Sense of accomplishment

I am not nearly as domestic as I want to be. I have always wished I had that: gotta get it cleaned up/done/put away, type attitude. But I don't. The neat freak-house obsessed genes skipped me. big time!

but I still try.  this month I have wanted to can tomatoes. I found out a couple of years ago that canning is very hard and tiring, but satisfying. I really enjoyed it. And I love making fresh spaghetti sauce, or chili or just anything that calls for tomatoes, with my jarred batch.  I know exactly what went into the jar, and that just helps make everything so much tastier!

I realize that I am not saving ANY money by doing this, nor am I breaking even. But the knowledge that I did it, and it's all fresh makes the non-cost effectiveness worth it. I had hoped that I would be canning my very own garden grown tomatoes this year, but alas, a super gardener I am not.  My cherry and grape tomatoes have done extremely well, but the big ones haven't really gotten there. Now that I know what I am dong though, I have high hopes for next summer.   I bought tomatoes from Meredith again this year.  I like knowing that they are picked fresh and not sprayed w/chemicals. It was pricey at $25.00 a bushel, but prices are going up everywhere. That is why it is no longer cost efficient to can tomatoes unless you grow them yourselves.  but i just couldn't get the process out of my mind.

I have canned this weekend:  Twelve 1/2 pints of Tomato sauce, Twelve 4 ounce jars of Tomato Paste, and Twelve quarts of Tomatoes with Garlic in them. As I type this, the last 6 jars of tomatoes are boiling in the water canner. I have enough tomatoes left to do about 5 more jars. but I am so worn out from this process, that I will wait for a day or two before tackling them. My kitchen looks like a Giant Killer Tomato attacked. The shirt I have worn for 3 days is covered in tomato. Sauce, Juice, seeds, goo.

I am so excited about it though. I feel very accomplished. So proud of me. I hope to do this again next year with my own tomatoes, but if they don't work out, I don't know if I will do this again.

Cost of jars, lids, and tomatoes plus time = one slightly broke, seriously sore Denise.