Look what's cooling on my kitchen counter--six jars of strawberry jelly and 19 jars of strawberry jam! (I'm not telling which jars of jam didn't set. To my relatives and friends: you'll know if your Christmas basket includes "Strawberry Ice Cream Topping".)
Canning season begins around here when strawberries are in season. I'll soon move on to blueberries, blackberries, peaches and tomatoes. After that are pears-cubed, pickled and "honeyed", followed by wild muscadines. The season ends with applesauce.
It has a nice rhythm, the music of harvest. I love eating "in season" when fruits and vegetables are at their peak. And, oh, the joy of opening a jar of strawberry jelly in January and dreaming of warm spring days.
