For the most part, I think we are doing a good job of using up items.  I know for sure that the canned quarts of fruit and sauces will be gone soon.  I knew when I canned them that we would never have enough.  I’m glad that everyone in the house likes it.

For the jams, I did have to trash 2 pints of peach.  A couple of the jars weren’t sealed properly during one of my cupboard checks.  I’m not sure why we haven’t tried the strawberry lemon butter.  I think that will be the next jar that gets opened.  Our jam usage is directly correlated to our stock of yogurt.  As long as we are stocked on yogurt, we use quite a bit of jam.  Occasionally, we don’t have yogurt for several days and then use less jam.  I’m guessing that we’ll use most of it up before the next season starts, especially since peanut butter and jelly season is upon us.  It’s an easy item to pack for picnics.  Nick and Sally really enjoy eating lunch outside when the weather is nice.

It seems like I have extra of the tomato sauce, but it was also the last item canned.  Tomatoes for canning won’t be available until August, so there is plenty of time to use them.  I have extra tofu in the fridge right now, so I’ll be using some in lasagna this week.

It’s been fun to watch the empty jars stack up as we enjoy our bounty from last season.  I can’t wait to start over again for this season.

So, I’ve done my best to summarize each item that I canned this summer and its current inventory in our pantry.  Our house has a canned cupboard and it’s actually being used for its intended purpose.  It’s also fun to look at this list because we picked most of the items personally at local farms.  The exceptions being tomatoes and pears.

I think it will be good to revisit this list every once in a while to make sure we don’t forget what we have and to get an idea of how much we really use during a given year. I already know that we need many more quarts of chopped pears next season!