And the Food Preservation Begins...

Have you ever wondered what 7.25 lbs of freshly picked blueberries looked like?

Aren't the bea-u-ti-ful? We picked these at a u-pick farm just south of Iowa City and paid $3 a pound. I'm slowly working on getting these frozen. Call me crazy, but I'm thinking about getting some more. After all, I have a deep freeze to fill. So if any of you would be interested in a blueberry picking buddy, let me know.

I've also been working on some cherries from Ben's parents' home and some from the home of one of his choir members. The cherry crop wasn't as good as last year, so I also froze some bing cherries from the store (mostly because I want to make this black forest cheesecake for my birthday in January). I had a few cherries that couldn't be frozen whole, so I combined them with some bing cherries to make my first batch of freezer jam.

I know that having all this food will make me so happy in February, but I forgot how much work it is. It's nice work that lets me turn off my brain for a while (a lovely thing when you think for a living), but if anyone out there would be interested in coming to sit at my breakfast bar on these summer evenings, let me know. Sully usually posts himself near the kitchen while I work, but a little human conversation would be welcomed.