Saturday, April 16, 2011

Strawberry Fields Forever

The kids and I had the opportunity to go to a local berry farm yesterday.  We came home with 16 pounds of strawberries all picked in under 30 minutes!  At $2.00 a pound, I felt it was a bargain, not too mention completely delicious! 

Once home, we sorted through the berries picking the ripest ones to either eat immediately or make into jam.  I've only made jam once, many years ago, and the friend who came to make it with me provided all of the needed supplies.

I began investigating how, exactly, to properly can and became increasingly more anxious by the moment regarding the amount of work involved, not to mention the expense in purchasing the utensils, pots, and other odds and ends to perform the task correctly.

Another friend of mine mentioned "freezer jam".  I have never heard of such a thing so I spent a little time investigating on the internet.  It seemed simple enough, but in my mind I was fairly certain that the jam would not be as good as a traditional jam since the work involved in preparing freezer jam was almost nothing.

I was dead wrong.  I found a recipe on Pinch My Salt and trusted that things would turn out ok.  Not only did the jam come out beautifully, the little boys and I had a wonderful afternoon together.
I haven't tasted berries this heavenly since I was a child.
I love my helpers!
Chefs Fish and Boo
Best Friends
"Can I stir, Mommy?"
Our first batch of Strawberry Freezer Jam!
Even if the jam hadn't come out well, this was an afternoon of memories I hope to never forget.

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