Berry season has arrived so I've been making jams and jellies for gifts and next winter eating. Each time I bring home a flat of berries I try to make a small pie for us to enjoy. Pie tins come in three sizes; 8-inch, 9-inch, and 10-inch. Now that there are only two of us, most of the pies I bake are in 8-inch pans. When guests come, of course, I usually bake 10-inch of the favorites. So often we prepare more than we need and end up throwing good food away. I have found that preparing items in smaller amounts, perhaps enough for two meals means less waste. If the item is something that can be frozen, such as spaghetti sauce, I might make enough for four or five meals, freezing much of it in containers to use over the next month or two. Utilizing our resources and reducing waste does take a bit of thought, but when we consider the alternative is well worth the effort.
The Northwest has not had much of a spring this year and summer does not look like it will be much better. That is bad news for some of our garden. The tomatoes are really struggling to ripen enough to pick. On the other hand, the lettuce and broccoli absolutely love the cooler, wetter weather. What I found surprising is how well the apples and plums are doing. Life seems to have trade-offs no matter what we may think should happen. If our weather was excellent for tomatoes the lettuce and broccoli might need more shade and water to grow.
Rather than get upset about our cooler spring, I am enjoying eating fresh lettuce from the garden and carefully watching the broccoli so I can pick some as soon as it is ready. While I am waiting for that, I have time to visit the neighbor and bring home some beautiful rhubarb to freeze for winter pies. The folks down the road who have a large patch of rhubarb do not eat it because, they said, they do not have time to prepare it. I have to think about that one a bit as I learned long ago that putting aside thirty minutes or so every day gave me all the time I needed. The only time I need two or more hours is when I am making jams, jellies, or other preserved jars of food.
Enjoy your spring and look for the bounty around you. Breathing in the scent of of newly picked produce, tasting something right from the garden, or sharing extra with someone are all activities that lift my spirit and bring me joy. Abundance is all around us if we just open our eyes and really look. Life is as simple or complicated as we choose to make it and I choose each morning which it will be.
