When I sat down to write this post, my first inclination was to apologize for the long delay between posts.  But then I thought again.  I am a high school teacher, and have devoted the summer to my children and improving my lessons for the upcoming year.  Nothing to apologize for.

Right after school ended, we went up to Oregon for my sister’s wedding. It was beautiful.  The wedding.  AND Oregon.  And best of all, I had a great time on the road trip up there, even though I worried that my kids might declare World War 3 in the back seat.  Thank goodness for audiobooks.  (We highly recommend anything narrated by Jim Dale, in case you were wondering.)

The kiddos atop Crater Lake

Once the school year begins, life gets crazy.  Time slips away, we forget the warm weather of summer and start to miss the flavors from the summer-time farmer’s market.  Inspired as ever by Joel Salatin’s book, Folks, This Ain’t Normal, I decided to preserve some of our summer…in jars.

I searched some of my favorite blogs for a recipe, and decided to try this recipe for Honey Strawberry Jam from Simple Bites.  It appealed to me because it used flavorful honey instead of sugar – and required less added sweetness than the majority of other recipes I saw.  And aside from the time it took to core the berries, it didn’t take very long.  It would have been more fun to do with a few friends…(mental note for my upcoming tomato project!)

I used a whole flat...

Lots of strawberry tops for our chickens to enjoy...

Filling the jars...

The final product

I have been inspired – both by this project and by Joel’s book.  I’d rather open my pantry to find staple ingredients than trek to the store.  And I love the feeling of supporting farmers that I know and the good work that they do.  I can hold them near when I preserve their tasty goodness, and thank them each time we enjoy a meal.