What are you canning now?

[bockbock2008]

Awesome, I have several of those in varying sizes. I use them for making herbal tinctures and straining my wines/meads. I love it when I don't have to get new equipment Can't wait for it to arrive now! LOL

I rather like small chunks in my chili but prefer my spaghetti sauce smoother. I do find tho that after cooking down the sauce most of the lumps tend to cook down. When you can after using the mill, do you do a hot or cold pack?

Mickey

I usually do a hot pack and on this last batch of spaghetti sauce, it called for a little oil so I pressure canned it as well. On the seperated juice and the salsa I do hot pack too. Come to think of it, besides some pickles and fruits, I mostly do hot pack.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Quote:
I hear ya, I have blackberries and strawberries calling to me from the freezer. And ripe nectarines in the fridge.

We're doing eggs and pancakes tonight. I was going to do a quiche, but it's too hot to use the oven. Plus the kids love having breakfast for dinner.

 

[vfem]

I am dead tired and over heated too. I did the last of the tomatoes & I have 3 gallons of figs still yet to do. So done right now. I've had a rough couple of weeks, rarely getting the sleep I need and beating myself up between work, the garden and the family. Husband has been working 12-18 hour days and I rarely see him at all. He starts 3rd shift tomorrow... so I'm acting like a single mom all of a sudden. So I have decided to give myself a day to relax, well, most of the day. My mom is taking my daughter so I can get a massage and have a nice lunch by myself. After lunch though I'm off to the farm to get to picking peppers and figs and then home to try to can a bit of fruit. Pears will be ready in a week and I have to make room to work on those next.

I'm putting in my order for onions, leeks and garlic next week because I need those in and planted by end of September for next year. Can't believe I'm BEHIND on getting the fall garden in. It sucks being alone trying to juggle all this. I'm kinda over worked and sad. That garden is the happy part of my world, and it breaks my heart when I let things go. *sad face*

 

[redneck4life27]

Well did 4 quarts of tomatos out of the garden today just starting on what the blight didnt get and did 6 quarts of dill pickles. 2 of the quarts are with jalapenos. Tomorrow were doing bread and butter pickles plus pickled jalapenos. Just waiting on my beets to grow then pickled beets.

 

[KDbeads]

Just found out there's a county fair here in a few weeks. They have a canned goods contest!! I am so entering this! I know a couple of you have entered fairs before (Vfem yes?) any advice????
Right now I'm looking at entering green tomato relish, candy apple jelly and possibly muscadine jelly, green beans, squash pickles, and peas if they come in in time.

I have until the 4th of Sept to get everything ready.

 

[3goodeggs]

I canned so much last year that the only thing we need this year are more tomatoes. I only plant a few for fresh eating so we usually get a bushel or two from local farmers.

After checking the Lehman's catalog, I decided the next canning session would be using the Roma Food Mill. No peeling required! I don't care if there are seeds, but the skins have to go and if this puppy works as advertised (and the customer reviews are great) I'll be as happy as chicks in a field of grasshoppers. I also ordered the accessory screens because I like my tomatoes a little chunky. It should arrive this week and then we'll grab tomatoes and get right to it.

http://www.lehmans.com/store/Kitche..._Food_Mills___Roma__Food_Mill___070801#070801 is what it looks like, if you're interested.

I'm also thinking of canning some mushrooms. Has anyone done this? I had thought that since they need to be pressure canned, I could slice them and do a cold pack, but all the sites I've seen say to cook first and do a hot pack.

Thanks!
Mickey

I pressure canned a box of mushrooms and if I ever am gifted with mushrooms again, I will do it again. I used them in everything and they just did not last long enough. I followed the ball book directions to the T. The last thing I wanted to do was give my family botulism.

Things that grow in or near the earth with low acid need to be pressure processed.
How ever, the ones that I just sliced and froze for pizza, worked just as well. only thing that makes canning preferable to me is the length of time you can keep it. If you have more than you can consume before it ends up tasting like freezer, can it.

 

[animalsRawesome]

Just found out there's a county fair here in a few weeks. They have a canned goods contest!! I am so entering this! I know a couple of you have entered fairs before (Vfem yes?) any advice????
Right now I'm looking at entering green tomato relish, candy apple jelly and possibly muscadine jelly, green beans, squash pickles, and peas if they come in in time.

I have until the 4th of Sept to get everything ready.

I've never entered, but IK that a large part of your score is presentation... I could be wrong, but I believe you can't just like dump the green beans in the jar, you have to literally stack each one in there so they are nice and pretty

 

[3goodeggs]

I am dead tired and over heated too. I did the last of the tomatoes & I have 3 gallons of figs still yet to do. So done right now. I've had a rough couple of weeks, rarely getting the sleep I need and beating myself up between work, the garden and the family. Husband has been working 12-18 hour days and I rarely see him at all. He starts 3rd shift tomorrow... so I'm acting like a single mom all of a sudden. So I have decided to give myself a day to relax, well, most of the day. My mom is taking my daughter so I can get a massage and have a nice lunch by myself. After lunch though I'm off to the farm to get to picking peppers and figs and then home to try to can a bit of fruit. Pears will be ready in a week and I have to make room to work on those next.

I'm putting in my order for onions, leeks and garlic next week because I need those in and planted by end of September for next year. Can't believe I'm BEHIND on getting the fall garden in. It sucks being alone trying to juggle all this. I'm kinda over worked and sad. That garden is the happy part of my world, and it breaks my heart when I let things go. *sad face*

I know exactly how you feel about the garden. I am the same way. The last few years my hay fever has gotten so bad I can not force myself to can after the beginning of June. I have not had a fall garden in years. Do not run yourself down. Maybe you can invest in a freezer and pace yourself over the year. Take care of you.

 

[redneck4life27]

Well today i got 5 quarts of bread and butter pickles. With the amount of pickles i thought id have more guess i cant calculate the amount by just looking lol.

 

[vfem]

Just found out there's a county fair here in a few weeks. They have a canned goods contest!! I am so entering this! I know a couple of you have entered fairs before (Vfem yes?) any advice????
Right now I'm looking at entering green tomato relish, candy apple jelly and possibly muscadine jelly, green beans, squash pickles, and peas if they come in in time.

I have until the 4th of Sept to get everything ready.

Oh yes, those fairs are so fun! Don't stress yourself, lots of people enter and the first year I did it I didn't win anything, but I learned to look at all the winning entries.

I found not only is taste important, but looks are super important. Like raspberry or blackberry jam. They liked ones with seeds in it, but not a lot. The brighter purple ones did better then the darker ones. They like SUPER clear jelly. Don't enter anything you add dye to, they don't win (I see people add dye to hot pepper jelly and they never place).

So... pick your prettiest jars!!!!