Wednesday, July 12, 2006

How to clean a pot

Have you ever burned something in a pot and then had black gunk inside that you just can't get rid of? Yes, you have soaked it, scrubbed it, put it through the dishwasher. But its still there. I have discovered the secret to getting rid of it! Read on for my foolproof method.

1. On a bright sunny...er... sweltering summer day, go down to your local u-pick berry farm & pick about 11 pounds of perfectly ripe, juicy strawberries while your son alternately screams or is distracted by coating himself head to toe in berry juice & dirt. Pray he doesn't vomit on the way home from eating about a pound of dirty strawberries.

3. Congratulate yourself for only paying $1 a pound for the berries. Remember that berries at Haggen are only $1.50 a pound this week. So you saved.... $5.50 And it took you 2 hours of misery...er....work to save $5.50 Congratulate yourself that your berries are at the peak of ripeness, bursting with strawberry goodness, unlike those californian berries at Haggens.

4. Bring berries home & spend an hour or two washing, hulling & freezing them. Be sure to leave a few in a bag on your counter overnight so that they can stain your countertop.

5. On a rainy day, pull some berries out of the freezer to make jam. Read the Sure Jell instructions carefully and decide you'll go through the whole boiling the jars for hours process so that you don't accidentally poison your family.

5. Crush the berries in a saucepan and procede to make jam. Now, here is the miraculous part! As your succulent, bursting with goodness berries reach a full boil, you will notice that the black gunk has started to come off your pot! It is now floating in your bubbling berries!

6. Shrug your shoulders & finish with the jam already. Sit back on the couch and listen to the rain and the satisfying popping of the lids as they seal up your hard work & pot gunk, all neatly encased in Strawberry Jam. (will keep for one year if stored properly)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am laughing as I am all too familiar with the scene. I took Abbey with me to pick strawberries when she was not quite one and well you painted the scene perfectly. I finally left after about a half hour of filling my bucket only to turn around and see my daughter happily licking her lips having emptied it...I knew her diaper would be a "honey do you mink changing her this time I think she is poopy." When I went to pay for my hand full of strawberries I managed to salvage the lady asked me if I wanted to buy some prepick berries. With two little ones this year I stuck with Haggens...and left the experience for another year.

Anonymous said...

Kari, you are so stinkin' cute! I love reading your blog- you always make me smile and laugh out loud :)

Anonymous said...

I just love this...your subtle humor. At first I think, hey you are telling a funny story but then you trick me into thinking you are writing about how to make jam...then you trick me again and make me laugh. I love this and I love black flecks and stains on my dishes that I cannot figure out how they got there or how to get them off. Thanks for letting me smile.