Would you like to know why? The garden died (gasp). It wasn’t really the garden’s fault…we neglected it. No other way to put it. There are 57 different excuses I could give you, my dear reader, but for me, the real reason has become clear to me. I don’t like gardening. I like ordering seeds, and I sort of like planting things, but after that…not so much. I can’t speak for Ami J, but the bottom line is this for me. I am not a gardener.
However, all is not lost. I did realize what I am, or really what I like to do. I like to make things…bake them, cook them, process them for freezing, can them…I was going to use the term “processor”, but that sounds too industrial for my liking. I have found my place in the food chain…
The focus of this blog is going to change now. I have been looking for a full time hobby (not in place of my full time job, sadly…but a hobby I can do with regularity) and I think diving into the world of trying to eat more locally, and “putting food by” might just be the ticket.
If you will indulge me, I would like to give you a little background information about my family. I lost my mom at a very early age, so I have a very limited memory bank for her. However, the memories I do have are mainly from time spent in the kitchen. I was helping her bake pies for Thanksgiving by the time I was 7 or so, I remember there being a full cabinet of canned items in our basement, there were always baked goods coming out of the oven, every birthday cake I had was homemade and was themed. I have always baked. I thoroughly enjoy the process, and I also enjoy when I share what I have made and its appreciated.
At some point, I decided that I needed to learn to make jam. I vaguely remember Mom doing it, and it was one of those things that I thought I should know how to do. Lucky for me that Ami J was a Betty Crocker Homemaker award winner (this always makes me giggle) and she was willing to teach me. So one day several years ago, Ami J, Ami N and I “jammed” for the first time. And we are hooked. And we have a fairly large fan base, my favorite fan being Jack...I will include a picture of him eating jam in his favorite way (right out of the jar). I like the process involved in making jam, and I really like being able to see what I have accomplished at the end of the day. Its also nice to crack open a jar in the middle of winter.
So here we are in present day. Ami J and I are trying very hard to support local agriculture, and although we don't think a big garden is in our future, we have decided next year to expand the beds of strawberries, try potatoes again, and get some more rhubarb in. Ami N wants peas again...she might have to be in charge of that. Last weekend, Ami J and I picked up our bulk orders of peaches, basil and zucchini...here's what we did with it...
Peach, and Blueberry Peach.
I also made zucchini bread and zucchini muffins to freeze. Ami J made pesto. I also made a birthday cake for Ami N, 3 meatloaves (is that a word?) to freeze, banana muffins, and a couple banana breads to freeze. I didn't get pictures of all of those...my camera is on the fritz. I felt great at the end of this day...so much accomplished in about 6 hours of work (that I don't really consider work)...I need to do this more. 
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