Some Like It Hot

There were blackberries at the farmer's market today.  I couldn't remember how many pounds/quarts of blackberries it takes to make a batch of jelly, and I'd left my cell phone at the office and couldn't google it nor even call anybody who might have a box of Sure-Jell in the pantry.  So I guessed I needed 5 quarts.  Cost me $20, which is a bargain considering the misery I'd suffer by picking the little wild knobby ones rimming the field behind our house.

I came home and washed the berries.  Had to wash jars.  Had to climb up in the attic to get the Sauce Maker.  (Grabbed the pressure canner while I was up there - I'll be needing that soon.)  Had to wash the Sauce Maker, then figure out how its million pieces fit together.  It's all gaskets and wing nuts and augers and clamps, and everything has to fit together just right, or you'll squeeze juice all over your shoes while you're cranking it.  And you have to clamp it to the table really, really well - I know whereof I speak in this - or you'll send the whole business flying.  My kitchen table is round, and it's hard to clamp something to a round edge.  I had the idea of pulling the leaves apart and clamping it at the interior seam, but I couldn't get the table to come apart by myself. 

About that time, my daughter-in-law called and said they were coming over for a visit.  I told them that I was squeezing blackberries for jelly, but they could come anyway.  They were warned. 

I put my daughter-in-law to work stirring and skimming almost the minute they came through the door.  My 5 quarts of blackberries had yielded a big pitcher full of blackberry juice - enough for three cookings of jelly, 8 pints, altogether.  We ran just a tad short on juice for the third batch, and made up for it with orange liqueur.  (In retrospect, I wish we'd used chocolate liqueur, instead.  Maybe I should make one more trip to the farmer's market for one more batch of blackberries.)

After we finished the jelly, I started a batch of salsa.  We had to go to the garden to get peppers and onions.  The Thai pepper plant is loaded with tiny peppers.  They are hotter than firecrackers.  I picked a few of them for the salsa, and one to offer my son, who claims to have a thing for hot peppers.  I warned him it was hot.  He bit the end off his pepper and chewed.  One second later, he said, "Woo!"  Two seconds later, he said, "Woooooo!" and spat the pepper into the garbage can.  Heh.  At least I warned him.