Canning - July 7, 2020

I canned four pints of green beans yesterday, and saved about another pint to cook for supper.

The first canning of the season is always a bit dis-combobulated at my house.  From the time of the last year's canning, my equipment gets scattered.  Where is my jar-getter (you know, the thing with handles that you use to lift hot jars out of the canner)?  Where are my rings and lids?  Where are the jars?  It was especially disorganized this year, for I have not canned in about two years.

I had meant to make pickles yesterday, too, but forgot to put the cucumbers to soak in lime overnight.  I meant to soak them last night, but forgot that, too.  My intention is to slice and soak them today and can them tonight.  We'll see if that happens.

It appears that in the last few years, soaking the cucumbers in lime is frowned upon by the experts.  I don't know why.  The experts now recommend using some other kind of powder (the kind I have is called "Pickle Fresh," I think) that you add to each jar.  That stuff, while less troublesome to use, does not crisp a pickle like the lime does.

Supper sure was good:  meat loaf, green beans, mashed potatoes, sliced tomatoes, and cucumbers and onions soaked in vinegar overnight.  Mmmmmmm!

Nanny is at the hospital today, finally getting the heart valve replacement that should have happened months ago.  She was scared to have it done and kept putting it off.  Then, when she finally relented to the procedure, she came down with shingles a day or two before surgery day, and had to put it off for more than a month.  I felt so sorry for her yesterday when she came up here to leave a bag of her "treasures" for us to distribute to family members in case she doesn't make it through the surgery.  Poor thing; she was a nervous wreck.  Hopefully, by the time I finish this post, the procedure will be over and she can be on the road to feeling better.