Richard Beamer, Buy a Thermometer

Recently, one of Big Man's pals came to town, and we met up for lunch. There was some discussion of "The Beamer" getting in to smoking meat. The one point Big Man and "Weiffer" tried to impress upon him was, a thermometer was the first step before any meat product can be smoked. Except ribs, they are strictly a timed meat, but we digress.
"The Beamer" can't pull off a smoke like this one, until he gets a thermometer.

We smoked a large chicken roaster, and a flat brisket end at the same time. The chicken we had for dinner, the brisket we sliced and made brisket sandwiches for lunch over the week, and diced up a few slices for Sunday breakfast.
The big project this week was green beans. Our garden has started producing beans on a regular basis, and Pop's garden came in about the same time. So we picked about five shopping bags full, and got a little help when it came time to can.

Kattie Grace has yet to show an interest in stringing and breaking, but she did jump in when it came time to fill jars and can them up. We do believe we are starting to rub off on the next generation.
We had a few beans left over, so we made a small batch of dilled green beans just to try. They are a acquired taste.

Another project this week was jalapeno peppers. We mentioned earlier that we only planted two plants this year, and still, we are getting peppers on top of peppers. We made a second batch of jelly this week, and decided to share the step by step. Even the most citified city dweller could make this simple recipe.
First, clip off the ends of the peppers and weigh out twelve ounces of peppers. Drop them in whole, seeds and all.

Drop them into a blender with two cups of apple cider vinegar, and one pack of Sure Gel. Blend the mix smooth.

Pour the mixture into a large pot, and stir over a medium heat until the mix begins to boil. Continue to stir for one minute while boiling, then add six cups of sugar. Continue to stir.

Bring to a boil again, and allow to boil another one minute while stirring. Then remove from heat and ladle into pint or jelly jars.

Wipe the mouth of the jars with a wet rag/towel. Then place lids and rings, finger tight, and place into a hot water bath. Boil for ten minutes, and then turn off the heat and leave the jars in the water while it cools enough to remove by hand. The jars should seal before they cool off enough to touch.

The jelly will 'set up' in the jar. We recommend putting a bit of cream cheese on a cracker of your choice, and a dab of the jelly, for a quick snack. It turns out to be an entire lunch for us, but we are professionals.
We ended the week with wings.
K&K