Last year I bought sweet corn at a stand in the Canadian Tire parking lot. That was my big trip to the farmers market. Sad, eh? It doesn’t take much to top that, and this year I wanted to make sure I went to a real market for the first time…ever! I’ve been so excited to go, but I’ve had trouble finding the time. Fortunately, I have great friends who also like fresh produce! R & J and the three girls made room in their van to take me along! I came away with zucchini…the huge ones Mom used to grow, not the little pickle-sized ones at Walmart. I also grabbed sweet corn and can’t wait to go back for more. Then there were the berries, YUM! But I have to say, my eyes really lit up when I saw the little sign on the basket of green apples; “Lodi”. That label made my heart leap. I’ve been looking everywhere for Lodi apples! They’re not very popular because they’re so tart, but that’s exactly why I wanted them. My grandparents had a wonderful orchard that I unfortunately didn’t really appreciate until it was sold. They grew many things, including Lodi apples. Every year we’d make many things from that orchard, including Lodi applesauce. That is, my Mom made those things. I didn’t appreciate the hot kitchen in the summer time.

Now I miss the applesauce, another thing I took for granted. So when I found those Lodi apples, I bought half a bushel (J thought I was very ridiculous!) and asked my Mom for the applesauce recipe. Here’s what she said (basically),

“Boil the apples with something like an inch of water in the bottom of the pan. Boil until soft, about half an hour. Add a little sugar if you like. Mash and strain.”

Really??? That’s all it takes for magical, tart, Lodi applesauce? It’s true, my friends. Unfortunately, I don’t have freezer space for all of it, so I had to can them. First time I’ve ever canned, too! I won’t get into that here, I just want to show you pictures.

And I want to tell you it’s delicious. Regular applesauce is just plain boring after you’ve tried Lodi. Taste and see!

Once I had the applesauce all canned, I decided to experiment with dressing them up. I came up with something simple, but I think it’s sweet! I found out that you can print on fabric with your inkjet. I cut out a square of very cheap cotton lining fabric and taped it to a piece of cardstock. I designed a label, printed, cut it out, and voila!! I just wish I had cut a bigger circle of fabric.