The last two weeks have been a blur of finishing up the garden, building compost, canning, celebrating and all sorts of other things. I am happy to say that I am finished with canning for the year (and please don't tempt me into doing any more by offering me any produce - I never can so no). Last week I made antipasto and decided that would be it for the year - no more. Enough.
And so, here is my "cupboard under the stairs" in this house, all done for the year. I love having a coldroom with shelves to line up all the things I've put by for the year. We've definitely got enough tomatoes between the canned ones and the passata as well as the stewed ones in the freezer. And, I think there is plenty of everything else as well. This year we have my regular peach garlic salsa and hot salsa as well as an extra special batch of what I'm calling Johnny Cash salsa for my husband. The floor of the coldroom is mostly filled with boxes full of potatoes (the Kennebecs did great -they're huge!- as did the Sieglinde potatoes) and soon it will be cold enough that I'll have to move the onions and the rest of the squash in as well.
Bliss to be done and feeling all tucked up for the wintertime.
8 comments:
So do your canning jars wear round glasses, and have lightning-shaped scars on their foreheads? (Cupboard Under The Stairs... uh, never mind.)
The antipasto looks so yummy... now I want some.
Your canning closet is *so* gorgeous, Heather. This -- this! -- is what I dream about! Congrats on your hard work, and relish your bounty.
nothing makes me feel more content and secure ( okay and maybe exhausted!) than row after row of great food I grew and processed myself. Well done!
hello heather,
what a wonderful pantry,filled with
all the good things from the summer.
it's really a dream,
have a nice week,
blessings regina
What a wonderful pantry! Like busy squirrels. I don't have a cold area except part of an unfinished basement - do you think that would be good for storing potatoes and onions and apples? What about bugs? How to store exactly? In corrugated boxes with newspaper between or large baskets with newspapers in between the layers? Right now, I tend not to buy too many potatoes because they don't last long in my kitchen area. Any tips would be helpful. Thanks.
What a beautiful sight, all that food ready and waiting, I would love to have a room full of food - so comforting. xxBrenda
wow! that's amazing! it must make you feel so happy and content everytime you open that door! yum! i'm sorry we missed out on this years antipasto making...i have yet to learn how to make it:-)
Hi Ellen,
I've always stored my potatoes in a cardboard box (usually the kind that produce comes in and they have some holes in the side) in the coldroom. They seem to do well as long as they are in a dark dry place. I don't store my onions near my potatotes because I've heard that it isn't a good idea to do so (old wives tale?). My apples I always store in the fridge because we love crisp fresh tasting apples. Luckliy for me I live in an apple growing region so once I run out of the ones we just picked (organic Galas for 50 cents a pound) then I can get them at the fruit co-op where they store them at the proper temperature to maintain freshness. I hopefully won't need to go there until sometime in February.
Hope that helps a bit.
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