Salsa (Revisited)

I originally posted this recipe (tutorial) back in 2009 and thought it was time to revisit it. June is our big spring garden harvest. Depending on the size of our garden I usually spend about every other day to about once a week canning tomato soup, salsa or spaghetti sauce. 

Since our kitchen remodel coincided with canning season this year, my mom graciously let me use her kitchen for most this year's canning! Canning with family is much more fun! 

But now my kitchen is mostly done, and I broke it in making salsa!

Tomatoes never looked so good as they do in new sinks!

Now onto the salsa...

Canning Spaghetti Sauce (Large Recipe)

Spaghetti Sauce

10 cup finely chopped onion

20 cloves garlic, minced

20 tbs cooking oil

20 lbs tomatoes, peeled and cup up

or 10 28 oz can of tomatoes

10 6 ounce can tomato paste

20 tsp instant beef bouillon granules

10 tsp dried oregano, crushed

5 tsp dried basil, crushed

10 tsp sugar

5 tsp salt

10 tsp pepper

10 cup water

10 large bay leaf

1. Prepare tomatoes- scald and peel.

2. In a very large saucepan (the one I use is 16qts) saute the onion and garlic in oil

3. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, bouillon granules, oregano, basil, bay leaf, salt, pepper and stir in water.

4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 2 hours. (Until you are happy with the consistency) Stirring occasionally.

5. At about this time I put my jars in the dishwasher to clean and sanitize them.
You'll need about 25 quarts for this recipe.

6. Remove Bay leaves and simmer for 15-30 more minutes.

7. Prep the lids by putting them in hot (but not boiling water) to activate the adhesive on the back.
Lay a towel down on your counter top, line up your squeaky clean bottles on the towel and get ready to fill them.

8. Pour your sauce into the jars
9. Add 1 tbs lemon juice or vinegar to pints jars
or 2 tbs lemon juice or vinegar to quarts jars

10. Wipe off the tops with a clean rag.
This will ensure a tight seal, also its a good time to check your jars for cracks.

11. Seal the jars. Put your jars on top of the rack, making sure none of them are touching. Place the big canning lid on top of your base. When you see steam coming out the little hole on the side of the lid, set your timer for 15 minutes.
12. After 15 minutes, carefully remove the processed bottles from the rack.
You should hear popping noises when your cans are fully sealed!

Once your bottles have cooled label them with the year and what is inside!

Happy canning!

100 Chapter Books for Kids

According to this website, these are the best 100 children's chapter books. I've heard of most, some not at all, and I've read plenty myself. I'm happy to be able to say we've read a lot of them as a family. I've decided to post this list here for our family, so we can cross them off as we read. We hope to read at least one a week this summer!

Charlotte’s Web

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

A Wrinkle In Time

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

The Phantom Tollbooth

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Holes

The Giver

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

The Hobbit

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Anne of Green Gables

The Mysterious Benedict Society

The Tale of Despereaux

The Velveteen Rabbit

Hatchet

The Little Prince

Because of Winn-Dixie

Alice in Wonderland

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

Tuck Everlasting

Bridge to Terabithia

Where The Red Fern Grows

Winnie the Pooh

James and the Giant Peach

Artemis Fowl

Island of the Blue Dolphins

The Golden Compass

The Bad Beginning

Number The Stars

Harriet the Spy

Maniac Magee

Coraline

The Lightning Thief

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

Black Beauty

Julie of the Wolves

Ella Enchanted

Shiloh

The Graveyard Book

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Matilda

Little House on the Prairie

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Little Women

Wonderstruck

The Lost Hero

Sideways Stories From Wayside School

The Neverending Story

The Wind in the Willows

Fablehaven

Stone Fox

Inkheart

The Witch of Blackbird Pond

The Watsons Go To Birmingham, 1963

The Westing Game

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Roll Of Thunder, Hear My Cry

When You Reach Me

The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz

Bud Not Buddy

Ramona The Pest

The Penderwicks

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Frindle

The BFG

Stuart Little

Sarah, Plain and Tall

The Boxcar Children

The Secret of the Old Clock

A Long Way From Chicago

The Book of Three

Walk Two Moons

Redwall

The Borrowers

The Witches

The Thief Lord

The Maze of Bones

My Side of the Mountain

City of Ember

Judy Moody

Mary Poppins

Love That Dog

Out of the Dust

Johnny Tremain

Where the Mountains Meet the Moon

Peter Pan

The View From Saturday

Beezus and Ramona

Caddie Woodlawn

The Indian in the Cupboard

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The Little White Horse

Pippi Longstocking

Fantastic Mr. Fox:

Kitchen SEMI-Reveal!

Things are starting to wrap up on our kitchen remodel!!

I can't believe we went almost a month with no sink and a whole week without a washer and dryer and stove! But its been well worth the wait.

Here are a couple BEFORE shots:

and a couple of my cute boys, right after the tile was installed!

We still have some finish work that needs to be done: light switch covers to update, install baseboard, a couple cabinet doors need to be changed (due to a simple oversight), the window needs to be reframed, RO installed, and I need to decide on a backsplash.. I'm sure this will be an ongoing project for life, but its mostly done!!

AFTER

Stainless under-mount sink and granite counter tops

I'm dreaming of a new stove.. someday!

The dining and hutch area. (Dreaming of a new fridge too!)

I loooooove the hutch! Its definitely the cherry on top of the remodel!

The beautiful floors

Up close of the countertop

Having the tile run throughout the whole back of the house (pantry and mud area), along with the kitchen helps the space look much larger! I'm loving everything!!!

More AFTER pictures to come :)