Getting acquainted with my new 'toys'!

Part of country life is preserving your harvest.

Last year was my first making jams and canning my garden produce.

I made strawberry jam, grape and pomegranate jelly, pickles, relish, salsa and canned tomatoes.

I got quite comfortable using my water bath canner and decided it was time to move ahead with other methods.  For Christmas I asked for, and received, a food dehydrator.

Here it is with my first attempt at dehydrating pineapple, apple and banana.

 

The banana's came out brown and not looking very appetizing. The apples turned out well, and the pineapple turned out amazing! Little Country Girl has requested dehydrated pineapple again and so I have since made another batch.  I think I'd also like to try making beef jerky and fruit roll ups in the future, and it will be great for drying herbs from the garden.

Another item I wanted to add to my arsenal was a pressure canner.

While I did not get one of those for Christmas, I did receive money that I used to purchase one.

Here is my new Presto 23 quart pressure canner!

I've got to admit I was more than a little intimidated by the whole idea, so I got it out of the box and read the booklet that was included. They suggested pouring 4 cups of water into the canner and following instructions to help understand it's operation. So that's exactly what I just did!

Now that I feel better about the whole process, I can't wait to can something!

 Who knew just boiling some water could inspire me so much?

Another helpful gadget ...

We love pie around here!

Fall time is apple picking time, and also PIE making time.

Country Boy loves apple pie!

Unfortunately, Netty does not like peeling and cutting apples.

Then I found this handy gadget!

 This apple peeler makes peeling and slicing apples so easy.

Simply put an apple on and start cranking that handle

In about 5 seconds you have an apple that is peeled, cored and sliced!

Once slice with a knife and each apple is ready and perfectly sliced for pie!

And since I discovered that Country Boy doesn't like CRUST, I found this simple recipe for a crustless apple pie from Betty Crocker.com

Impossibly Easy Apple Pie

 It is simple to make and tastes great!

Big Country Girl likes to have a slice for breakfast!

YUM!

Apple peeler available at 

Lee Valley Tools 

Apple Picking - Apples today - pie tomorrow!

 Autumn is here, and so it is apple picking time!

We have 3 very old apple trees in the back yard. I'm not too sure what kind they are but I think they are comparable to MacIntosh apples. 

They seem to bear in 3 year cycles - we have a great year, followed by a terrible year, and then a good year. Last year was a great year so I wasn't expecting too many apples this year.

I went out today hoping to get enough apples to make a pie, so I was pleasantly surprised when I easily picked a basket full!

The gadget in front of the basket is my apple picker.

It saves me from having to drag the ladder out every time I want to pick a few apples.

.You simply attach it to a pole, raise it up underneath the apple, and then use the hooks on the edge to pull the apple off the stem. The apple then falls into the cloth sack - preventing it from bruising.

The sack holds quite a few apples so you don't have to bring the pole down each time.

It's quite a handy little gadget and available from Lee Valley Tools

So tomorrow I will sort, peel, and cut apples for a pie-or, with any luck a FEW pies.

I know someone who will be more than happy to take the apple leftovers