Surviving Minnesota!

[duluthralphie]

FYI: For those who want to downsize and are not ready for New Ulm this weekend...there is a auction in Fergus Falls on Sept. 10th ( * April 23, June 18, Sept 10 – Tri State Bird and Animal Auction – Fergus Falls MN. Ottertail County Fairgrounds West Contact Chuck (605) 884-6309 or Wayne (701) 238-6820) and a swap in Hutchinson on Sept. 17th (* February 20, September 17 - MN Game Breeders Swap, McLeod Co. Fairgrounds 840 Century Avenue Southwest Hutchinson, MN 55350. 7am, $5 admission, contact Doug Randall (320) 236-2270 or (320) 333-7111).

Thanks!!!!

 

[bantiesrule]

You're Welcome.
Even though the Hutchinson one says it's a game breeder swap there is usually chickens there also (and guineas

).

 

[jerryse]

OK tomatoes are canned . Here are some canning memories . I remember the old #63 lids . These fit the quart jars that coffee once came . Time was everything got reused . Vinegar used to come in gallon and half gallon jars and often had wire handles . They phased out the old 63 lids . It got so you had to special order them at last . We finally got rid of them by the 80's . Everyone used to save quart jars that mustard and mayo came in . They started saying they were not safe for canning . Not strong enough . So they changed the size of the threads in the 80's slightly . You could not tighten them enough .They would slip. Now you can not find mustard in quart size plastic even . The exploding jars were usually the result of not enough head space of air . Beginners often overfilled them and then water bathed them .The pressure built up and some exploded . My wife even had real canning jars break Now I do the canning and I make sure I leave head space plus I lightly tighten the lid . I then put them in the rack and leave them hanging in the water bath caner a few minutes while it boils . I then tighten the lids fully before submerging them all the way in water . This allows the juice to expand fully and makes a good vacuum seal when they cool .

 

[duluthralphie]

I am still canning, I have the tomato paste done but not the juice it needs to boil down a little more.

I have the vacuum packer out and am going to do the beans now. I freeze them in a baggy over night then use the vacuum packer over the baggie. I have a little frost from freezing them but not much and once I vacuum pack them any more frost is done. I get a better seal when they are frozen first. No Moisture.


I did not know that about the jars, Jerry. I was wondering why I could not use the old mayo jars and stuff. I know my Grandma used every jar she could find. That also explains why the "mug" that looks like a jar from "Dave's BBQ" does not take a lid! I filled it first and could not get the lid ring on....


Still trying to figure out what to do with the peppers.


I have my egg plant "pasta" made, just need to get it into the oven and layered for lasagna. I need to run and get some sausage I am out. Time to find a pig to butcher. I hate buying meat, I prefer farm raised somewhere I know where it came from.

Coffee called she has 4 baby turkeys from her hen. I hope she has better luck than I have the last few days...

 

[jerryse]

Ralphie here are some tips . First I discovered this by accident . When doing paste Which I usually do not do paste . I noticed once you you run the tomatoes through the Foley food mill or Victorio strainer or whatever you use . Hard to beat the Foley for easy to use and clean . Anyway if you let the juice sit awhile it will form clumps and clear liquid . I then tried straining it through a Garden Way cider bag . The one you put the ground apples in . Yeah you may not have ever seen one . Anyway pour the juice through this bag and you get paste in the bag and nearly clear juice . A lot less cooking . Flavor is more like real tomato as you have not cooked it so much .

 

[Bogtown Chick]

 

[lvie]

I had to run a few errands and then I decided to take a little ride to my friends house and see Tom. Well, he looks like he has died and gone to heaven. Very happy. Just thought you were probably thinking about him as much as I was (which really was not too often) and would want to know that.

 

[duluthralphie]

Ralphie here are some tips . First I discovered this by accident . When doing paste Which I usually do not do paste . I noticed once you you run the tomatoes through the Foley food mill or Victorio strainer or whatever you use . Hard to beat the Foley for easy to use and clean . Anyway if you let the juice sit awhile it will form clumps and clear liquid . I then tried straining it through a Garden Way cider bag . The one you put the ground apples in . Yeah you may not have ever seen one . Anyway pour the juice through this bag and you get paste in the bag and nearly clear juice . A lot less cooking . Flavor is more like real tomato as you have not cooked it so much .

We have a "juicer" (Hamilton Beach). I am not even sure you can call what I make paste, BUT I do. I hate to waste anything.

I juice the tomatoes then set the juice on the stove to boil down. It is really watery, even after I boil 1/3 off it is pretty watery. I take all the "junk" the juicer kicks out the first time I juice the tomatoes and I re-juice it. I get a real think paste, almost like a malted milk. I run the "junk" through twice. by doing that all the junk is real ground up, you cannot even find a piece of skin left. I put the "junk" into a strainer (very fine one) and mush it around to make sure there are no undesireable pieces of skin or stalk, there never is because I am pretty fussy on the cleaning of the tomatoes before the first juicing.


I then take the junk and mix it in with the milk shake consistency stuff. I mix it well and boil that until it has broken down. It gives me a "paste" with seeds and all in it. I use it in chili and most cooking I do when I do not need a pure juice. Which for me is most the time.

I have no idea what to call it but it makes a paste that is thinner than paste from the store. But way thicker than my juice. I add a little citric acid to everything, do you do that or add lemon juice?

 

[I Love Layers]

Got #11!!
A sophomore took number 8, we're friends so it was ok!

 

[MNChickMom]

Good morning all!