Canned Goods
“We have too much” has never really been a problem. It just means that somebody needs to hunt a recipe. Salsas, jams, chow chow, and other homemade favorites made in small batches and meant to be shared, savored, and enjoyed.
We can’t keep our salsa on our own shelves, let alone any others. Everything here at The Junction is made in small batches. Dinah is in charge of most of the gardening and canning. She grows all the peppers, tomatoes and cabbages.
We make all kinds of jams and jellies, depending on the season. Strawberries typically come in first, then peaches. Peppers start coming in late summer and then come apples, pears and muscadines. We do our best not to allow anything to go to waste so sometimes we have to be really creative in how we use everything. Jams and jellies are often great options!
Several years ago, Dinah came across an old copper kettle for sale from a friend in Virginia. It was so black on the inside that you couldn’t even tell it was made of copper. After some vinegar, soda and brillo pads, the 20 gallon kettle was ready to use! We’ve been making apple butter the old fashioned way ever since. We build a fire in the fire pit and set the kettle up over it. We spend a couple days before peeling the 6 bushels of apples to fill it up. It usually takes the apples about 6 hours to cook down to the right consistency, but boy is it YUMMY when it comes off!