1) Last night I began the pear canning. Canning pears sucks much more than canning peaches or tomatoes or anything else, for one reason: the peeling. Like apples, pears can only be peeled with a paring knife in the hand. A hand that starts to cramp and protest the excessive peeling after pear number 25 or so. Luckily, the MiL was kind enough to help me with some of the peeling last night, so my hand is not as crippled this morning as it might be. So! Seven quarts down, only 20 or so to go. Ow.
2) Every time I decide to use my Crock-Pot and am standing in the kitchen at 5:30 a.m. with the stove fan whirring and raw meat in the pan and onions that need chopping and various other things that should not be happening at 5:30 a.m. in a natural or easy world, I am reminded of the book Bridget Jones's Diary. Bridget's mother extols the use of the Crock-Pot to Bridget, enthusiastically telling her that it's so easy! All you have to do is brown a bit of meat or veg and stick it in the cooker before you go to work! And Bridget thinks to herself, doesn't my mother know that sometimes I have a hard time just not throwing up in the morning, much less messing around with raw meat?
Bridget Jones drinks significantly more than I do, so wanting to throw up is not so much my problem. But still. A chunk of bloody cow is not the best start to my day. I'll be glad I did it when five o'clock rolls around, though.
3) There are some immutable causes and effects that rule my life. Such as: It's raining today. Therefore, the kitchen floor is going to be really, really dirty today, and Cubby is going to be really, really antsy today. I suspect a field trip is in order.
I think I'll leave it at three. That's a lucky number, right? Also, I hear a screaming child. Peace out, poppets.
4 comments:
I've been making applesauce and agree with you on the paring knife-peeling hand cramp. Several years ago I had one of those table top core-peeler gizmo's. I swear I spent more time unclogging and resetting that thing. Sometimes ya just gotta suck it up.
I used a paring knife for many years, grew up peeling this way. I never used a peeler until I bought an OXO peeler on impulse. It really saves the hands and works much better than other peelers.
The biggest favor I've done myself in a long time was loading up the Crock-Pot the night before (while I was making dinner) and putting it in the fridge overnight.
When I pulled it out of the fridge and plugged it in in the morning - I felt like a fucking super hero.
Also, did not gag on the wobbly meat smell.
I never peel pears when I can them! Just cut in quarters, slice out the core, and that's it! Super fast and easy, and no one in my house seems to mind when it comes to eating them (and with two particular sons, this is significant). BUT--I'm using Bartlett pears...I can see how other varieties might need peeling.
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