My hands are weak and painful (CFS/Fibro/Arthro) which, fortunately, doesn’t affect my typing, but it does make paring difficult-to-dangerous. Good thing, Dearest likes to cook, because I had to give up any food prep that involved sharp knives many, many years ago. Then, Mama Buzz got me an ulu in Alaska and woohoo!! I can cook again!!
That got me wanting to get back into making soups … something I’ve enjoyed since my college days. Dunno why, but baking never appealed to me. My friends thought I was so weird, because I’d much rather make soups and salads than brownies or cookies … but there’s so much room for creativity and all with fresh, edible goodness. What’s not to like?! Unfortunately, our stove’s lowest setting is too hot for the low, low simmer that makes soup go from okay to fantabulous, so I had too many batches of soup that went cold or scorched as I struggled to find the non-existent sweet spot on the knob. Then, a girlfriend found me a used crock pot and I was in business! (I can’t use new appliances, because of the chemical smells.)
I’ve also figured out how to do boiling bath canning again … safely, by myself, weak hands and all. But as brilliant as the ulu is for chopping … peeling apples is a paring knife job I cannot manage. I tried. I wrecked my hands so badly, I couldn’t make a fist for almost a week. Enter … the apple machine! My goodness, but this dandy little gizmo is EASY! Even for me!
So color me all giggly with 4-year-old Me Do happiness! I am making and canning apple sauce ALL BY MYSELF today!! 🙂
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