There are inches of snow on the ground and inches more to come. I am bored with winter vegetables and itching to get in the garden. Solution? Rob the larder. I have serious love for the word larder. Isn't it fantastic?

This summer I canned tomatoes, applesauce, barbecue sauce, peach jam, strawberry jam, ketchup and tomato paste. It was hours of work to pick and process all these treasures. The matching little jars have laid in wait in the basement for many months.

The payoff is now, in mid winter, when I grab a jar and enjoy the fruits of my labor. Sunlit sweetness and fresh air combine with the luscious appeal of handmade to make me transcend the winter blues one biteful at a time.

How do you taste summer in these winter months?