It’s that time of year again - canning! Craig and I visited Kruger Farms on Sauvie Island last week and not only picked a boatload of berries (which are now frozen waiting to be jammed when it isn’t 14million degrees (C) outside) but I got cucumbers to make various amounts of pickled products. I always mean to write about pickling, etc (for instance I made pickled okra, asparagus and radishes (FAIL)) but I kept forgetting to talk about it.

I realized last week I am on my last jar of pickle relish, so that was the first order of business. The cukes are gorgeous:

and I hope they will be delicious. I experimented with using the food processor’s regular blade (instead of the slicing one) and I am not sure how crazy I am about the tiny texture of the relish:

But I guess we will see when it comes eating time. I always forget that you have to salt and wait on relish (to get the water out) and inevitably start relish at 7pm or something. Yup.

In any case, it eventually all got jarred in a cider vinegar, sugar and spices mix (this is sweet relish with a healthy dose of jalapenos) and now we wait. I hate waiting.

I used to try and make nice labels, etc. for the preserves (and I still do for gifts) but for home, a Sharpie on the lid is as much as I can do. This isn’t fancy gourmet stuff, it’s just what you do when it’s summer and you like pickle relish.

Next up: bread and butter slices, maybe dill slices (or maybe sandwich slices, hmmm) and onions.

I think the seven of you that read this blog already know, but in case I missed anyone: this is your official notice that sometime around January 1, 2009 the “mama” part of “Tikimama” will go from theoretical to literal.

Oh, and it’s a boy if you care about those sorts of things. Don’t you think “Brock Samson” would be a great name?

We were lucky enough to get into the Tiki Spirited Dinner - chef’d by Chris DeBarr and cocktail’d by Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. It was an amazing experience and I am so glad we got to attend. I took a bunch of pics (forgive my lack of skill at food photography - I should take a class) and posted them on my Flickr account here. Enjoy!