The Pickiness has Passed

Eric and I are foodies. This is really a interesting thing for me to say considering I married one of the pickiest eaters. We have been married 27 years.  The first half of those years I spent trying to convince Eric and our sons to try different foods.  Probably the most difficult thing about raising our five sons was their pickiness with food and them being hungry growing boys.  But I can honestly say that I am thankful I persevered with cooking and they all seem to enjoy healthy food now.

I wish I could be a junk food junkie and be healthy.  But we have some different healthy issues in our family... Sjogren's Syndrome, gluten intolerance, wheat allergy, and some seem to be intolerant to milk.... so over the years we started searching for how to eat and be healthy.  Basically we follow Dr. Mercola, a paleo-type diet, Dr. Wahl out of Iowa City, we juice, we are firm believers in being meat eaters, and we are opposed to GMO's and try to avoid high fructose corn syrup...hard to always follow but we try every day.

We are busy people.  So we decided a few years back to go to our Farmer's Market for our produce and not plant our own garden.  Well, this year we decided to put in four tomato plants, three jalapeno plants, some kale, and my usual herbs.

We spent our summer traveling, gardening, and canning. I have always canned by myself.  But this summer Eric helped and even did some on his own.  Spring was slow to start so everything has been pushed back.  From those four tomato plants we have 30 quarts of tomatoes canned, plus tomato juice, and 24 cups of spaghetti sauce.  We froze probably 75 jalapenos and processed our fresh basil into ready to use herbal ice cubes.  Farmers Market gave us potatoes for hash browns, beets, onions, and some wonderful yellow tomatoes. I made strawberry margarita jam and blueberry basil white wine vinegar.  And at the beginning of September we decided to plant one hill of fall pickling cucumbers.  We have had success and have put up thirteen pints of bread and butter pickles.  I am hoping to make some dill pickles...if not I'll make some dill green tomatoes because my four silly plants are still producing in October. We still have plans to make my barbeque sauce as we used the last jar this summer. 

Things we know:
1) I love to cook
2) I hate doing dishes
3) We all feel better if we try to eat healthy
4) If I could, I would eat chips and cheese for dinner
5) My kids and husband all know my favorite meal for dinner is chips and cheese

But we are so thankful for the wonderful things we have stored up for this coming winter. I'll post pictures and recipes as I cook. So stay tuned!

My step by step for canning tomatoes..our tomato plants are still green and producing

Bread and Butter pickles...yum

My fifth batch of tomatoes picked and our herbs moved inside for winter...rosemary, basil, mint... loving our beach and palm to remind us of our great summer

Our Farmer's Market onions hanging neatly in panty hose for the winter...this really works

Today's accomplishment...one huge pot of spaghetti sauce made from my fifth batch of tomatoes.

Eric and I bought this spoon on one of our travels this summer at the Amish store in Lamoni

I'm going to sleep feeling like Laura Ingalls Wilder... or Almanzo in Farmer Boy.  We are increasing our garden size next summer. 

So thankful the pickiness has passed. 

God Bless,

Veggie Girl