Autumn Work

Some of this year's peaches

Autumn is here! 

At this time of year, my mind always turns to CANNING.

My favorite (and my family's favorite) things for us to can are:

• Salsa
• Zucchini Relish
• Peaches
• Apple Pie Filling
• Jelly
• Apple Sauce

When I was growing up, my mom's house was "the place to be" in the neighborhood every late Summer and  Fall. Our friends would gather with us kids and my mom in the kitchen, where my mom had set up an assembly line along the breakfast bar and on the kitchen table. She put everyone to work, peeling peaches or tomatoes, and stuffing them in shiny glass jars.

You would think that our friends would avoid our house during this time. But in reality, they would bug us and beg us to let them know when our mom was ready to can each year.

There's nothing like good old work to bring a community together! :-)

Of course, there are other ways to preserve nature's bounty.

• Freezing- We freeze the juice from our citrus trees.
• Drying- My mom makes some killer fruit leather, and my husband's grandmother dries lots of vegetables to put in soups.
• ???

How and what do you preserve in your home?

I'd love to hear all about your traditions in the Fall. :-)

Last year's Zucchini Relish