With an abundance of peaches and blueberries in our area, I was struggling with what to do with them to make the most of what's available.

I had dried peaches, made peach jam, blueberry jam, peach pie filling, frozen some with sugar, frozen blueberries and then came across recipes for Peach Chutney and Blueberry Chutney.

We had never used much chutney but I decided to try the recipe and after a few changes to the original recipes, our family can't seem to get enough of it. We've shared a taste with everyone who has visited us this week and so far, everyone who's tried it has asked for a jar. It's been a hit on pulled pork, fried chicken strips and even biscuits! We've also served it with crackers and cream cheese and that would make a great quick appetizer any time! I've canned quite a bit of both peach and blueberry chutney in half pint jars.

Both, along with an apple curry chutney will be includd in gift baskets for friends for Christmas.

For both of these recipes, adjust the spices to suit your desires. We like our food hotter than most so the amount of jalapeno peppers may be too much for you. If in doubt, start with fewer, and add more if needed.

Blueberry Chutney
(makes 2-1/2 - 3 pints but can easily be doubled if you want more)

4 cups blueberries
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
3 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3 tablespoon chopped or thinly sliced ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2 jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced (more or less to suit you tastes)

Add all ingredients to a large pot. Make sure the pot is large enough for the ingredients to simmer without boiling over. Simmer, stirring often til as thick as you’d like it. I simmer mine for about 1-1/2 hours.

Put into jars as you would for any canning procedure. Process in water bath for 10 minutes.

Peach Chutney
(makes 7-1/2 - 10 pints depending on how thick you cook it down)

4 quarts peaches, pitted, peeled and chopped
3 cups brown sugar
2 cups white sugar
1 cup raisins
2 cups chopped onion
1/4 cup mustard seed
4-6 tablespoons finely sliced, peeled fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4-10 jalapeno peppers, sliced (remove seeds if you want less heat . . we leave them in)
4 cups cider vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a pot that's plenty large enough that it won't boil over. Simmer til thick, stirring real often. It tends to want to stick if you get the heat too high or if you don't stir it enough.

Fill hot jars, leaving 1/4" head space. Remove air bubbles. Adjust lids and rings. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

We always have homemade bread at our house. 

Mostly, I make whole wheat bread and use a bit of a variation of the recipe that came with my Bosch mixer.

Sometimes, only white bread will do, especially when making grilled cheese sandwiches with fresh tomato soup!

Here's the recipe for my favorite white bread.

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water
2/3 cup white sugar
1-1/2 T. dry yeast
1-1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
6 cups flour

Directions:

In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water.  Stir in yeast and let sit for 5 minutes.

Mix salt and oil/butter into the yeast.  Add flour, one cup at a time.  Knead dough on a lightly floured surface ‘til smooth.  Place in a well oiled bowl, turn dough to coat.  Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap.  Allow to rise ‘til doubled .. about 1 hour.

Punch dough down.  Knead for a few minutes and divide in half.  Shape into two loaves and placed in two well oiled 9" x 5" loaf pans.  Allow to rise for 30 minutes or ‘til dough has risen 1" above sides of pan.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

A few tips for those who have not made bread or need help.

Make sure your water isn't too hot to kill the yeast or too cool to activate it.  Get yourself an instant read thermometer or any good kitchen thermometer will do.  The water should be between 105 degrees and 112 degrees when adding directly to the yeast.

It's best to use salt that does NOT contain iodine.

When making bread, after a bit of experience, you will know how bread dough needs to feel.   Adding too much flour may result in a loaf that is too dry and the bread will be hard and crumbly.  Adding too little flour will result in a loaf that will not hold its shape and will tear easily when sliced.

There's a big difference in the flour available. I've had success using all times of flour, though my favorite is Wheat Montana Prairie Gold, which may be available to most only through mail order. Bread flour is available in pretty much every store and it's fine.

Treat your recipe as a "guide."  It doesn't have to be followed exactly! Once you have a recipe that has worked for someone you trust, keep working with that one recipe.  Don't jump from recipe to recipe.  The first time you make your bread, it may not be the best but pay close attention to everything you do.  Next time you make it, if you want different results, try changing one thing.  If you change several things at once, you won't know what worked or what didn't so maybe try adding less or more flour, or kneading longer or less time.

Depending on the size pan, the size of your oven, and whether or not your thermostat is exactly correct, you may need to adjust your baking time.  What takes 30 minutes for me might take 25 or 35 for you. My favorite bread pans are the Norpro dimpled pans.

Bread making isn't something that will work for one and not for another.  If you want homemade bread, you can have it but like everything else, it may take a little practice and a bit of patience.

Anyone who sews, whether a prolific seamstress, or someone who needs a sewing machine for mending a torn seam or hemming a pair of pants now and then knows the value of having a sewing machine that will make a great seam without causing you to pull your hair out just to get it to stitch!

Through the years I've come to realize what a treasure the old sewing machines are. My very favorite machine is the Singer 301. Probably the most popular of collectible sewing machines is the Singer Featherweight.

Both the Featherweight and the 301 are fantastic machines, and in my biased opinion, two of the best machines ever made. The 301 weighs approximately 16 pounds vs. the 11 pound Featherweight. The 301 is gear driven vs. the Featherweight being belt driven.  The feed dogs can be dropped on the 301 for free motion quilting, whereas the Featherweight feed dogs cannot be dropped. Both can come in a convenient carrying case, though the 301 machines were often sold with a cabinet instead of a carrying case. Both only do a straight stitch, though there is an attachment for the 301 that allows it to make a few decorative type stitches.

Almost all of my sewing is done on the 301. The stitch quality is always perfect! There's nothing that can go wrong with either a 301 or a Featherweight that my husband cannot fix, and he is not a sewing machine repairman!

Due to the Featherweight being in such high demand as a collectible, they're often very expensive. In our area, the 301 machines are more readily available for a reasonable price. I've seen them from $30 to $150.

And, if you're a serious lover of sewing machines, you want to be on the lookout for a treadle machine. I have this White model that works great. I don't use it but my grandma had a Singer treadle and she taught me to sew on that old treadle. If ever we're without power for an extended amount of time, you can bet this machine will be sewing up a storm!

When you find yourself in the market for a sewing machine, the new ones are shiny and make lots of stitches you may never use, and the cost of new machines may cause you to do a double take.  Don't overlook an older model machine, especially those made in the 50s.  They're definitely worth having.

Vince and I moved to Missouri in December 2006 from Kentucky. We thought our residence in Kentucky was a bit rural but moving to Nevada, Missouri, has brought a whole new meaning to “rural.” Even though we’re currently living in the city limits, we’re looking for land where we can have the freedom to grow and build as we please, without restrictions, covenants, city ordinances and . . neighbors! We have fallen in love with southwest Missouri and hope to stay in this area.

Vince has never had much desire for living in the country, but with the current economic times, and the need to feel more in control of our own lives, he is coming around, and we’re looking for more land. He wants to have bees. I want a milk cow. Of course, there will always be chickens and a big garden.

I love to cook from scratch and will share recipes here. I can as much as possible, so I’ll share my canning experiences.

I grind wheat to make yummy and nutritious whole wheat bread, so you’ll hear some about wheat grinding and bread baking.

I quilt (a lot!), so no doubt, there’ll be some quilting stories here.

For now, we’ll be happy with our 9 hens and our little garden in town, but I hope that very soon, readers will be able to follow along in our journey as we find the perfect piece of land and prepare to live “the good life” as amateur rural farmers.