%he search function here is horrible when it DOES work, so Jude, here are Carol's Pear Preserves and Doris' Peach Preserves for a Cold Morning. I did cut the sugar down in the pear preserves successfully to half the amount of sugar, so I used 2 lbs of sugar to 4 lbs of pears. Any less and you won't get a gel while the pears are still intact. Be aware that cutting the sugar does result in a longer cooking time, so the slices of pear are getting more cooked and can fall apart. I do have to admit, they are sweeter, clearer, absolutely perfect with the full amount of sugar, but I like the idea of a bit less sugar, even now that Dad's gone. Darn, why can't I have everything? (grin) Old Fashioned Pear Preserves from Carol (Readinglady) You can also make Pear Preserves if you want chunks of pear suspended in syrup. By weight use equal amounts of pears and sugar. You also need the juice and seeds of one lemon. I wouldn't go over about 4 pounds of fruit because it takes too long to cook larger amounts. This takes several days, but it's mainly waiting and the results are wonderful. Here's what you do: Day 1: Peel, core and cut firm-ripe pears into chunks or slices. Leave pieces large enough to retain character in preserves. Place pears in acidified water (Fruit Fresh or Ascorbic Acid). Rinse and drain pears. Place in large bowl and add sugar equal in weight to pears. Add juice of lemon and place pips (seeds) in small bag. It's messy but I also add any of the pulp that was reamed out. Add to bowl. Stir gently to distribute syrup and refrigerate overnight. Throughout evening stir occasionally to distribute sugar. (I usually don't do this more than once.) Day 2: Place macerated pears and sugar syrup with lemon seeds in bag in large pan. Bring to a boil and cook about 10 minutes, skimming foam. Reduce temperature and continue to cook (about 20 minutes) until pears are translucent and candied. Turn off heat and leave pears and syrup overnight. (This can be room temperature.) Cover pan with a cloth, not a lid (to prevent condensation). Day 3: Using a slotted spoon lift pears from syrup and place in a strainer. Collect any additional syrup in a bowl beneath the strainer. (I drained syrup left in pan into a bowl and washed the pan because the syrup was crystallized along the rim then I put the syrup back.) Bring syrup to a boil and cook to gel point stirring frequently. (Depending on how thick you want the syrup, this can be anywhere from 218-222.) You can also use the frozen plate test. The advantage is you get to thicken the syrup just the way you like without cooking the delicate pears to the point of disintegration. Return the pears to syrup and boil 1 minute to reheat them. Pull off heat and let sit for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (This allows fruit to equalize with the syrup so it doesn't float to the top of the jar.) Place preserves in sterilized jars and BWB 5 minutes or clean, hot jars and BWB 10 minutes. Now, on the Peach Jam for Cold Mornings, I used a whole orange because what the heck do I do with half an orange, LOL, and I used ripe (red) jalapenos because I didn't have habs. I think the habaneros are perfect for this, though, because they have a "fruity" flavor that goes well with the peaches. This stuff is perfect for bagels with cream cheese. ORANGE/PEACH/HABANERO JAM (Jam for Cold Mornings) 3 lbs. ripe peaches, peeled and quartered 1/2 medium sized orange, quartered and seeded 2 habaneros, seeds and all 4 cups sugar 1/4tsp almond extract 3/4 cup honey Combine peaches, sugar and honey in a dutch oven, stir well. Cover and let stand 45 minutes. In food processor chop oranges and habaneros until finally chopped, scraping down sides a couple of times. Place orange, habaneros and an equal amount of water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Bring peach mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium high and cook, uncovered, 15 minutes, stirring often. Add orange mixture. Bring to a boil, cook, uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until a candy thermometer registers 221F, stirring often. Remove from heat, stir in almond extract. Skim off foam with metal spoon. Quickly pour hot mixture into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace, wipe jar rims. Cover with lids and Process in boiling water bath 10 minutes. Yield: 6 half pints Happy Canning. Annie

Jackie, your package arrived the day we went camping. Theresa, I received 2 packages today, thanks so much. Kristene, yours arrived today, too. Thanks everyone, the patches and strips are just perfect. beverly

Recently I've become aware of other fabric collections with food-related names. Moda in particular promotes these through the Moda Bake Shop blog, which has "recipes" for various quilt and craft projects that can be made from various collections, including: Jelly Rolls - 2.5-inch strips Desert Rolls - 5-inch strips (Nancy's Notions calls these Double Wide Strips) Honey Buns - 1.5-inch strips Layer Cakes - 10-inch squares Turnovers - 6-inch triangles And, of course: Charms - 5-inch squares Fat quarter packs In particular, "Turnover" was a new type of collection that I hadn't seen before. I've purchased Jelly Rolls at my local Hancock's but I've had the same experience in that they are not always in stock. Sometimes JRs are in stock, but often they are not. CMC

Fastest quilt top I've ever done!! It turned out being 50 by 66 inches. I want to put a framing border around it, but there are so many weird colors not sure where to go in my stash for it. Definitely not something I would want to keep but it would make a good charity quilt or a give-away to someone who took a fancy for it. The part I did have a problem with was the strips were so long and kept twisting up, the lady on the website never mentioned any tricks for keeping that from happening.