Thrifty Thursdays 39


It’s the first Thursday of the month over to you Missy ….

As fall quickly approaches here in the US, my thoughts are quickly turning towards those wonderful flavors fresh in fall. If you have enough space to plant a garden, hopefully you did, and can harvest some of those wonderful flavors. If not, a quick trip to a local orchard or a farmers market can land you the coveted prizes of pumpkins and apples during this time of year. The farmers market is probably your cheaper option, but if you want it to be a fun experience as well, then a trip to the orchard or pumpkin patch is in order!

enchanting times photography Tassie Man with Jacket

If possibly, you should can or freeze some of those wonderful treats to enjoy them all year long! Making apple sauce, apple butter and apple pie filling is quite simple. Canning pumpkin isn’t too hard either.

I froze my apple sauce last year, but the year before that I canned it. It is really so simple! I happen to use the Pioneer woman’s recipe: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/homemade-applesauce/ except, I just use water for the liquid part. It is really easy!

I first fell in love with apple butter in Indiana. Between this little restaurant in Coldwater, Michigan (Clay’s Family restaurant) and Shipshewana, Indiana, my will power was no match for such delciousness! I use this recipe as a base, and then fix it up to how I want it.. meaning, by the time, I’m done… it really doesn’t look like the same recipe. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/slow-cooker-apple-butter-recipe-recipe.html I’m not picky about the type of apple, and I typically don’t use allspice. Sometimes I don’t use the clove either. Make it how you like the taste, and go from there

Apple pie filling will be a first for me this year! This is the recipe I will likely be using after a trip to the orchard! http://www.blessingsoverflowing.com/canned-apple-pie-filling-recipe/ I hope it tastes as good as it looks and sounds!

Pumpkin, I suppose you could buy from the store cheap enough, but there is something satisfying about growing it, and canning it yourself. One thing to note… do not puree your pumpkin if you are canning it, only if you are freezing it. If you want to can your pumpkin, this is a good recipe! http://www.kitchennostalgia.com/canning_and_preserving/canned-pumpkins.html

You can then use your pumpkin to make pies, cookies, or some other yummy recipe!

Happy canning! … ps. If you have room to grow a garden, now is the time to start looking at seed catalog sites to request next years catalog. One of my favorites is Baker Creek http://www.rareseeds.com/request-catalog/ I’ll talk more about growing your own garden in a future blog!

 

Missy M. is a single mom of two, bargain hunter and self sufficiency advocate.

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