Central Harvest Feed

Mike, Chuck, Dawn and I were invited to drive three hours north and east of Fairbanks to the small "road system" village of Central for a vegetable harvest feed.  The drive was filled with beautiful scenery and the feed was filled with yummy vegetables. 

Mike even joined in on a community activity of raising a ham radio antennae by driving an ATV.  The ATV was attached to the antennae by guide wires.  Other men in the community were pulling the antennae with ropes while one man was on a tractor pushing it up.  Mike, showing his superb backing up skills, slowly backed the ATV pulling the antennae into place!

Flowers were also in abundance, which you will see at the end of the post!

Nothing but food, fun and fellowship abounded on this adventurous trip to Central, Alaska!

Canning Sunday!

Have you ever heard the phrase, "A woman's place is in the kitchen."?  Well, if you have, I brought that phrase to life today.  I spent from 9:30 this morning to 7:00 tonight in the kitchen preparing fruits and vegetables for preservation, preparing jars, and canning 30 jars of different fun foods that Mike and I will enjoy this winter. 

However, my work is not done!  This week, I still need to can 16 pounds of tomatoes.  At least I can say that I'm not barefoot and pregnant while taking my place in the kitchen!

 High Bush Cranberries just waiting to be squashed with a potato masher!

 8 Jars: Spiced High Bush Cranberry Jelly 

(cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves and a dash of vanilla)

6 Jars: My Kickin' Salsa with plenty of hot peppers (seeds, too),

 red onion, green peppers, cumin, fresh garlic cloves, cilantro and lime juice!

 6 Jars: Zucchini Relish (zucchini, hot peppers, red onion,  sweet peppers, 

cider vinegar, sugar, tumeric, celery seeds, mustard seeds, garlic)

9 Jars: Spicy Dill Pickles 

(pickling cucumbers, a secret blend of spices, jalapenos and garlic cloves)