LADIES CRAFT DAYS

On August 3 we gathered at Cindy's to work on crafts, eat and visit.

Again this month Brianna worked on her painting.

Cindy was working on finishing up some gowns for Sewing For Babies.

Lori worked on a project on her computer and Aunt Karen made some more fleece blankets.

Leanne worked on her embroidery and I worked on the same afghan I have been working on FOREVER!

THANKS CINDY FOR OPENING YOUR HOME TO US AGAIN!!

Fresh Homemade Salsa for Canning

After one of our trips to Market on the  Move, we had a lot of tomatoes and peppers, so I decided to make a batch of salsa. I found the recipe on www.food.com,
Ingredients:
30 -40 tomatoes

2 lbs onions (1/2 yellow, 1/2 red, I usually add 1-2 additional onions)

5 assorted red bell peppers, green bell peppers or 5 yellow bell peppers

3 -4 chili peppers

2 -3 jalapeno peppers or 2 -3 other hot peppers like Serrano peppers, habanera peppers etc (I used Serranos, only because Habaneras were almost $8 per pound)
1 cup lemon juice                                           

2 teaspoons garlic powder

3 tablespoons salt

4 teaspoons pepper

5 tablespoons chopped cilantro, to taste

 Directions:

1. Wash all jars, lids etc in the dishwasher.
2. Always wear gloves while preparing salsa! (especially if you wear contact lenses)
3. Prepare tomatoes by soaking tomatoes in boiling water for 2-3 minutes to split and loosen skins. Peel and chop all tomatoes, drain excess juices off in a strainer or colander before adding to extra large bowl. (I half or quarter the tomatoes, then process briefly in a food processor before draining off juices, I like the tomatoes kind of chunky).
4. Dice or cube all onions and peppers into the same bowl. Add chopped cilantro. (I do all the onions, peppers and cilantro in a food processor - I keep them kind of chunky also).
5. Once all the veggies are in the bowl, stir in the lemon juice, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

1. 6. Taste to see if it is as hot as you would like it - if not add 1-2 more hot peppers tasting after each addition. Keep in mind as it sits for a while it will get a little bit hotter.
2. 7.  Fill jars leaving about 3/4 inch at the top. Wipe off tops of the jars before putting lids on. Screw lids tight then turn back about 1/4 turn.
3. 8.   Process in steam canner (not pressure cooker / steamer) or boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
4. 9.   Cool jars.
5. 10.  Before storing, test each jar to be sure it has sealed by pressing down on lid, it should not move.

 

CHEDDAR APPLE COBBLER

I don't bake very often, but I saw this recipe and had to try it.

1 can (21 ounces) apple pie filling

1 cup Flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup Sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1/3 cup butter or margarine (melted)

1/4 cup milk, plus more if needed



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 

Pour pie filling into an 8x8 glass pan; set aside.

 

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, salt and cheese. Stir in the melted butter and milk. If the mixture is too dry, add a little more milk.

 

Spread mixture over pie filling and spread evenly over the top. Bake 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes 6-8 servings.

 

CRYSTAL GARDENS WARD SUPER SATURDAY 7/20/2013

Saturday we had our annual Super Saturday, "Christmas in July". I chose only 1 project this year, even though there were a lot of cute ideas.
The 1st step was painting the faces. While they were drying we put dots on our carolers,

Larri Miller was the teacher for this project.

After the paint dried we added the faces and hair.

Last we added them to the boards with decorations & musical notes. It was a fun project.

Here are the other projects that were offered.

4th of July

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA !!!

MARKET ON THE MOVE

From October to May The 3000 Club distributes produce at various locations in the Valley. For $10 you can get up to 60 pounds of produce. Its not always the freshest of products, but they are good for sauces and salsa and other things.

I look forward to the fall events.

HOME CANNING-- STRAWBERRY JAM

In March, I heard about a smoking deal on strawberries at a fruit stand in the east valley. I decided I wanted to try and make some strawberry jam, even though I had never made it before. My Mom was a great canner and I watched and helped growing up, but helping as a teen isn't the same as going solo.
As luck would have it my friend Tammy teaches canning at Honeyville Farms in Chandler, AZ., and that very week she taught how to make Jam.

I stopped by on the way home and got strawberries, $6 for a flat of 8 boxes, and then went home to make jam.

I used a recipe from http://www.freshpreserving.com/recipe.aspx?r=265 for     
Traditional Strawberry Jam
You will need:5 cups crushed strawberries (about 5 lbs)
1/4 cup lemon juice
6 TBSP real fruit pectin (or an envelope of sure gel)
7 cups granulated sugar
8 (8oz) 1/2 pint glass jars with lids and bands

I used the fruit processor to crush the strawberries so it was a little less chunky than I envisioned.

 1.) PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.
2.) COMBINE strawberries and lemon juice in a 6- or 8-quart saucepan. Gradually stir in pectin. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil that can not be stirred down, over high heat, stirring constantly.
3.) ADD entire measure of sugar, stirring to dissolve. Return mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary. *boil 1 minute only, any longer and you will either have cement or lots of ice cream topping.
4.) LADLE hot jam into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch head space. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.
5.) PROCESS in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

I made 31 1/2 pints and I was exhausted.

But the jam tastes great and its a perfect consistency.

 

FAMILY HISTORY FRIDAY

A few weeks ago we decided we needed to start making more of an effort to break down our genealogy brick wall. Last night we gathered at Lori and Tom's with our sledgehammers to get started.

Imagine a large dining room table covered with this kind of sledgehammers of all sizes.
We had a good turnout, 9 family members and the Family History Specialist from Lori's ward, Sister Beeson. We worked on trying to find new information, clean up incorrect information that had been entered into www.Familysearch.org,  and learn about new Family History programs available. We ordered pizza for supper and had fruit salad, veggies from Lori's garden, chips, salsa and other goodies.
I forgot to take pictures until after Aunt Karen, Uncle Max, Cindy and Rich had all left.

Sister Beeson, Rebecca, Ben, Tom and Lori

 

THANKS LORI & TOM FOR ALLOWING US TO COME OVER AND WORK!!

MEMORIAL DAY AT STEVE AND PAM'S

 

On Memorial Day some of us gathered at Steve and Pam's house for a cookout and Pool Party.
We started with hot dogs and hamburgers, fruit, chips and corn on the cob.

 

After everyone had eaten, those who wanted to went into the pool.

THANK YOU STEVE AND PAM FOR INVITING US OVER TO CELEBRATE MEMORIAL DAY !!