(Sorry about the sideways picture!!)
Sometimes when I'm in the midst of canning, when there are 20 raw chickens in my fridge waiting to be cut up/canned/frozen, or bushels of corn, tomatoes, etc. sitting on my kitchen floor patiently waiting. . .canning seems to be a huge inconvenience, somedays it's so hard to fit it in amongst all the other stuff of life (homeschooling, regular meals, cleaning, laundry, laundry, laundry, etc.) But I know that it'll be much more of a benefit than a hassle, and we'll enjoy the results for a long time.
Today is a day I'm appreciating all those canned goodies. On this second-to-last day of the year I am making a bunch of meals for the freezer or shelf for my friend who will begin chemotherapy right after the new year. Trying to find meals which will be easy for her husband and pre-teen daughters to prepare. Just picking off my shelf I was able to grab sweet and sour chicken (canned) (which I partnered with a carton of instant rice), several soups (I put each one in a brown bag with some crackers), and now for the freezer--making several batches of chicken divan, chicken bruschetta casserole, and this yummy dinner we enjoy quite a bit which consists of apple pie filling, then the meat, and topped with stuffing.
All these were quickly and easily whipped up from chicken and turkey which we had canned and some other veggies, etc. which were on the canning shelves as well.
So---if you're on the fence about canning--I'd highly recommend you give it a try. Especially if you raise your own meat or have a trusted source for good meat. The freezer is great, but nothing beats the convenience of being able to just pull the cooked, non-frozen (if you're like me, you often forget to pre-thaw!), delicious meat/soups/etc right of the shelf and make a quick dinner!
Give it a try! :)
If you'd like a little more inspiration on canning/farmish stuff/simpler life, etc. check out Deborah Jean's blog hop! here
I hear you!! I have a pantry full of canned goods too. I also homeschool and sometimes I don't know how much my kids are actually learning when I am in the middle of canning and running up and down the steps checking the canner, washing and preparing veges, or stirring pizza or spaghetti sauce. But it is well worth it. There are days that my entire meal is from my jars that I canned. I also have given several jars to a friend who is going through chemo. She appreciated it so much to have some good canned peaches, grape juice, and veges to eat.
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