Cherry Pie Filling

My feet are telling me that I stood on them too long today.  As I sit down to rest though I am content as I savor the smell of a cherry pie baking in the oven.   I am also looking at jars of cherry pie filling sitting on the table - my first attempt.  They look beautiful and hopefully will taste as good as they look.  One more “pop” to hear, a favorite sound of mine that only follows the work of canning.  

Sometimes I wonder if these projects are a waste of time. I can go to the store and buy pies already made so easily.  Yet for me, there is something so satisfying about making things in my home.   Not everyone likes to putter around in the kitchen as much as I do.  My family and friends either enjoy this labor of love or they are very kind, but either way their expressed appreciation reinforces my kitchen adventures.  

Not everything coming from my kitchen is successful.  I once made some biscuits that were so hard even the dog would not eat them!  This time around that last “pop” never came, so I placed the contents in a container and tucked it in the freezer.  There is a learning curve to the world of canning.  Thank goodness for our local extension offices and the wonderful resources they have to share! 

One unsealed jar will not discourage me.  I will continue building my winter supply of food.  It helps me feel safe to have things prepared ahead of time especially with talk of food shortages I am hearing lately.  Mostly though, I look forward to remembering these warm weather adventures when the winter winds are blowing.  

As I finish writing these thoughts, I am looking at a winter project, the quilt I set aside when the weather got too warm to work on it.  Did I mention that I started it 32 years ago?  That is a story for another time.  When I work on my winter projects I will remember what it felt like to stand most of the day in the kitchen canning cherry pie filling and I will smile.