After my successful trip into British Columbia’s Okanagan region, I got the ‘bug’ to preserve and can all of the produce I possibly could. Because, well, zombie apocalypse. Or simple healthy organic food that doesn’t need refrigeration or freezing! The 90 pounds of roma tomatoes I purchased from Covert Farms yielded 16 1 litre jars of organic canned tomato sauce.
Organic Canned Tomato Sauce Ingredients:
35 to 46 lbs roma-style tomatoes
14 Tbsp bottled lemon juice
Salt
Sugar (optional)
Prepare the jars and lids:
Wash all jars and lids thoroughly with soap and water and rinse well. Fill your canner with enough water to cover the jars by at least 1 inch and bring to a simmer. Using a pair of canning tongs, lower the jars, lids and rings in gently. Boil for 4 minutes and remove with the tongs, placing them on a wooden cutting board.
Peel and core the tomatoes:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Have a large cooler of ice water at the ready. Gently lower the tomatoes into the boiling water and blanch them for 60 seconds. Remove with a strainer and transfer them to the ice water. Once cool, the skins should peel off easily. I reached into the cooler with sleeves rolled up and did this job with my hands, easily removing both the cores and skins.
Prepare the sauce:
Coarsely chop the tomatoes and add them to a large stockpot. Place stockpot over medium-high heat, crushing and stirring the tomatoes to keep from burning. Continue until all the tomatoes are added and crushed. Bring the tomatoes to a boil, then reduce heat and keep at a low boil. Reduce to the desired thickness, by a third for a thin sauce, or by half for a thick sauce. For a fine, smooth sauce you can blend in a Vitamix in batches.
Fill and close the jars:
Add two tablespoons of bottled lemon juice and one teaspoon of salt to each jar; add a teaspoon of sugar to offset the added acidity if desired. Use a ladle to pour the sauce into the jars through a canning funnel, leaving 1/2-inch headspace at the top. Run a clean chopstick around the inside of the jar to dislodge any trapped air. Wipe the rims of the jars with a damp paper towel. Place the lids on, and screw on the rings until just finger-tight.
Seal the jars:
Using canning tongs, gently transfer the jars to the canner, taking care to keep them vertical. When all the jars are in the canner, there should be at least 1 inch water covering them; if you need more, add water from the kettle until the jars are sufficiently covered. Bring the water to a full rolling boil, and process for 40 minutes.
Remove and cool:
Using canning tongs, gently remove the jars from the canner and transfer them to a kitchen towel or cooling rack, again keeping them vertical. Do not set hot jars directly on to cool counter surfaces. Leave to cool, undisturbed, for at least 12 hours. If any of the jars do not seal when cool, reprocess using the method above, or refrigerate and use immediately.
Label and store:
Add a label to the lid or side of your jar, noting the date it was canned. Remove the rings and store jars in a cool, dark place for up to one year. Refrigerate after opening.
Do you ever feel like a plastic bag, drifting through the wind, wanting to start again? It’s been a rough summer for me, between a broken wrist, the British Columbia teachers’ strike, extended beach closures due to e-coli in the ocean, my son’s sudden-onset double vision and a few emergency stitches here and there. But it’s all over now, and I feel stronger than ever.
To emerge into this new stage – let’s call it igniting the light – I have been reading 
Katy Perry’s Prismatic World Tour perfprmance burst forth with neon lights, elaborate horse costumes and Katy swinging through the air. She included a few sweet and natural melodies unlike her previous repertoire. The highlight for me was the encore, or Prism-Vision. We donned glasses and my whole perspective of the space changed. Kindof like coming out of the darkness into a very happy place. It’s important to throw on a pair of glasses to see the world in a different way every once in a while. Thanks Katy.
Gene Covert is a pretty cool guy. But he has to be. His mother is still a pilot, and the 1952 Mercury truck that she decided to learn how to rebuild is still the touring vehicle for the farm. Not only does the farm started by his father specialize in organic growing, but they grow grapes for 
With a grumpy 6 year old who was instantly charmed by Gene, we began our tour of 
Feeling entirely comfortable, the kids asked questions and made observations. We were all sad when we had to get out of the truck. But it was then that the kids noticed the huge bubble-trampoline, and the adults sampled wines with local cheese and charcuterie. At which point we may have purchased a case of wine.
Not only will the Covert family be added to my Christmas list, but an end-of-summer visit is in the cards for our family for many years to come.
There’s a joke in my house about me not being a morning person. But it goes further than that. I’m so groggy in the morning that I probably should have padded walls in the hall and a bathrobe made of bubble wrap so that I don’t hurt myself on the way to the coffee maker. Unless I make it the night before I always measure wrong. One friend laughed and told me it was ‘simply’ the miles to kilometers ratio for portioning coffee to water. That didn’t help much.. If I had a few million dollars I wouldn’t hire a cleaning lady or a chef. I’d hire somebody to place my coffee beside the bed in the morning so that I could wake to the scent and avoid EMI – early morning injury.
When 
Summer is finally here, meaning you’ll be spending lots of time in the car for day-trips and vacations with the family. We know road trip packing can be stressful – it’s a parent’s job to be prepared for the unpredictable and remember everything, right?! To ensure your vacation starts off on the right foot, here is a list of our top summer road trip travel tips and tricks. 
Knee. Kick. Jab. Feel empowered? I sure did. Founded in 2004, the 
After signing in on the electronic board, you warm up by skipping. (If you remembered to do your kegels while pregnant.) Not only had I been lazy in that regard but I hadn’t skipped since the pink ribbons came off of my pigtails. Not to worry. The friendly environment and trainer helped get me warmed up in ways that suited my needs. Like in a traditional boxing ring, there’s a bell. I felt hard core – except for the gorgeous pink boxing gloves. At every ding of the bell I graduated to the next station, alternating between arms, legs and core strength.
As I went through the circuit, not only were my muscles getting stronger, but my confidence and self-esteem were improving in ways far beyond the tightening of muscles or slimming of the waistline. The end of the circuit involved ‘Bob’, a foam torso and head (who is actually quite ripped despite being attached to a pole). I was able to do anything I wanted to him using the boxing techniques I had learned. Sure I felt sorry for the guy at first, but I also felt fit, strong and resilient. And I was in and out in 30 minutes. I’ll be back, Bob. And sorry for that wicked uppercut.
A favourite dish of mine from the time I was a small child, Coq au Vin has always been a labour of love. Asked to test the Clubhouse LaGrille Smokehouse Maple Marinade in a coq au vin recipe, I was elated!! Armed with bacon, chives, chicken and homemade stock, I was ready! And then I fell. And broke my wrist. Now the challenge was twofold – could I make a coq au vin that is not as labour-intensive as my age-old recipe? And could I manage it with only my dominant hand…
