By now, the foods that were put up last year have begun to run out. In our house, we are down to the last few bags of tomato sauce, having used all the cases of tomatoes and sauce in the pantry. We do have hot sauce left, but that is only because it is so much more convenient to open a jar, rather than thaw a bag. It is probably time to say goodbye to the foods that we didn’t like. The apricots were a huge hit when dried, but the canned ones were never eaten. I will be blending them with a stick blender, and making apricot bread. No more canned appricots!
Because it is time to think about this year’s garden, taking stock of what you used and what you had too much of, should be written down somewhere. Make a note to grow more/less, and stick to it! Our eyes are always bigger than our pantry, and that can end up being wasteful. Overwhelmed at what to plant? I recommend starting with three major things your family will use.
For us, that means tomatoes, sweet peppers, and greens. All three things are used almost daily. They are canned, dried, and frozen-keeping them in our diet year round.
What three things will you start with?
Good luck with your pantry garden this year.
Thanks, Karen. Things are a bit clunky around here as I move my beloved Farming Wife Blog over. I appreciate the comments-it gives me hope that I will eventually be settled in.
:-))
Amy J
I’ve enjoyed looking through your blog! This will be my first time ever with canning.