Fall Is In The Air, And In My Kitchen As Well

I can not believe we are already in August. It is funny how quick the weather changes with the months. July was a very hot month here. ( it always is warmer in July but never that hot) we had some record breaking temps this summer.  I am sad to see the heat gone. I love the heat and we don't get very much of it that it felt nice.

August is turning out to be still nice with the cooler temps in the low to mid 20's. but we have had so much rain, and it seems to rain every couple of days making it hard to finish up the hay, and enjoy the rest of summer before Fall arrives. 

It is not going to be to long before that happens as the signs are already all around us. The big one beginning  preparation! 

We have been busy making jams and jellies for the seasons ahead. 

We went through rhurbarb season, with making wonderful goodies. Jams,  stewed rhurbarb, juice, deserts for the freezer, and frozen rhurbarb for the long winter months ahead.

Next it was strawberry season. Jams, deserts for the freezers along with bags of berries for later use.

Then we were able to get enough Raspberries to make more jam, and make a couple of our favourite deserts, like pie, Danishes, and a batch of raspberry muffins.

We are still picking the raspberries. 

The girls picked buckets of hazelnuts and put them away in the dark in burlap bags to dry. We will do them up in bags for the freezer for those lazy days of winter ahead to make all sorts of goodies as well.

We have made a couple batches of Queen Anne's Lace jelly ( Jaynes favourite) and hope to get enough Queen Anne's lace picked next week for one more batch. 

We have started this past week to pick peas from the garden. We have enjoyed fresh peas in a couple of our suppers and will shell more today to blanch and freeze. 

Next will be blueberries, cherries, plums, and apples. I love what Mother Nature has given us for free. 

And in the middle our very own garden harvests, and all the canning and blanching and pickling that goes along with it. 

The herbs will be picked and dried. The beef and pork will be butchered. The pork fat rendered for lard, and  Partridge hunting season will begin. Hopefully we will be blessed with enough for another winter. 

Sunday afternoon when we get back fom the trailer we are doing up our meat birds, and turkeys.Big job but it needs to get done. 

These will cover a big dent in one of the freezers. 

And all through making the jams, jellies, deserts, picking the havrests, the guys have been slowly bring in fire wood and fishing for trout for the freezer for the upcoming cold seasons. 

Yes....Fall is sure in the air.....