Jammin' on the Fourth

So I did my Monday plan of making Ginger Pear Preserves. It was so much fun. I started out by boiling my jars and lids. Now, these jars are from the early 90s and were filled with dead Doodle-Bugs. Yay for sterilization. I boiled the jars and the lids in separate pots. And then, I bust out my cooking pot and reduced down six pears and ginger with lime.

Now, the recipe said I would get seven jars. Well, based on this: that was not going to be the case.

Lo and behold, I got three and a half jars.

Nonetheless, it was an amazing experience that included a facial. I have never stood at my hot stove for so long. After 30 minutes, the water canner finally started to boil, and I put in my jars of jam to cook away the germs. Then poof, Ginger Pear Jam.

Now, I must say, I have not yet tried it. I know, unbelievable. But I did give a jar to a friend, and she said it was really good. Yes, it is more than quite possible that she made it up to make me feel better, so I know I need to taste it. I will. Tomorrow for my lunch peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Also, over the Fourth of July weekend, my boyfriend's parents came in town. I took it upon myself to challenge my culinary skills and cook them dinner.

I made a Panko and Parsley Crusted Catfish marinated in Wasabi Ginger Sauce with Shrimp and Edamame Rice. It was so good. The crust could have used more seasoning, but it was still pretty good. His parents were very appreciative. Even more so with the Summer Berry Ice Cream. I made a simple ice cream with the berries macerated in lemon juice. It really brought out the flavor with vanilla and almond. It really was a nice ending to our dinner.

After stewing on that Chai Tea Ice Cream, the more I don't like it. I will try again on that and hope for the best. I think I failed by using too small of a tea leaf allowing me to use much more. This made for a denser ice cream since the leaves soaked up more milk than I think they were supposed to. I will use a bigger leaf next time.

On another note, my boyfriend's parents have invited us on a cruise in February. I will be in a bikini on that trip if it kills me. That's my new motivation. :)

And as a good start on this mission of being 140lbs by February, I have finally dropped into the 70s. I haven't been in the 70s for almost 2 years. It was a great feeling to see that on the scale today.

July 6th: 179 lbs.
February 1st: 140 lbs.

So far this summer has lived up to the Summer of Me.