Thursday, July 21, 2011

A Blazing Accomplishment





All my life, (well, as much of it as I can remember) I've tasted my mother's delicious applesauce.


When I got married, some applesauce came with us, and soon I started making my own.


It's a lot of work. Don't be fooled. It's an all day kinda thing.


When my sister still lived close, we would do our applesauce together (2 1/2 bushels each) and it LITERALLY took at least 8 hours to get it all done.


I refer to the stuff as liquid gold. It's that worth it.


So, the other day, while I was minding my own business, I got THE CALL.


Each spring I put my name on a list at a local orchard for Transparent apples. Once they are in, they call me, and you GO the minute they call, or someone else might get your apples.


They were 3 weeks late in ripening this year, and of course this week was crazy anyway, but I knew I needed to get my applesauce made before fair starts tomorrow.


I just made it.


Oh, and did I mention, when I started yesterday morning at 6:30 am, that our air conditioner decided to quit, with a predicted 95 degrees as the high? Oh yeah, baby, I couldn't believe it myself.


Of all days....


With these babies waiting for me...
I started working anyway, and the repair man showed up about 12:30. The temperature in the house was already 80 degrees. It was warm, and we had every possible fan we own downstairs.


The apples cooked on the stove


and deliciousness was made, all the while we're sweating like bullets!


I had some great helpers


and some resistance from the Queen herself.
The fan was aiming for the table, and once she found her "spot" she wouldn't budge.


I finished about 2:30pm. A long day. The air came on about that time too, and it took the rest of the night to cool the house down.


Needless to say, we spent the evening hours at my uncle's pool, after we grilled him supper.


63 containers of applesauce later, I'm a happy woman!


4 comments:

  1. Wow, that is a long day. Glad you finally got your air fixed in time for a good nights sleep. You're garden sounds great, I need to expand mine this winter for next year so I can have some of the goodness you have growing. Fried green tomatoes? They'll be ready before you know it...and all at once don't you know ; ). Hugs-Carrie

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  2. I bet that applesauce will taste wonderful this winter when we're all dreaming of fresh fruit.

    I made applesauce in my crockpot last fall and was really please with the results - yep I took the lazy way out!

    Thanks for the recommendation on 'The Peach Keeper'. I picked it up at the library on Tuesday and ended up reading it straight through. Terrific book!

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  3. You are a brave woman! Homemade applesauce sounds wonderful. How soon should I expect mine?

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