City Patch

Until the kids are done with their swing set and trampoline we have to wait to have a nice size garden again.

The one thing I miss about our old house is our strawberry patch. We had a nice established area where we got some berries each year along with some other goodies.

One thing I wanted to try this year in our new house was a hanging strawberry patch and we have success! We bought the plants at Sage Garden Herbs, a garden centre that sells organic plants and they have been growing very well in our little hanging basket.

We can't wait to try one and to watch the rest of the berries grow.

Strawberry Banana Jam!

This is only the best Jam ever! Homemade that is. Any flavour will do, but nothing beats making homemade jam.

The first time I made it I tried to cut back on the sugar but it turned out more like a thick sauce instead of a nice jam consistency. with my second try I followed the instructions as per the recipe but added some banana to the strawberries and boy oh boy is it yummy!

The possibilities are endless really. I have to admit that I hardly even do a thing when I make jam. My wonderful bread maker does it all for me. The only difference with this jam is you have to eat it within 2 weeks or freeze it. I collect small jars and freeze about 1/4-1/2 a cup in each jar. Take it out of the freezer as needed and you have fresh homemade jam, for a fraction of the cost of good quality store bought jam.

If you don't have a bread maker you can buy Certo packages specifically labeled "Freezer Jam" you don't need to worry about having a bunch of canning items and boiling any jars. all you need is some fruit, Certo mix, sugar, a pot, a spoon and jars. Plastic containers work just as well.

Note: If the fruit you want to use is not in season, buy it frozen. Frozen fruit is always picked in season.