They were hanging out on one side of the cage, and she was on the other with this great look on her face. It was sort of a what the heck kind of a look.
      Well, the hour is late, and I'm thinking its time to call it a night!!!! Take care, be safe, and happy September

More Baby Bunnies!!!!

Doris's babies are starting to open their eyes, so they have started climbing out of the nest box. We are going to be putting up what I like to call baby bumpers around the sides of the cage to keep them from squeezing out. Just have to wait on Frank to get up. (He works night shift, so He obviously does need to sleep some.  I just cant get over how fast these guys grow!!!!

Ginger had her babies this morning!!! Of course she knew just how hard I was waiting, so she made me wait a little longer...but they are here!!! I don't know how many she has just yet, because I'm leaving them alone for the day, to let her adjust.