Married ...with Dinner's Profile

we use the paper-towel roll-up trick, too. it works like a charm.

if you spread a very thin layer of olive oil on the surface of the avocado and then wrap it in plastic wrap (or place it on a reusable piece of oilcloth, like an Abeego wrap) it will create more of a seal than the wrap alone. I have had avocados stay fresh this way for days, and the oil does not degrade the flesh the way that acids do.

I share my pressure canner with friends all the time; it's silly for everyone (especially those with small apartments) to each have their own. Another couple actually borrows our canner and we borrow theirs, when we have big batches to put up.

I'd definitely be up for lending other appliances and bulky items to friends. I'm amazed that the apartment share closet works properly, though -- human nature being what it is, I'd expect things to go missing.

Dasmueller: I bought mine on eBay -- that's probably your best bet.

yeah, hello? biggest change is the new microwave.

I use Abeego flats and wraps for a lot of the things I used to use plastic wrap for. They're washable/reusable oilcloth that's coated in beeswax (it smells so good!):

I bought mine on Etsy: http://abeego.etsy.com

we have a side-by-side (and a counter-depth model, at that) in our kitchen, because there wasn't enough room for another option without destroying the layout. And also, we both prefer the easy access of the s-x-s layout. We also have a another fridge in our basement -- a top-freezer model.

We mostly bought the spare to store stocks, pasta sauces, bulk meat purchases, and other 'pantry' items in the freezer; we didn't like any of the upright chest freezers we could get at the time, and most of them were so big that we'd have struggled to keep it full (which is the way they run most efficiently). So now we have plenty of space for our frozen backstock, as well as fridge space for our seltzer deliveries, extra beer, flours and grains, and all those condiments that don't get used that often. When we entertain, or when we have the occasional item that's too wide for the upstairs fridge, we can keep larger items downstairs, too.

What's the purpose of not waterbathing preserves? I get it for pickles and other things where additional (or any) cooking changes texture, but jellies and jams are already cooked down. Why take the risk?

For those who want to remain blissfully unaware that they're eating bugs/larvae on a regular basis: Please don't Google "FDA natural contaminants".

BTW, it's not just bulk foods that have this problem; I've had the same issues in the past with everything from Bisquick to dry cereal. And many bugs will eat through zip-loc bags.

Using airight bulk containers keeps infestations from spreading on the chance you do bring something home.

Are green sour plums a different variety, or are they just unripe red/purple plums? The ones in the photo don't look like Greengages / Reine Claudes -- they lack that translucence of a ripe plum, too.

Annebelle - most stone fruits will soften off the branch, but they don't usually develop their full sweetness if they're picked too early.

And it wouldn't surprise me at all if the stone fruit season in the Bay Area is seriously small / short /expensive -- the huge rains we had during early spring wiped out a lot of blossoms, and those that remained got drenched so badly their pollen stuck to gummy petals. Our usually prolific Santa Rosa plum tree is almost bare; we'll maybe get a couple dozen fruit this year, compared with the 20 gallons we got last year.