Strawberry Picking 2017

Last year was the first time I'd ever gone strawberry picking here in New England and we loved it! There is nothing like fresh, ripe strawberries in the summer! I don't know how anyone eats the ones from the grocery store after tasting these beauties!

Like last year we went up to Parlee Farms for our berries. They have really great staff and they also seem to have larger fields with more fruit than some of the other farms I have seen and heard of.

I was a little surprised at how quickly Topher picked up the concept of choosing the bright red berries and putting them in the basket. He did eat a lot but I would say more than half of what he picked went into the basket and not in his tummy. I love getting to see the world through his eyes and watch him explore and experience things for the first time. I don't think he remembers our trip to the farm last summer but maybe next year he will recognize it when we go back.

We ended up having biscuits and strawberries for dinner because dad was working late and we just couldn't resist! With what we had left over after a few days of eating them plain I made a little batch of freezer jam so we can enjoy the bounty of summer all year long!

Food Storage

Does anyone else ever get really panicked about their food storage?

I have been thinking about getting it started and built up for a while now. When I was single I bought a gallon jug of water and some extra boxes of mac 'n' cheese. I think I had a box of Saltine crackers in the cupboard too. I was definitely going to survive the zombie apocalypse.

Since the Dr. and I got married I have been thinking about it a lot more and actually putting a little more effort to make it happen. I have a spreadsheet and I've been calculating, making lists and organizing. I feel like I have a pretty solid plan to store about 3 months worth of food. Once we have that perfected, I want to work on rotating through and maintaining that supply for a while and then move on to building up to a full year of food.

This hasn't been an easy process. One of the surprising things I have discovered is that many of our favorite items aren't available in our local Costco. Like re-fried beans. Seriously, when I asked the customer service desk if they carried them the guy didn't even know what I was talking about. Really!? They also don't carry our favorite pasta sauce and we can't find good enchilada sauce anywhere. We have resorted to some pretty extreme measures to acquire our favorite foods. When I was in Texas I went to Wal-Mart and bought 12 cans of El Pato enchilada sauce, packed it in my suitcase and flew it home with me. Boston, they just don't understand the beauty of good Mexican food.

Following a conversation with my boss about the government shut down I may have driven straight to Costco to pick up a few more items for the cupboards. I have packets of mashed potatoes stuffed into the drawers of our TV console and we are actually using the little cupboard above the fridge. Yep, that one that never has anything in it because it's too out of reach. There are a few boxes of long-term items from the church cannery sitting in the guest room waiting to be stuffed under a bed or into a hidden corner of the house. I promise I am not a hoarder, I am just trying to follow the prophet.

Don't mind me, I am just hoarding food.

We have also started making our own bread lately. There are a few things that have motivated me to begin doing this- the price, the taste and the ingredients. I can't believe the price of bread at the grocery store. Maybe I am just a cheap skate but why does it cost $6 for one loaf? I haven't been able to find a bread that I really enjoy eating either. I feel like Goldilocks- it's either too dry, too coarse, not substantial enough, it gets soggy by lunch time when you make a sandwich out of it. I am also unpleasantly surprised by how quickly it will mold, especially considering the amount of preservatives and added ingredients.

Hi, I am home made bread. Resistance is futile.

Coconut pineapple bread. We don't make sandwiches with this one but it's still tasty

I've found that homemade bread is just right. I can substitute sugar with honey, I can throw in some rolled oats, make it whole wheat or 50/50. I could roll cheese and ham inside and have ready made sandwiches for the week. I can make it just the way I want it. I usually spend a few minutes after church on Sunday throwing the ingredients in a mixer and waiting for it to rise while I take a nap. Then we spend our late afternoons smelling delicious bread puffing up and browning in the oven. Is there anything better than that?