Well, the long slog towards healing up continues. Each day finds that I can do a bit more, but I have to say it's harshing my mellow a tad just how wiped out I get by something so simple as preparing and canning a few pints of jam.
Alas though, at least I am able to do a bit, so I am not complaining!
That said, homestead chores this week have mostly been indoors due to convalescing and our place's first snowfall:
Also, it's more than kind of cold. Like the temperature went from the 60's to the 20's in 48 hours. Brrr....
I've got no complaints though, because I have apples!
My post earlier this week showed off the applesauce chronicles, and since then I have concocted other things. One of which was the 8caramel apple jam8.
I have a feeling the caramel apple jam is pretty tasty. I know this because my husband ate half a jar for breakfast slathered on a piece of the toasted artisan bread I bake every other day. He said I wasn't allowed to give any of that jam away. So of course I gave a jar to a friend馃榿.
Another bit of apple crafting I did was to make some crockpot apple butter. I love making apple butter because it's the most hands off task ever. I just get out my peeler, corer, slicer, whip through about five pounds of apples (leaving the peels on), stuff it all in the crock pot, add some sugar and spices, and let the whole thing cook on low for about ten hours. Then I immersion blend, add some vanilla extract or vanilla bean, simmer on low for two more hours, and then throw it in the fridge or can it.
And of course feed it to my husband on toasted fresh bread, because I kind of like him.
On the agricultural front, aside from caring for the hens, the outside stuff is mostly done other than spreading some ag grade plastic on our new snow proof (hopefully) forty foot long hoophouse. I say snow proof because the hubs framed it with old sixteen foot cattle panels. The plastic is in down at the hardware store, so we'll stretch over the hoophouse this next week and see if it does indeed survive the snow this winter.
I've also got flower seed drying everywhere. There's hollyhock, calendula, marigold, and many different types of basil currently curing on top of my fridge. It makes me happy to see that sight. Also, the basil smells good.
I still have strawflower, starflower, some miscellaneous cultivars of calendula, sunflower, zinnia, and millet seeds to harvest, but we really needed a good frost before I did that, and as it is supposed to be like fifteen degrees tonight, I think that job will be done.
The dahlias also need digging, but as our first actual killing frost was the day before yesterday, I am not going to do that chore until this coming week. Dahlias need at least a week to cure after that first frost, and I want those tubers nice and toughened up before I dig, wash, dry, and pack those babies in sawdust for the winter.
And now, now I am going to go rest and read a book. I am working on the Mrs. Pollifax series because I wanted something light-hearted, Jessica Fletcher-like, and a touch old-fashioned, and well, Goodreads suggested the series. We shall see.
Plus, I know I can rest most contentedly because I also scrounged up enough Kat-credits to craft the boy a deep dish pepperoni pizza before he headed off to work at Scarywood for the night.
Hope you all have a most pleasant pre-Halloween weekend!!!
And as most of the time, all of the images in this post were taken on the author's now in caramel apple scent iPhone. The text divider image was made in Canva.