Monday, July 19, 2010

Frugal summer work

Summer is not my favorite season, although I enjoy the fresh vegetables and fruits that it offers. That means it's time to can and dehydrate and freeze and put up what we can for those cold days ahead. I bought a LOT of canning jars from my sister and brother in law last year at a very frugal price, so I won't worry about that.

There are canning lids and rings left from last year and the little dehydrator is still working. I will use the car again this year to dehydrate, too, but I still want a solar dehydrator. One of these days...

Anyway, there are gaps and empty spots in my pantry now, just waiting to be filled with wonderful and brightly colored food. It's satisfying to take the filled jars from the canner and line them up to cool. It makes me feel snug and frugal when they're all stored in the pantry. It makes me ready for winter when it's all done.

Isn't that the way life is supposed to be? I think so.

2 comments:

  1. I am interested in how you use the car to dehydrate? Is this for fruit, veggies, meats? I have a dehydrator that I use to make beef jerky, but I never thought about my car.

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  2. I don't use it for meat, but it works fine for fruit and vegetables. If your car is parked in the sun, it will get hot enough to dry food. I use a mesh tray with a cloth over it and put the food on that. I suspect that any kind of flat container would work as long as it would fit in you car.

    I put the tray on the rear deck and have also used a smaller tray propped over the steering wheel. You just need to put it where it's the hottest, and thar's where the sun shines in.

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