Okay a really stupid cooking question. ***Update Help***

[SoccerMomof7]

Okay, but do I just use soap and water for the pennys? My recipe calls for me to use a crock pot, should I still use the pennys?

My Dh is going to think I am crazy!

 

[sweetshoplady]

Cheeptrick - how do you pressure cook jars? Do you put them in there with water (in the pot) after you fill them? Or before you fill them?

 

[cheeptrick]

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Yes...I soap them overnight and then wash with soap and water...it is being cooked so all the bacteria is killed. WAIT till you see the pennies after you are done...SO shiny!!

 

[cheeptrick]

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Begin using the same process as the water bath by adding first the boiling water, then the jars onto the rack and then filling the pan with additional water to cover the jars by at least 2 inches. Firmly attach the pressure cooker lid and place the pressure cooker over high heat. Bring it to a high steam and let the steam exhaust for 10 minutes. Close the vent when the steam coming from the jet is nearly invisible.


When you have reached 8 pounds of pressure, lower the heat slightly. Let the pressure continue to rise until you have reached 10 pounds. At this point, start your timer and hold the 10 pounds of pressure for the entire process. If you have problems maintaining 10 pounds of pressure, turn up the heat, repressurize to 10 pounds and restart the timing process.


When the timer goes off, remove the pressure cooker from the heat and let it cool completely. (Do not pour cold water onto the pot to speed up the cooling process!) When the pressure returns to zero, open the vent and then carefully open the lid keeping it slanted away from you to prevent a steam burn. Remove the jars from the cooker using the tongs and set aside to cool.

I also use my pressure cooker to make homemade BEEF STEW in like 20 minutes...it is WICKED fast and cooks everything so nicely!! Ok....I'm going to break out the cooker...got ME going again!! LOL

 

[cheeptrick]

LOOK what I found...

Maybe I'll get one so I'll be all set come fall instead of using the pennies. LOL
http://www.lehmans.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=14

 

[eggzettera]

You may want to ask yourself this question (I googled)....


Question: Is my Penny a Copper, or a Zinc Cent?

Answer:

If your Lincoln Memorial penny has a date before 1982, it is made of 95% copper. If the date is 1983 or later, it is made of 97.5% zinc, with a thin copper coating, or "clad."

For pennies minted in 1982, when both copper and zinc cents were made, the safest and best way to tell their composition is to weigh them. Copper pennies weigh 3.11 grams, whereas the zinc pennies weigh only 2.5 grams.

If you don't have a gram scale handy, you can use the "ring" test. You need a hard formica surface, a known copper penny, and a known zinc penny. Drop each one onto the table, listening to its distinctive "ring." Zinc pennies have sort of a flat ring, whereas copper pennies have a higher-pitched, more melodious "ring." Once you have a good feeling for how each type sounds, start dropping your 1982's one at a time, and you should be able to sort them out by metal composition. Obviously, this test isn't as reliable as weighing them, but it should help you sort most of them.

Cherrypicker's Tip - Watch out for "transitional" mint errors! "Transistional" errors occurred on the Lincoln Memorial Cents when the mint accidentally used copper stock for 1983 pennies. These "wrong stock" pennies weigh 3.1 grams, rather than the 2.5 of the zinc cents. If you find a copper 1983, it just might be worth... a pretty penny!

 

[HorseFeathers]

Darn, Lea71, you stole what I was gonna say! Oh well, I'll say it anyway:

There's no such thing as a stupid question!
Most "stupid questions" (like 'why is grass green?') actually have complicated and interesting answers (grass is green because of a chemical inside it) that most people (usually the ones who think it's a "stupid question") don't know the answer to! In your case, though, luckily the answer is simple: just a secion.

 

[cheeptrick]

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So that is WHY she made us go thru all those pennies...I thought she was just trying to teach us dates!! LOL

I've used pennies in mine...I hope the Zinc is ok for you...right??

 

[eggzettera]

Centrum A-Z is a multivitamin brand name that come to mind (Z=zinc)

 

[Cetawin]

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Isn't that a law? If not, it should be....mmmmmmm garlic