The Plucky Housewives

Summers, we grill.  Spring we grill and fall we grill.  My goal - figure out a way to endure the winter and continue to grill.  I grill more now that I live slightly out into the country where the local natural gas companies line stops short of my house by 50 feet. UGH.  So, I grill.  We had been up at the hospital with my daughter for the past two weeks and I wasnt in the mood to prepare anything extensive, so i pulled  out the iPad and searched through my saved Pinterest recipes.  Scoured the fridge and we came up with the following: Grilled Chicken marinated in Sweet Balsamic Vinaigrette with Zucchini and Mushroom Cheesy Rice and a side of grilled cabbage All of these recipes were inspired by Pinterest finds, but they also reminded me of favorites from home and friends.  Of course,  We adapted them and made them our own, as usual.  I think that's what we all sort of do, especially in a pinch.  I will link you the original inspiration for the dish as well - to pay homa

I have to say that the best success I have had with Strawberry Freezer Jam was this year! I got my hands on a boatload of berries this year and brought them home, with the absolute intention of making enough freezer jam to last us for a few years.  I ran out to get the pectin and containers and the store only had 1 box of the dry pectin but had 5 boxes of the liquid.  I had never used the liquid before, but thought, oh, what the heck.  Lets try it. I am in love.  It was easier and the freezer jam had a softer and more jam-like consistency as it gelled.  I took some out of the freezer today and opened it up for the first time and it was just like my mother's!  All the years before,  I could never get it to be the consistency that hers was.   I just love it.  Now, please note - its the full sugar recipe.   I have tried this year, all variations and this is for me, the better of the bunch!  So I am sharing... Enjoy!!! This recipe is for 1 puch of liquid fruit pectin: 2 C