Ingredients:
2 Cups Crushed Strawberries
4 Cups Sugar
¾ Cup Water
1 Box Pectin
5 (8 oz.)Containers Read the rest of this entry »
Posts tagged jam
Summer Update and What’s to Come!
Well after abandoning my four faithful followers for a few months I have decided its time to get back on the bandwagon. Thank you to those of you who have been checking back for my return to It Makes Cents to Me! Life has been so hectic and while I wouldn’t say its any easier now, things have slowed slightly. I also can’t pass up the opportunities about to be presented (summer canning and preserving) for material. Hopefully I can find the will and the energy, not to mention the brain power, needed to continue on.
As I said, life has been busy. Among other things, I put in a full-blown container garden that includes 8 tomato plants, 5 types of lettuce, 3 types of carrots, 5 types of potatoes, strawberries, zucchini , herbs and SO much more. With all the produce beginning to come in it’s looking to be a plentiful summer. We recently bought a freezer to store frozen summer produce, freezer jams, and a cow we’ll be purchasing (more on that later).
First up is jamming. I just bought some new 4 oz jars and freezer containers. I will be doing two types of jams. I’m doing strawberry freezer jam because, well, it’s amazing! And I may try a few others. Then I’ll also be doing no sugar added jams. I’m not sure which kinds yet but strawberry, peach, and blueberry are definitely on the list. I love these because they are lower in sugar since I am able to use Stevia and it ends up being more like a fruit puree that’s been preserved. I love plopping a spoonful into cream of wheat or using them in homemade frosting. I’m also planning to attempt grape jelly. I’m not nervous and I expect that everything will go well but I have never done it before. I read a blog a few months ago though that pointed out how much more cost-effective it is to make grape jelly versus buying it. I’ll give you a rundown of the price comparison when the time comes.
Getting Off to a Rough Start
Just as I was creating this blog our world came tumbling down… we have lots of faith in God to get us through, but smart financial decisions will be necessity for a while. I started to learn about couponing and frugal ways of life out of want. I was led by a desire to provide the most I could for my family. We’re small but we have family spread out all over the country, we’d like a house one day, and while loads of money will never be what makes us rich, having a little extra in the bank gives us a definite feeling of financial security. However, we found out 3 or so weeks ago Chris will be losing his job with the Air Force which now makes frugality a necessity.
It’s a long story, one that I’m just not going to bother re-hashing, but the Air Force announced it would be cutting back 3,700 Airmen and Chris just happened to be standing in front of the firing- no pun intended. God blessed me with a sense of calm from the beginning and while we’ve had our moments of trying to control our life, we are constantly reminded that if we want to get through this unscathed we’ve got to put it in God’s hands. The job search began yesterday and we’re casually looking at rentals and for a second car. Read the rest of this entry »
It Makes Cents to Me! 