What's Cookin' Wednesday...Strawberry Girl Makes Freezer Jam

Yes...I need something to make me come back week in and week out...and I am hoping this helps. I thought maybe it would be fun to see what others are cooking...or not cooking...and either get a few ideas or share some kitchen pain. Noah and I eat far too much Chinese takeout. Oh, go ahead and laugh those of you that know about my China boycott.  I am laughing too!

So for my first What's Cookin blog, I decided to do something close to home, and something for which I am about 2 weeks early on in my neck of the woods...I've always been the impatient sort (this is not to be confused with getting things done in a timely fashion...I am also the queen of last minute, the ever procrastinator).

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM
I grew up on a strawberry farm. The only lingering trauma for having done so is the name-calling. I still get called Strawberry Girl on occasion at the local store. For those out of town, your local store is the closest convenience store to your house. It is that place where everyone knows your dog's name and they have your cell number posted next to the cash register so they can call you when she makes the frequent odd visit. They have also seen you in pajamas when you come to pick up your dog.  In the old days these were general stores. Our store was S.G. Jones and Son. Ours sold everything from groceries to hip boots, knives, and as I remember socks. They also let you charge a handful of hot balls to your parents account when you walked there after getting off the bus instead of heading home as you were supposed to do.

So we don't grow pick your own strawberries anymore...only pumpkins.  We do have a smallish patch at the farm (50 X 50')...and I will probably be making the daily trip in a few days so that I don't miss out on the first ripe berry. I am impatient. I hated strawberries as a kid. I hate love irony. It was the one food I craved when I was pregnant with Noah. So for the past ten years I have been loving strawberries. The year I had Noah turned out to be the last year we operated the farm as a PYO berry farm.

STRAWBERRY FREEZER JAM
Ingredients
2 cups crushed fresh strawberries
4 cups sugar
1 (1.75 ounce) package Sure-jell dry pectin
3/4 cup water

Directions
1. Pick a heap of fresh, ripe strawberries.  I don't know how much. I always pick loads and eat what I don't use.
2.Mix crushed strawberries with sugar, and let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, stir the pectin into the water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and boil for 1 minute. Stir the boiling water into the strawberries. Allow to stand for 3 minutes before pouring into jars or other storage containers.
3.Place tops on the containers, and leave for 24 hours. Place into freezer, and store frozen until ready to use.
 
Lasts about a month once you've opened it and put it in the fridge.
 
If this recipe looks like the one that comes in the box of Sure-Jell, it is.  It is the best out there. I have tried all sorts of recipes, so if you thought you were getting a family secret, I hope you aren't too disappointed.  If there is a strawberry patch near you, go pick some and try it. The Strawberry Girl can't wait to have strawberry freezer jam on an english muffin.

The photo above is from my uncle's farm in Roca, Nebraska.  Strawberry growing was once contagious.

Poison Ivy and Ticks, Fresh and Raw

Following up on yesterday's post...
The Octagon soap apparently worked its magic...no rash...and I am extremely allergic to poison ivy...which means I am extremely allergic to my yard.
And I haven't found anymore ticks...so I either don't have anymore...or my eyesight is just plain bad.
But that has me wondering if Frontline or Advantix has ever been tested on humankind... And if it has, I want some...and if it hasn't, maybe I'd consider offering myself up as a test specimen.
And I am curious about the folk remedies for poison ivy and ticks. So if you have any, please share.
My sister has been getting poison oak like crazy on the job with the BLM in Oregon. She's been consuming Certo (that preservative you use making jams and jellies) because it is supposed to make the rash fade quicker. I did a little research and discovered the active ingredient, sodium benzoate, may combine with vitamin C to produce benzene...which according to the research is a carcinogen...so I am not so sure about that one. But wouldn't this mean that jams and jellies and any preserved foods for that matter might combine with C to do the same???? I would think this would mean we should be eating fresh, raw food?!?! Hmmmmmmmmmmmm...

A few ticks and a rash

It occurred to me that it has been two weeks since I have written. I've had some things on my mind that have kept the words inside, but it is time to dive back in...not because I have anything earth shattering to say, but because if I don't, I just may never.

So in case you don't already know, it is tick season again in our neck of the woods. Oh, I would love to blame it on someone else's woods, but unfortunately it is my own backyard...backyard, front yard...I wouldn't even really call it a yard. Landscaping was the first thing to go when I became a single mom. I know there are single parents out there who can do it all...work, kids, housekeeping, landscaping, and even manage going back to school at the same time...but that isn't me. So I got rid of the flowers (or rather they died, along with the rest of the shrubbery I'd planted years ago) and I decided to just deal with grass...only it isn't grass...it's weeds and poison ivy...and I don't deal with it...unless I am guilted into it.

Last week I bought some zinnia seeds, and sunflowers and moonflowers (my absolute favorite), and today I actually dug a raised bed in the spot I swore I would never dig again (it is much easier to push the lawn mower right up under the porch than it is to pull weeds in a flower bed). I had to haul in extra dirt which I dug from the ditch that invisibly separates the field from the yard. I apparently ventured into tick haven and through poison ivy wonderland on my way ferrying the dirt to what will eventually become the weedy flower bed. I am hoping that I have all the ticks off me, and that octagon soap really does remove the poison ivy oil...but something tells me I am going to be itching tomorrow. I don't like even thinking about that.

The good news is that I am even actually thinking about flowers again. I'm not even going to attempt getting inside my head to understand why. Maybe it's love :-). Bright, cheery flowers make me happy, and I will be glad to see them growing in front of the dilapidated porch...and I am hoping that the moonflower vines will grow all around it, and late on a summer evening I will sit out there and look at the stars with a glass of wine while the sweet scent of moonflowers wafts thru the air...it's worth a few ticks and a rash.

My Easter Bible

My China boycott has not been easy...it has been far easier to stay out of Wal Mart. I look at everything I put in my cart no matter where I go...even greeting cards get scrutinized as I discovered so many wear the "Made in China" tag...and toys...well, forget about it.

So Friday night I was waiting for Noah to come to the toy realization at Ollies where we had stopped to pick up something. I was perusing the Bible section as I had just bought Noah his first and I was curious about what Ollies had. Well, I happened to spot a big, black one called the Archaeological Study Bible, and coming from an archaeological academic background, I had to check it out...

By the time Noah had arrived at the conclusion that I wouldn't be buying any toys (I am sure he scrutinized every possible toy for 9 year old boys), I had fallen in love with the Archaeological Study Bible. It had beautiful illustrations and great articles related to biblical archaeology. It placed each Book in historical and cultural context with wonderful discussion about ancient peoples. It was a Bible for me. I am a context person. Context helps me hold onto new knowledge...otherwise that wisdom just wobbles around in my brain. Context gives it a place to take root and grow. I sooooo wanted that Bible.

And then came the kicker, a mean little sticker that read...yes, you know..."Made in China." Noah had seen me flipping the pages of the Bible...He can read my expressions well. "Is it too expensive?" he asked. "No, " I said, and I showed him the sticker.

"Oh, Mom. Give it up. Everything is made there. Buy the Bible, forget about the boycott."

So there I was...And it was tempting to forget about my boycott...but I try to raise Noah by example. My boycott was about taking a stand for something, an idea, I believe in. I couldn't show Noah that I throw in the towel because I want something...even if that something is the Great Book. I told Noah that I would return after the boycott and that if the Archaeological Study Bible was still on the shelf I'd buy it. We both left empty handed (and I still don't remember what we stopped to pick up in the first place).

On Saturday Noah asked me to take him to Ollies because he wanted to get me an "Easter gift". "I want to buy you the Archaeology Bible, Mom," he said. "Just because you are boycotting China...well, it doesn't mean I am going to do that too. I have my own money. I am going to buy it for you and me and David."

So... I drove him over there...and I didn't expect him to really do it...because he is pretty frugal about spending his own money. But, he found it, and whipped out 25 bucks from his wallet and asked if I would hold his place in line while he looked around. As I got to the cashier, Noah arrived with a small plastic toy and his wallet. "Almost everything is made in China, Mom," he said. "If you want to pay me back sometime, that will be okay." I just smiled...maybe next month...

Thank you, Noah. It has been a wonderful Easter. We spent time with family. We enjoyed Big Day at Living Waters Church, the church we call home...and my mom came with us! Noah says it has been the best Easter ever. I have to agree.

Early Morning Easter Musings

Happy Easter, Buona Pasqua, Happy Big Day/Resurrection Day!!

The sun is just rising and my little one is still asnooze. There wasn't much sleeping going on here last night. I had thought that he was just too excited about today...but it turned out that he watched "The Haunting" at Boys and Girls Club... So the Easter Bunny has done her thing, but there is no little one chasing eggs yet.

I am in desperate need of coffee. I had enough filtered water for two cups, but I put in coffee for eight, so I am waiting on the filter...

I've added some photos I shot yesterday with the camera I was given for Christmas. The camera is one of the best I've ever used, but it is part of an old life and was intended for other purposes...so I am giving it back today...which means it is getting added to the car with the other wierd stuff...

I have a new life. It is beautful. Photographs can't capture all of it...

So...here are some pictures of yesterday...it was a really hazy morning for those of you who don't already know that Mathews County didn't pay any heed to the weatherman...

You couldn't even see the marker at the mouth of the North River...but the haze eventually lifted, as it did on my life. Happy Resurrection Day!

Dear Hasbro

Dear Hasbro,
You should make your toys in the U.S.A. instead of China. I really like the Star Wars toys that you make, but now my mom won't buy anything made in China and so now I won't be able to get any more and I am a big fan of Star Wars. My mom says that Americans need jobs and that is why she won't buy anything made in China, and I am a big fan of Star Wars. If you don't bring your factories back to America, I won't be able to buy a single Star Wars Action figure or any figure you make. I won't get any action figures for my birthday, Christmas, or Easter because my mom is boycotting China. So please make Hasbro toys in the U.S.A. again.
Sincerely,
Noah B.

--A letter from my boy.