House Update and ApPLeS!

We've made lots of headway with our house remodel in the past few weeks. The laundry room is operational (just waiting for counter top and sink).  The upstairs now has carpet and as of today, furniture!!  We've moved the exercise equipment and we are so happy this project is nearing the end!  The kids have been just as excited.  With just a few odds and ends it's a sigh of relief to close this chapter of our home renovations!

This weekend was also busy because we had our first ever garage sale. It was a lot of work but definitely time to part ways with some of our things.  I think it will become an annual event!

Fall is definitely in the air as the temperatures have dropped, the windows are no longer open at night and the leaves are falling from the trees.  With all things fall, of course apples come to mind.  I came across an apple pie filling recipe last year and loved it.  So, today it was time to make another batch. I am pretty sure I posted this last year but I will leave you all with the recipe again cuz it's that good!

http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/canning/canned-apple-pie-filling/

Ingredients

• 8 jars Quart-Size Canning Jars With Lids And Rings
• 5 pounds Apples
• 2-¼ cups Granulated Sugar, Divided
• 5 cups Water, Divided
• ½ cups Cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1-½ Tablespoon Lemon Juice
• ½ teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• ⅛ teaspoons Ground Nutmeg
• ⅛ teaspoons Ground Cloves

Preparation

Place jars in the dishwasher to heat them up. They need to be hot when you put the filling inside.
Slice, peel and core apples. Set aside.
Combine 1 3/4 cups sugar and 4 1/2 cups of water together in a large pot; bring to a boil and make sure sugar is dissolved.
While it’s heating, combine 1/2 cup cornstarch, remaining 1/2 cup water and remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Stir in a bowl until no longer lumpy.
After sugar and water are boiling, whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Keep whisking to make sure lumps don’t form. Add in remaining ingredients (except apples) and bring to a boil to thicken.
Pack hot jars with apples. Ladle liquid into jars, leaving a 1/4 inch headspace. Remove bubbles and adjust 2-piece caps. Process in a water bath for 20 minutes (additional time may be needed according to your altitude—use standard canning practices). This is where a large pot is filled with water to completely cover the jars. This is done so that all the bacteria is killed and the jars are sealed and can sit on a shelf instead of in the freezer.
Makes 7-8 quarts (each one is enough for 1 pie).
Calories per quart: 400.

Along with all things fall thank goodness most of the seasonal allergies come to an end. However we face another beast--cold and flu season. We had our first trip to the Dr this week as Derek came down with a nasty sore throat last weekend. The strep test was negative but they treated him anyway. Not looking forward to all the "sharing" of germs that happens in school!

I've got soup cooking on the stove and prepping some meals for the week. It's been a great weekend to get projects done and start planning for the upcoming busy months. Have a wonderful week!