Sunday, July 24, 2016

Life is a bowl of cherries...

 I am so proud of my Bali Cherry tree.  She was loaded with fruit this year.  Enough for a pie.  
Isn't that beautiful?  Cherries and raspberries?  Every other day I wander around with my pail and pick what is ripe.

 Oh, there are some tomatoes and peas in the bottom of the bowl.  I started my picking path at the greenhouse.  I bet you were wondering about the monster cherry in the first photo.
 I figured out how to pit the cherries.  I gathered another bowl full after this one.  All from my one little tree.
 Then I gallivanted around and gathered a gob of gooseberries.  I just figured out last year that they grow on our property.  I am sill not certain what I will do with them.  Wine or jelly?  What is your vote?  You will see a few currants in there.  They didn't do very well this year.

 I have been getting a lot of peas and chamomile from the vegetable gardens.  I love using the chamomile in teas and as a hair detangler.  
A plethora of perfectly prepared peas.   They will be frozen and used in salads and pot pies.  My carrots failed miserably this year, as did my spinach.  
 I spent Sunday making raspberry jam and raspberry wine.  At least I think it is raspberry wine.  Due to poor or non-existent labeling it may be a mix of raspberry, rhubarb, and cherry wine.  I really need to improve my record keeping.    The raspberry jam was a cinch to make this year.  Usually I have to boil it forever before it is ready, but my new stove had it perfect in 1/4 the time.  I really had no idea a stove could make that big of a difference.  
What are you doing with your harvest?  What do you think I should do with my gooseberries? 
I hope you had as productive weekend as I did.  

8 comments:

  1. I don't think I've ever had a gooseberry! But I usually try to make some jelly from my raspberries, and I've been making a lot of pickles this summer from my cucumbers that seem to be on steroids!

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  2. I make tarts with t he gooseberries in a muffin pan.Sometimes I put a little cheesecake filling on the bottom. That is a lot of jam. My oldest has became the queen of jams and jellies and sells a lot at the farmers market.We put in 24 new red raspberries, but lost all, wondering if there was a chemical spill in the area from adjacent fields.Lots of wild ones around me also.

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  3. I always think that jars of freshly made preserves are so beautiful! I only make strawberry jam, but that raspberry looks wonderful. -Jenn

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  4. So fun to see you have some things to pick. It's pretty sad here so far, but I'm still hopeful. I have just a few more chokecherries to pick if the birds haven't gotten them. Jelly will be made with those. Your jam looks amazing!

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  5. What lovely cherries. Pie in the future?

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  6. The cherries are gorgeous, and look at those beautiful jars of jam! How good that will taste in the winter!

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  7. I just got peaches today at the Farmer's Market for jam...so I vote for Gooseberry Jam or Jelly!! Are they hard to grow and how do you think they'd do in hot North Carolina?

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  8. Nice fruit.... Helps making summer last a little longer....

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