I'm here finally

[worthy]

After signing up months ago, then forgetting my password, I'm finally on. Have been grabbing recipes from this website for months now, so thanks for the bake beans recipes and various others. I'm based in Bridgetown, WA, have been preserving, dehydrating for around 4 years now. Bought myself a pressure canner the other day and wow have no idea why I did not buy one sooner. Try and grow my own veggies etc, except this year the veggie patch has been a failure, everything went to seed to quickly, so its back to the drawing board and resowing in the hope that I get something from it. We run two beautiful Jersey cows for milkers tried my first attempt at making butter failed (will try again real soon), then I saw the step by step instructions on this website YAH!!!!

[Shadowgirlau]

Hi Worthy, Oh no you mentioned house cows... haven't you realized yet I am trying not to think and dream about cows?

Glad to see you found your way back "in' to us. I live over in Tenterden and my friend and I are planning a girls road trip over to Busselton in March for the weekend. We are going to a quilt exhibition and will just have to stop at any quilt shops we come across along the way. Someone told me there was a shop in Bridgetown so we might even make it down there.

I haven't used my PC for a cuple of years for doing anything other than water bathing which is so very sad particularly as this past year it hasn't even been used for this since I finally found my actually water bath canner.

Hope to see many more posts from you in the future. It is great to see more WA people joining the group.

Kathleen

[northwest1]

Hi Worthy, Kathleen! Did someone mention quilting??? I am on the home stretch on a quilt I began years ago and am getting really excited about it! I started it for my daughter and she has been so very patient for all this time. Right now I am waiting for the weather to cool down some - then I'll be able to sit with the quilt on my lap while I finish it off. I've been able to work on it in the evenings with the AC on, but these last few weeks have been too hot to even do that. My younger daughter has her order in for one too but I think I will do hers by machine!!
I've been dipping my toes into the preserving pool too - have been making jams, pickles, relishes, cheese, even tomato paste! I have tried to not waste anything that we've grown, so we've eaten it, given it away, frozen it, jarred it. I am just about to clear out my vegie garden and start over again while we've still got a few months of warm weather.
Mira

[minnie]

Welcome Mira,

Looks like Kathleen has a fellow quilter nearby.

I found using the cream separator gave a much better quality of cream and then the butter was easy... you just have to make sure you rinse it really well and the pats were invaluable (and cheap on the UK ebay, mine cost $15 which included the post).

Much to my DH's dismay I haven't made butter for some time, mainly with moving and then our premmie calf having all the milk (didn't want to steal her cream) we have separated any for some time... but will get back to it. I really liked it mixed with the olive oil and I could store in the fridge without it becoming a brick!

Vicki

[Shadowgirlau]

Did someone mention quilting other than me? Great!

Mira you have more patience than I if you are doing that quilt by hand. Actually I don't mind hand sewing it is just that I have arthritis in my hands and they get painful so I prefer to machine quilt. My hubby still doesn't understand why my sewing doesn't extend to mending though?

Do you draw up your own designs or follow patterns from books/mags other? I do a bit of everything myself and have found some fabulous sites online with loads of free patterns.

Cheers
Kathleen

[Dinahmite]

Hi Worthy,

Welcome to the forum. Another South West girl joins the crew... We love Bridgetown and go down and visit the bakery sometimes...mmmm

Di

[Heidi]

Hi Worthy,
Juggling children so I'll say a quick hello and then go! Bye for now. I have a Jersey too!
H

[Glyn]

Hi Worthy, Pleased to hear from you and welcome.
I made butter for years by simply flinging it in the food processor and giving it a whorl. But that was in cooler climes. Since coming here I have really struggled until I figured out that the most critical thing is the temperature. Pretty sure Vicki has it in her step by step.
Glyn

[minnie]

Hi Glyn,

Temperature is the difference with dairy between success and failure, especially in our hotter climes that's for sure.

Vicki

[Mojojo]

Hi Worthy and welcome to another South Westerner!
Soon we shall have enough people down our way for an occasional get-together

[Shadowgirlau]

Now an occasional get together would be wonderful wouldn't it?

Kathleen

[Dinahmite]

Yep, I have lived all over the place and the south west is the best place in earth, in my humble opinion of course.. Climate, soil, hills valleys and great people.

And a get together would be great.

[Hayhay]

Hello and welcome!

Mmmmm; pressure canner is next on my list of preserving adventures. How much does one set you back?

Hayley

[Mojojo]

Hayley, I bought mine from Redback, I can't recall how much for, but shortly afterwards a friend bought his from Amazon, even with postage from the US it came in at about $120 - less than half what I paid, for exactly the same item!