Back to basics
Sep. 3rd, 2009 02:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rhienellethI don't know if many of you know this about me, but I'm a farm girl. Born and raised on a farm. We raised and either butchered, or had butchered, our own beef, sausage, pork, chicken (until the pair of hawks living on our property ate them all), rabbit and, um, hmm. We also had a full garden every year.
I hate weeding to this day. And I have a terrible black thumb. I kill plants, indoors and out. So instead of growing my own, I buy from the local farmsand go to the Farmer's Market on Saturdays sometimes.
I vaguely recall my Mom canning when I was growing up, but then she got a full time job and that never happened again. Well, recently I made some jam from $10 worth of peaches I bought at the farmer's market. In the same week, I chipped in on a friend's fresh tuna buy and ended up with 23 half pints of freshly canned tuna that is freaking amazing.
Today, I went searching for canning tips online "what else can I can with mybarely adequate rustic water bath, home canning set up ?" But tomatoes and tomato sauce, it turns out, are low acidic content and either need acid added, or a pressure cooker to can. More research yielded that this is true of most vegetables and meats.
So, I wanted to upgrade my water bath set up, anyway. I need a taller, wider pot to do more cans at once. I need jar tongs, instead of the regular ones I've been using. The difference between getting this, and getting a pressure cooker in which I could either pressure cook OR water bath can was approximately $50. I went with the pressure cooker.
Free amazon two day shipping, that baby will be to me, um...crap. Next Wednesday, thanks to the holiday. :( Oh, well.
In the meantime, I'm on the hunt for the perfect tomato sauce/spaghetti sauce recipe. Alton Brown, don't fail me now! also, my boss has cucumbers coming out his ears from his garden. Perhaps I'll snag some and try my hand at homemade pickles! I do believe I'll make some homemade applesauce this Fall, as well. Mmmmmmmm.
Some central part of me misses that "home grown"-ness of the farm. I might not be able to raise my own cows, but we bought a quarter of a steer last year, part of which is still in my freezer, and I'm loving the canning possibilities.
Do any of you can? What are your favorite canning recipes?
I hate weeding to this day. And I have a terrible black thumb. I kill plants, indoors and out. So instead of growing my own, I buy from the local farmsand go to the Farmer's Market on Saturdays sometimes.
I vaguely recall my Mom canning when I was growing up, but then she got a full time job and that never happened again. Well, recently I made some jam from $10 worth of peaches I bought at the farmer's market. In the same week, I chipped in on a friend's fresh tuna buy and ended up with 23 half pints of freshly canned tuna that is freaking amazing.
Today, I went searching for canning tips online "what else can I can with my
So, I wanted to upgrade my water bath set up, anyway. I need a taller, wider pot to do more cans at once. I need jar tongs, instead of the regular ones I've been using. The difference between getting this, and getting a pressure cooker in which I could either pressure cook OR water bath can was approximately $50. I went with the pressure cooker.
Free amazon two day shipping, that baby will be to me, um...crap. Next Wednesday, thanks to the holiday. :( Oh, well.
In the meantime, I'm on the hunt for the perfect tomato sauce/spaghetti sauce recipe. Alton Brown, don't fail me now! also, my boss has cucumbers coming out his ears from his garden. Perhaps I'll snag some and try my hand at homemade pickles! I do believe I'll make some homemade applesauce this Fall, as well. Mmmmmmmm.
Some central part of me misses that "home grown"-ness of the farm. I might not be able to raise my own cows, but we bought a quarter of a steer last year, part of which is still in my freezer, and I'm loving the canning possibilities.
Do any of you can? What are your favorite canning recipes?
