Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Storing September & Homemade Tomato Sauce

Every year my quilt group goes on a retreat to a beautiful mountain cabin in the first part of September.One tradition that we would never leave out is the reading of a poem, Storing September, by Elizabeth Rooney (see poem below). It is a lovely reminder of the beauty in the world during this time of year.

Yesterday I stored September, but it was in a bottle. My niece, Amy has a beautiful garden including 26 tomato plants. She brought me some and together with a few from my own garden I made tomato sauce that will remind me of these beautiful September days on the long snowy winter days ahead.

Tomato sauce isn’t hard to make,just a bit of time. When a dear friend came over later in the day she asked what I was cooking and said it smelled wonderful all the way down the driveway. That was the sweetest compliment and all I needed to make me want to make a few more batches before the end of fall. (Printable Recipe)


Before September slips away into October enjoy some time storing September- in every sense of the word.


STORING SEPTEMBER

You ask me what I did today,

I could pretend and say

“I don’t remember”,

But, no I’ll tell you what I did today.

I stored September.

Sat in the sun and let the sun sink in,

Let all the warmth of it caress my skin,

When winter comes, my skin will still remember

The day I stored September.

And then, my eyes-

I filled them with the deepest, bluest skies

When winter comes, my eyes will still remember

The day I stored September.

And then there was cricket song to fill my ears!

And the taste of grapes

And the deep purple of them!

And asters, like small clumps of sky-

You know how much I love them.

That’s what I did today

And I know why,

Just simply for the love of it,

I stored September.

-Elizabeth Rooney

13 comments:

  1. Great poem! I can just imagine the smell of your sauce cooking. I, also, have been storing September. Thanks for a great post.

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  2. I'm probably repeating myself here, but oh wow, food in jars, why can't I manage this myself?! Your lids look so shiny and wonderful (crazy I know)

    I have made bulk tomato sauce but I froze mine. Jars in the cellar would be far more efficient!

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  3. Lovely, Cristie!
    And those stored sunny tastes of September will be well loved in chilly days to come.

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  4. How wonderful, your little jars of tomato sauce look absolutely wonderful. I wish I was your neighbour so you could bring me a jar!
    *kisses* HH

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  5. How lovely your sauce looks. I am glad that the recipe has the lemon juice to make it safe to water bath. I am looking at a counter full of tomatoes right now, trying to decide what to do with them. Maybe some sauce.

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  6. I did that all the previous years. This year I don't know I guess I got lazy. It is great to have during winter your own freshly made tomato sauce.

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  7. Lovely poem ~ I'm sure you took a step back, took one long look at your beautiful tomato sauce and smiled! Nothing like canning to enjoy the fruits of your labor during the cold winters ~

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  8. What a great color! It looks like a fabulous sauce. Love that you used an immersion blender - aren't they the best! I wish September could last two months.

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  9. What a wonderful poem. I should really get outside and sit in the sun for a bit. I am actually roasting some of my cherry tomatoes again today but I wish I had better luck with large tomatoes. You're so lucky to have a niece supply you with them.

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  10. Cristie, The deep red of your tomato sauce is so vibrant! What a beautiful sight. Your retreat sounds like such a fun tradition, and I enjoyed the poem also.
    I need to run out and buy an immersion blender for all of my fall soups!

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  11. Lovely sentiment, Cristie. Even though making homemade tomato sauce can be time-consuming, it is certainly worth the effort!

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  12. I so want to do this!!!!! Your jars are soooo pretty.

    Sunday hugs my friend. xoxoxo

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