9 June 2010

Yesterday, I processed two batches of strawberry-rhubarb jam, using a slightly different recipe than from my last post. We opened a jar of one of those and it was a little too thin and sugary for my taste; the rhubarb was like candied fruit. Don't get me wrong, it's perfectly edible and delicious on a bit of buttered toast or English muffin. Still, I think those four that are left are going to be the give-away jars.... Well, let me fine-tune that sentence a bit. I want the jars themselves back. It gets expensive having to replace those, don't you know. Really is a shame that the glass-top jars aren't recommended for canning anymore, as there's probably 100 of them under the workbench downstairs. I guess they'll just be nuts-and-bolts jars now.

Anyway, yesterday I used an envelope of pectin and reduced the Jell-o to one small box. The pectin really helped to firm the mixture up to a proper jam consistency. In the interest of preserving some of the rhubarb's tartness, I also cut down the sugar from 8 cups to 5 cups. In all, it produced 12 half-pint jelly jars and two pint-sized jars, and there was about 1/2 cup left over that I gave to our neighbor.

-----

Made an appointment for today at the veterinarian for Ruff to get current on his vaccinations and such. The little boy was 5 months old yesterday. Growing like a weed.

Training is a constant process, and he's doing well in house-breaking. Only a few accidents when he gets really excited --- if someone new comes over or when his favorite human, Papa, comes home from being away for an extended time. Otherwise, he's been very good with telling us he needs to go outside. He's gradually getting better with staying on this bed while everyone's eating. Ruff is also doing well on walks, but he still has work to do with not pulling on the leash. Word is that he was the Alpha / lead dog in his puppy litter, and he needs to learn that here, he's the Beta. And on that note, I think it's time for a morning walk.