Have you ever been in the bucket of a tractor?

Neither had I until earlier this week!

This week we're going to switch gears a little bit.  I do still have 2 chrysalis left that we're waiting on, but they are taking their dear time.

So, as the monarch season draws to a close, I will begin to fill my time with some of my other hobbies.  This is not to say that there won't be any talk of monarchs through the winter, but this week we were given a bunch of pears and apples by our very generous neighbor, so I had to get on doing something with them.  Sure they'll keep for a little while, but I wanted to put them to good use.  

Pictures really don't do justice to the gorgeous coloring on these

If I had to guess I would say we were given about 25 lb of pears and anywhere between 50 and 75 lb of apples - and the apples were absolutely massive!

Pictured above: Pears, Apples next to adult sunglasses for size! and apples

Let me tell you about my experience.  Our neighbor is 93.  He admits he can't hear or see very well at all.  But that does not stop him in the least bit!  He gets out and works his farm every day, by himself!  

One day in conversation, he said if we would like his apples and pears we were welcome to them.  So then you have to wonder how would you go about getting the apples out of the top of a tree?   Our neighbor said he would lift me up to get the fruit, in the bucket of his tractor.  Now, I didn't grow up on a farm, I had never been in, or on a tractor, until we moved here, let alone in a giant metal bucket- attached to the front of one!  I'll admit, given his condition and my lack of previous experience with being in a tractor bucket, I was a little hesitant.  But guys, the precision at which he drove, even adjusting the bucket so it stayed level as he was moving it up and down, just wow!  

We got all of it picked and he took what he wanted, and gifted us the rest.  (He really is the best neighbor ever)  

After they were all picked, I got to work, peeling, slicing, dicing, chopping, blending, measuring, mixing... canning really is more than a one person job if you can swing it.  Lol.  

A while back, I had found a recipe of my grandma's, that I have been wanting to make, since I learned to can.  Sadly, I never got to can with my grandma, but every time I can anything, I always think of her. ❤   

I canned for 2 days in a row and made 5 different things.  

Labels made on the Avery label site

> Customize your own labels here: https://www.avery.com/templates

I made My Grandma's Pear Honey, Caramel Apple Pie Jam, Vanilla Pear Jelly, Caramel Apple Jelly and Apple Jelly.  

I wound up with 69 jars and every single thing turned out tasting incredible!  With PLENTY leftover after taking our neighbor some of each.  

All done and so pretty!

Yes of course, I'll share the recipes! 

The first one I made was my grandma's pear honey

Place filled jars in water bath for 10 minutes

Second I made Vanilla Pear jelly from the peels of the pears, I used this recipe in the link provided below to make it. My only adjustment was that I added Vanilla extract so it would be Vanilla Pear Jelly, but you can just follow the recipe directly if you'd prefer. (I didn't really measure but I would estimate I added about a half a teaspoon for 2 batches)

Link for Pear Jelly > https://caitlinscanningkitchen.com/2017/09/07/pear-jelly/?fbclid=IwAR2X2WoinVfZ-ec9I9FdcVsCYB9O28ZZ6m_ZR43OKvQqtKfwBugj_5OW4z8

Third I made Caramel Apple Pie Jam. I used the recipe out of one of my Ball Canning Books. I also adjusted this one by adding 1/8 cup brown sugar and 1/4 tsp Caramel Extract per batch. But you can just make it how the directions specify if you'd like.

Recipe from Ball Canning Book

I made Apple Jelly and Caramel Apple Jelly using the same recipe for Pear Jelly that I listed above, but I'll put it here too just in case.

Recipe for Jelly > https://caitlinscanningkitchen.com/2017/09/07/pear-jelly/?fbclid=IwAR2X2WoinVfZ-ec9I9FdcVsCYB9O28ZZ6m_ZR43OKvQqtKfwBugj_5OW4z8 )

For Caramel Apple Jelly I added Caramel Extract to Apple Peel Jelly Recipe listed above (about 1/8th tsp per batch)

Even after 69 jars, we still had a 5 gallon bucket FULL of sliced apples that we put in the freezer for pies and other ideas for later use! (That is a whole lot of apples!)

This jelly is being eaten pretty quickly around here!

It's always a great feeling to put all your jars in your canned food area and admire all your hard work! Some of our hard work pictured below.

Hope you enjoy these recipes! Let us know how you liked them, and we would love to hear some of your favorite recipes as well. You can comment here, on our Instagram or Facebook pages!

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