What are you canning now?

[Kismet]

When you can potatoes (or green beans and corn, for that matter), do you just pack the vegetables raw, without blanching, and let the processing stop the enzymatic activity? When I freeze veggies, I always blanch them first. I got a pressure canner last year, but so far, I have only canned chicken broth, chicken soup, and vegetable soup.

 

[BarefootMom]

Quote:
you can do it either way. I always do raw because you have to process for such a long time and I hate cooking things 3 times (blanch, process, dinner) Just be sure to put boiling water over the raw veggies.

 

[rancher hicks]

well I don't have enough currants for the recipe but will get more today and I've decided to use the recipe in the Certo or Sure Jell box. I do wish I didn't need so much sugar though. 7 cups is a lot of sugar.

Now for those canning with a PC. How can you tell if something hasn't gone bad? How do you know what to can for the year? or do you just can it all? Is it worth buying or growing food to can? Do you can your winter squash or just put it in a fruit cellar?

 

[3goodeggs]

Have you found the low sugar box? Ask the store if they carry it. I got some Ball low sugar at TSC.

I do not like the 7 cups either. The low sugar is not saccharin or nutrasweet, it is just higher pectin.
I think it makes a nicer jelly because you get more fruit flavor.

I also suggest that you get yourself a ball canning book. It has more than just recipes in it.
It covers pressure canning and jellies.

I am impressed that you have decided to pick this hobby/lifestyle up. It is work but fun work. and it is very satisfying to eat what you grew and preserved.
I get very happy on those rare days when I look at the dinner table and realize that everything on it is mine. I grew it/saved it/ served it.

As far as the PC goes and knowing if it has gone bad,:
If the top is popped, don't eat it.
If it seems slimy or different than the others, don't eat it.
If it smell off ~ don't eat it.
If in doubt, throw it out.
I have canned pumpkin when I have had a bumper crop. We Floridians usually do not have cellars. around here they are called swimming pools... Something about living on a giant sandbar.

 

[Kismet]

Quote:
I keep my butternut squash and potatoes in a cellar room where it says pretty cool - about 50 degrees. It should be colder, I know, and a proper root cellar is on the list of things to make, but until then . . . Even so, I have butternut well into April, if not May. When it starts to look wobbly, I make a big batch of squash soup. Pretty much the same with the potatoes.

I want to make pumpkin pie filling this year, and that I will can with the pressure cooker. I was just inspecting my pumpkin patch today and saw tiny jack ball size pumpkins beginning. [Does anyone play jacks anymore? It used to be my favorite game.] In the fall, when the pumpkins and I are both ready, I am sure I will be back for advice.

 

[Acre of Blessings]

Here is what I have been up to......We canned 13 quarts from 1 1/2 buckets full of Red Pontiac Potatoes (all jars are not shown), I have 2 1/2 more buckets to go and this is all from jsut one row from the garden. I think we have one or two more rows to go. YAH!!!!!!

and this......I love to mix Green Beans and Wax Beans. We canned 10 quarts with only about a 1/4 of a bushel that the kids picked from the garden, there are more now that we have to pick. YAH!!!!

and also this......I got 7 quarts from only 2 pounds of sliced Straight Eight Cukes that my MDD loves to gather from the garden. And I have another batch one day 3 now. YAH!!!

and last but not least.....our Zuchinni-Squash Relish....YUMMY....we canned 66 pints already and we aren't done yet. We have been gathering Zukes up to 15 inches long and this is the best thing we can do with those.

We are canning alot this year, possibly all that we can since now 7 years has come and we must let our garden spot rest for a year. We will plant Clover for the Honey Bees to polinate next year as well as fertilizing the land for the garden in 2013.


Well, hope you enjoyed the tour of whats been going on here at our little Acre of Blessings. Sure hope you all are putting away as much as you can. Now, back to the potatoes.

 

[rancher hicks]

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Well DW works and I've retired so I have to find things to do within my disability restrictions or go crazy.

Now back to the jelly. I got a recipe from Certo. It calls for 12 cups of currants which I got. However it calls for 1 1/2 cups of water and boiling these is supposed to yield 6 cups of juice. Except that I only got 3 cups of juice. So I put the berries back in the pot and added two more cups of water and boiled this but I doubt I'll get 3 more cups of juice. If I can get a hold of DD she's at the MIL and that's where I got more currants maybe she can get some more.

the recipe is . 12 cups of currants, 11/2 cups of water, 1 pack of certo, and 7 cups of sugar. Nothing is ever as easy as it seems. I thought the currants were juicy enough but I guess not.

So I am bummed and have mess to show for all my work. (hey creative people are never neat).

I do intend to get books from the library but apparently someone else has the same idea and I'm second on the list.

I'm no quitter so I'll carry on. AND I'll still try the goose berries and black berries. I know why jams are popular they are less messy and less work.

 

[math ace]

Quote:
Blackberry jam is a little messy BECAUSE you have to get rid of some of the seeds.
Blueberry jam was much easier for me to make.

I just started canning this year. I am canning because I am having a bumper crop of produce from the garden.
Normally, I plant and pace the garden so that we eat most as it is being produced....

This year I planted too many tomatoes. So, salsa has been the item at the top of our canning list.
I've been canning at least 6 pints of salsa every week for over a month now.

 

[rancher hicks]

Normally I plant tons of different tomatoes and freeze them. This year I didn't cuz I was to busy with chickens. My back will hurt just tying them up. I did plant eight plants , two types of squash and some garlic and peppers and herbs.

Math - Blackberry jam is made with the seeds. Without its Jelly. I do intend to make some but the folks said they won't be ripe till August.

Now the current Jelly came out ok. I put the currants back in the pot and added two cups of water and boiled the hell out of them. Then I restrained them and got just over 6 cups of juice. The recipe says not to squeeze the cheese cloth but I did anyway.

I added the pack of certo and then the sugar. I got just over 11 pints.

DW says it's good and since it one she likes I'll take her word for it.

Now to get those gooseberries and I'm hoping to get more currants. SIL parents have them so I can get them for free just like the black berries. Not a bad deal huh?

I really am glad you guys are here to talk to. Some folks just don't understand why anyone would go through this.

 

[math ace]

Quote:
I don't have the freezer space for veg. Plus the shelf life is longer with canning than freezing.

I planted over 30 tomato plants . I planted about 7 different varieties.
I think I have put up over 40 pints of salsa so far.
Next year, I don't think I will plant so many tomato plants

With blackberry jam, my directions still had me strain the seeds from 1/2 of the pulp.