Hello Fall!!!

The smell of apples and pumpkins have been wafting from my kitchen for the past few weeks, the weather is turning crisp, and the fog here in the Northwest is settling in! It is Fall once again! Now that we live in the country it seems we have an almost unlimited supply of apples! We have done just about everything that is decent to do to an apple! Apple butter, apple jelly, apple sauce, apple pie filling, you name it!!!

I have gotten a lot of requests for my apple butter recipe. So here it is...

‎4 quarts of applesauce
1 tablespoon vinegar (you can use apple cider vinegar but I don't like it, personal choice)
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp allspice
 2 tsp cinnamon
 4 cups sugar

cook on low in crock pot over night with lid propped up with wooded spoons. It's that easy!

You can can them in a water bath. 15 mins total processing time.

notes- if it looks runny in the morning, turn it up to high and take the lid off. it will thicken up in about an hour
          Place a towel under the crock pot to keep the counter clean from splatters

I hope you enjoy making apple butter as much as I do! Let me know how it goes!!

LDS.org - Ensign Article - “Train Up a Child”

LDS.org - Ensign Article - “Train Up a Child”

Bread and Butter Pickles in the microwave!?

I have to start by telling you that I can't stand any kind of pickle that is not a dilly one!! But these are by far the BEST pickles I have EVER TASTED!!!! Trust me on this... you have GOT to make them and see for yourselves!! My dear friend Sally gave me her brother's recipe for Bread and Butter refrigerator Pickles that you cook in the microwave. I was a little skeptical at first but once I made them I was hooked.

Fred's Bread and Butter Refrigerator Pickles

2 lbs Medium Pickling Cucumbers- end's trimmed and cut into spears
1 medium onion quartered and sliced thinly
1/2 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
2 teaspoons celery seeds
2 teaspoons ground turmeric (be careful with it.. it stains everything yellow, including counter tops!!)
1 teaspoon whole cloves
2 cups packed brown sugar
2 cups cider vinegar ( I prefer just plain vinegar)

Place cucumbers and onions in a 3 quart microwavable dish. sprinkle with salt and toss to coat, cover. Microwave on high 2 minutes or until cucumbers start to sweat.  Transfer to colander and rinse with cool water and let drain for about 5 minutes. Using same dish combine remaining ingredients. stir to dissolve sugar some. Add cucumbers and onions and stir to coat, cover. Microwave for 8 minutes or until liquid is hot but not quite boiling, remove and let stand until able to handle. Transfer pickles and liquid to a container, cover. refrigerate. keeps for several months (although I doubt they will last that long!)