My Canning Story by Patrice Hall

 My Canning Story

(It didn’t go as expected!)

by Patrice Hall

I decided to can plums this week. They were sitting in my fridge, and no one had plans to eat them. So, I cleaned my countertop, prepared my pots and utensils, and measured the sugar and water.  I cleaned and sliced the plums, set them aside and prepared the simple syrup using the website https://nchfp.uga.edu/ (The National Center for Home Food Preservation) as a guide.  I didn’t follow the instructions exactly, and I felt confident that I was going to get great results because I've canned 4 times already.  

Washed red plums in a blue bowl.

 

I had eight large plums and three small plums, so I decided to slice the small ones in half and cut the large ones in fourths.  This made the pieces about even, so I boiled them in the simple syrup (and I added some fruit juice I made from peaches from a previous share) while boiling the pint jars, then I went back to my computer and started working.

After about 20 minutes of work, I went back to the kitchen, the pot with the plums boiled over, spilling sticky syrup all over the left side of the stove.  OMG!  What a mess! Good thing I caught it before it got worse.  I cleaned the area, filled the hot jars with the plums (which are shredded) and processed them in the hot water canner.  

My reason for writing this is to demonstrate that we can still go ahead and can our produce even though it may not be picture perfect, it is still good produce which is better than what you can find in the supermarkets.  It may even be the best plums I ever made, who knows?

I still plan to pickle the green beans and other veggies we get in our shares; my husband loves pickled produce. When I do, I will write about those experiences as well.  I used the following ingredients and materials for canning the plums:

2 cups sugar (used for simple syrup)

4 cups water

32oz. fruit juice (made with peaches and sugar)

4 pint Ball canning jars with lids and bands

For the taste test (moment of truth) I will wait until my son tries a jar and see what he thinks 😊

Four mason jars of canned plums on a white paper towel.

 

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

Making Peach Jam by Patrice Hall

 Making Peach Jam

by Patrice Hall

This summer, I decided that I wanted to learn how to make jams, preserves and pickles.  I also want to start fermenting veggies as well (sauerkraut), and I wanted to start spouting beans.  This is very ambitious for me, and I started with jam first because I had a bunch of peaches which I wanted to use and they looked delish sitting in my fridge.  Usually, we would get lots of cucumbers, but so far no dice and the ones I receive I usually eat right away in salads.  So, I opened my Ball Book of Canning and Preserving book and used the National Center for Home Food Preservation site https://nchfp.uga.edu/ and started my jam.

Ingredients needed:

4 each ½ pint Ball jars with the lids and bands (I prefer the wide mouth jars)

*Prepared Peaches 2 2/3 cups

Fruit Pectin (3 tablespoons)

Sugar 3 1/3 cups

Whole peaches in a blue bowl in a steel sink.

Chopped peaches, lemon juice, sugar, and pectin boiling in a steel pot.

 

Instructions:

Clean the jars with soap and water then boil them in a large canning pot to make them hot.  While this is happening, you prepare the peaches by peeling, pitting them, then finely chop them, then sprinkle them with the lemon juice.  When the canning pot with the jars is boiling well you can remove the jars then set aside with the lids and bands.  Keep the canning pot boiling so you can use it right away after you fill the jars.

Combine the prepared peaches and fruit pectin in a large saucepan.  Bring this to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down, over high heat, stirring constantly.  Add the sugar, stirring to dissolve.  Return to a full rolling boil, boil hard for 1 minute while stirring constantly.  Remove from heat then skim the foam.  Then ladle the hot jam into the hot jars leaving ¼ inch headspace.  Place the lid on the jar with the band and close to fingertip tight.  Place the jar in the canning pot, repeat until all jars are filled.  Place top on canner and boil jars for 10 minutes (consult the National Center for Home Food Preservation site for altitude adjustments).

After the Processing time is finished let the pot cool a bit by taking the lid off before taking jars out to cool on a counter covered with a towel (this is so the glass jars won’t break with the sudden change in temperature).  You may hear a popping sound, that means that the lids are sealed on the jars which is a good thing 😊  I left my jars to cool overnight, my son wanted to eat some right away(!), so I let him.  In this case, once opened the jar must stay in the fridge.  The rest of the unopened jars can go in the cabinet if sealed properly, if not then it must go in the fridge.  The way you can tell is by pressing on the button on the lid, if it is still raised after 24 hours then it is not sealed.  This is very important because you can avoid getting sick by keeping the unsealed jars in the fridge.  

Three mason jars of peach jam.

 

This is a fun and easy way to preserve some extra fruit, and you can make your own jam without all of the preservatives you don’t want.  I’m thinking about making soups and stews and canning them, but first I have to let go of my apprehension using my pressure canner 😊.

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html