Fireweed Jelly & Nasturtium Jelly Recipe

I have always wanted to make Fireweed Jelly and this year it finally happened. I had so much fun that I didn't stop there I decided to make Nasturtium Jelly. The results above are beautiful and tasty. The middle jar is the Nasturtium Jelly. My friend Martha had me over to her house while she made it this summer so I could see how it was done. So I picked fireweed that was growing between our raspberries and here it is in the pot and after in its jars.
Fireweed or Nasturtium Jelly Recipe: (Follow the Mint Jelly Recipe from your SureJell Pack)
4 cups Fireweed OR Nasturtium infusion (2 cups firmly packed flowers) 4-1/2 cups water 1 box SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin 1/2 tsp. butter or margarine 5 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

BRING boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain well before filling.
WASH Place flowers in large saucepan; add water. Bring to boil on medium-high heat. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 10 min. Place three layers of damp cheesecloth or jelly bag in large bowl. Pour prepared infusion into cheesecloth. Tie cheesecloth closed, hang and let drip into bowl until dripping stops. Press gently. Measure exactly 4 cups strained infusion into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot. (If necessary, add up to 1/2 cup water for exact measure.) Stir in food coloring.
STIR pectin into infusion in saucepot. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in sugar. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.
LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 5 min. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. (If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)
ENJOY! This jelly has a light honey flavor and is a beautiful color.

This years Garden

This year was the hottest summer in Anchorage history since...I can't remember when, but it was nothing short of AMAZING. This meant a great year for the garden. Things grew like they haven't grown before. I was ecstatic. I can't believe that I have only a handful of garden pictures because it was beautiful. Here are Jalapeno pepper plants (Tanner's choice) So...that is all the pictures I have. Ugh, but I do have some pictures of our harvest: First year planting Kohlrabi and it was great!

Summer Trip

My dad turned 60 in June which is pretty big deal. (Here he is above showing me his tractor.) So I made tickets to fly down (solo) and celebrate the big day. My boys stayed with some of my good friends who happen to have kids of their own who happen to be best buds with my kids. So it was like an extended slumber party. *Insert BIG THANKYOU to my girlfriends and my husband* who made my trip possible. For those of you with kids wouldn't it be fun to see our last trip pre-kids and first trip with kids. I don't think I ever considered the extra's that go into packing for a plane ride with little ones let alone the trip itself. So I felt a sense of freedom as I packed for my trip (leaving room for shopping items I would bring back :) ). So as I sat in the airport with no diaper bag, kid snacks, extra trips to the bathroom, running up and down the terminal to tire out those energy filled bodies...I drank my Starbucks Americano with cream and read a book. Alaska Mountains. My brother picked me up from the airport. My nephew was just waking up from a nap when we got to my brother's. My nephew by the way is adorable. He calls me "Annie Auntie," which melts my heart. He is the coolest little guy ever. My trip coincided with his 2nd birthday party which was extra fun for me :) My brother lives in Portland. I love Portland. It has great weather, great food, great shopping, great sibling and his amazing family :) The first night there we went out to eat at A Cena Risotorante. You know the meals that are so delicious that they are forever imprinted on your taste buds and live on in your memory as one of best meals of all time? Well this was one of the meals! I got to sit next to my little nephew who was a blast by the way. It is so fun to be an Auntie. The appetizer was morel mushrooms in a herb white wine sauce over crispy crostini bread with. It was a taste bud melody. We each ordered a meal and shared so we could taste everything. It may be an exaggeration to say I wanted to weep from the extraordinary meal, but it was close. This is eating at a little bistro the last day in Portland. It was also amazing. The cappuccino was fluffy and perfect. Odin is copying our sips and sighs as we enjoy our drinks. Ok so there was more than just eating out that was great, but that was a big part. We toured a mansion, went shopping at Title Nine...*insert cheering* I love Title Nine and it was my first in store experience. The gals were friendly and upbeat. My brother was graciously patient and my sister in law was a delight to shop with! Odin was cute as always. Yellow Rose from outside the mansion. Exploring the mansion My Dad and brother taking Odin to look for frogs. My Dad and Step mom live in Washington and have a great house that sits tucked back on the property complete with barn, garden, little stream, old orchard and two exuberant dogs. The landscaping that they have done is beautiful and their garden was worthy of many photos. Columbines are among my top 10 favorite flowers and these were gorgeous.

Josh taking Odin for a ride.

Bravely touching a slug. IKEA. I love IKEA. It is such a great place to get so many things. I will add pics of some of my items after I got them home. This is our shopping trip. In the 6 days that I had with my family they were full of great times. By the day I left we were in a routine...Odin woke me up with a knock on my door, "Annie Auntie, time to p'ay Odin." Which was followed by me getting up and sitting in the living room on the floor playing with the pretend food items. Followed by a trip to Starbucks to get a cup of coffee. At naptime I was awarded with the position of reading Odin his naptime books. It was a cherished position. The day I left he fell asleep as I was reading to him. They were precious times. I felt quite spoiled with how sweet Josh and Heidi were to me. They were amazing hosts. I was so sad to leave, but it is fun to look at all these pictures and be reminded of the sweetness of time with family.

Spring, Summer....Fall

Summer here was amazing. So amazing in fact that I have not written in quite some time. To remedy that I will go through and see if I can add some posts that highlight the sun drenched summer we had, the beautiful fall, great start to our school year, projects that I have been up to etc.

This is our favorite spot to camp. The lake is so large that it is reminiscent of the ocean complete with gulls and the sound of water lapping the lake shore.

Spring was a little shaky at first especially when it decided to snow after I had planted my first rows of veggies (May 17th). I was not loving that late snow, but my vegetables didn't mind. We went on our first camping trip of the season to a favorite spot and it was beautiful as you can see above. We identified birds, watched for bugs, gathered sap to throw in the fire, went for a hike, roasted hot dogs and enjoyed smores... Great way to enjoy the outdoors.

Last years cranberries still clinging to the bush.

Fire burned stump. It had a lot of personality.

These little flowers are like bursts of sunshine.

Until next time...

Seedlings

We started our seedlings a few weeks ago and here are the little ones coming up. They looks so healthy.

Geranium seedlings. I love the cute little leaves.
Hollyhocks


Pumpkin. We tried some last year that did really well until the slugs got to them. So this year we will protect them a little better.


Geranium (I wintered this over indoors. My fist successful attempt. I ignored it most of the winter. That seemed to do the trick).


Dahlias! They are so pretty. I dug these up this fall and put them in the garage. I did not do what you are supposed to and wrap the dried tuber in newspaper, peat moss or sawdust. I forgot about them in some plastic bags. The smaller tubers were rotten when I found them a few weeks ago, but the larger tubers sprang up happily as you can see.
Our tray of herbs. We have plugs of sage, thyme, oregano and basil. I transplanted many of the sage already. Fresh herbs are a treat!