Salsa 2010 (finally)

Here is what we started with...all from my garden and my in-laws garden!!! (except we bought 4 jalapenos- we'll add one plant to the garden next year!!)

I wanted this pic posted to show how we did the peppers. Even the mild-er ones have the same burning affect on your hands!!!

I borrowed my friend Meghan's cuisanart...definitely on my christmas list this year!!! Made it so much simpler!!! Thank you Meghan!!!



Here is the salsa put together...all looking yummy!!!

I found on a canning site that you can sub lemon juice for vinegar but not the other way around so the only change I made was lemon juice instead of vinegar. I googled recipes until I found one that looked good and had all the ingredients I wanted to use!! Here is the winning recipe (and I'll definitely use it again next year). I halved the recipe but then made it twice (on 2 days). I got 14 half pints and some fresh (which the fresh is all gone!!). I have even opened one of my jars and eaten all of it!! Salsa is a craving this pregnancy!!!

Unfortunately the canning process took all week because of the sciatic, back and foot pain this pregnancy!!! But we got it done!!! Yay!!!

Adventures in Canning....

I've never tried it before!!! My mom and I are gonna give it a go tonight. She wants to make some jam and I want to work on salsa!!! We'll see...I bought all my supplies and I'm so excited!!!I've gotten a gazillion books from the library and I even bought myself the Ball Blue Book guide to preserving!!!

How hard can it be??? HAHAHA!!!

We have veggies!!!

I know I said I had other topics to blog about- but when this has to come first!!! I went out to water my square foot garden this am and oh how glorious it is!!!


Here are my bigger tomatoes!

My square foot is bursting at the seams!!! We've harvested lettuce, onions and peppers already!! I'm hoping to get some basil next week and make pesto!!! (I'll try to post a recipe and pics at that time!!)

And I can't wait to pluck these babies off!! Beautiful juicy cherry tomatoes!!! Ripe for the picking!!!

I do love summer!!!

Garden day!!!

On tuesday we decided to put the garden in. We started the process and bought the supplies on monday and got to work during Max's nap time on tuesday afternoon. We planted wave petunias in the beds and put in our Square Foot Garden (SFG). We did this last year and had alot of luck with it!!!

Well, not everyone participated in garden day!!

After Max's nap- he "helped"

First we emptied our box onto a tarp and added in another bag of peat moss, cow manure, posey power, and vermculite (Mel's mix-this stuff is gold people!!!). I totally didn't even think to take pictures of this step. We raked the mixture together until it was thoroughly mixed with the previous contents of the box. We then put it back in the box and placed the grid on top. We had enough Mel's mix to fix up 5 round pots and 2 square pots. I laid out my plan.

My wave petunias need a shot of miracle grow. I hope I have as good of luck as I did last year with them!!!

We didn't get new mulch this year- we decided it wasn't in the budget and we could just work up the current mulch.

So in the SFG we have 2 Laroma tomatoes (for paste/sauce), 2 cherry tomatoes (Sweet baby girl and another type I can't remember), 2 squares of white onions, 2 squares of lettuce, 1 square of carrots, 2 squares of marigolds (to protect my tomatoes), and 5 peppers (Garden Salsa, Golden bell, Lady Bell and 2 Jupiters).

In 4 big pots we have tomatoes (3 celebrity and 1 Big boy).

In the other pot we have a Purple beauty pepper. I also have 2 window type boxes for herbs (basil and cilantro mainly).

Jake slept through the entire thing. We was positioned under the umbrella and was loving life!!

Max was digging being outside. He loves being outdoors!! I see alot of dirt in my future!!

I think we're really gonna enjoy our backyard this summer!!!