We like us some raspberry jam, so yesterday we hopped into the rig and headed off to the berry farm. Middle son grabbed the camera to try his hand at a little photojournalism (storytellin’ with your camera.)
And… because every story deserves a conclusion, here’s a picture of the little photojournalist himself
, eating the raspberry preserves that he worked so hard at documenting.
Yah, tonight – Friday night, my fella and I had a hot date… in the kitchen monitoring this:
10 lbs of pressure is 240º F. I told you it was HOT.
We were canning tuna fish. I’d ordered fifty pounds of it, and yesterday I got a call that it was on the boat and ready to be picked up.
When you have raw fish in your kitchen, you drop any plans you may have had and you roll up your sleeves. You might even reach for a nearby clothes pin to stick on your nose while you’re at it.
Next, you’ll want to get a couple of water bathes simmering in order to sterilize your jars and lids.
Don’t worry, by the time this whole process is over, you’ll get your own bath… you’ll want one, believe me. You’ll be up to your elbows in fish guts, unless you order your fish already boned and gutted etc… like we did. If that’s the case, then all you’ll have to do is cut the fish loins into jar length chunks like these handsome hands are doing in this picture.
Now, please excuse me while I go blow off a little steam.
Hmm, wonder if this is where that expression came from?!
Anyway, as I sit here typing, the tuna is in the kitchen being processed… I have to babysit it to make sure the pressure doesn’t get too high on the cooker, and as it rises I let off some steam to keep it near 10 lbs of pressure.
So, after you’ve cut your fish into chunks, you’ll want to grab yourself a sterilized jar and lid.
Geesh…just look at me there, clean things sure make me happy…the more sterile, the bigger the smile. You should see me when my car gets washed.
\Now that your jars are sterilized, they are ready to be filled, sealed, and placed in the pressure cooker. There are those masculine hands again! I’m so truly blessed to have this fella, I mean how many guys would be canning in the kitchen on a friday night, after working a ten hour day of his own!! No wonder he’s sacked out on the couch!
Once this is done, the babysitting begins, or snoozing if you’re a certain someone who sneaks away to the living room couch
…
all 100 minutes of it.
And here they are… ending up with 32 pints in all!
Candid Reflections 