What's Up Wednesday

Laundry is up (literally)! I only recently discovered the joy that is line-dried laundry.
For me it falls into that 'retro and awesome' category, along with canning and apron-wearing.

The tomatoes I started in the spring that weren't doing well are now finally starting to ripen-

I guess I'll have a sort of staggered tomato season!

 My one lone sunflower this year, getting ready to bloom!

 Prize Choy! A new addition to the garden for Fall.

 'Parade' Bunching onions, and pumpkin plants in the background

 The canned goods shelf is starting to fill up!

Apricots, Blueberry jam, Raspberry jam, Corn, & Green beans!

Tell me- What's Up in your Garden this Week?

Canning 101: Blueberry Jam

The canning workshop today went really well! We covered a lot, and ran long, which I felt bad about. Overall though, interested folks got to learn how to can, and participate in the process, which I think is really important!

We also talked over techniques on freezing and drying fruits and vegetables, and everyone left with some handouts that I think will be helpful reference in the future.

As I suggested to the class participants, if you're going to can more than once, I suggest you purchase a canning recipe/instruction manual, like the Ball Blue Book of Canning. It's kind of like having a bible or religious book to reference, vs. copying some pages or passages out of said book. The passages are helpful, but if you want context and more guidance, having the actual book is really essential. Not a bad religious metaphore for a Jew(ish) agnostic, huh?  

I chose to can the Berry Jam recipe from the Ball Blue Book of Canning. It's easy, simply, and straight-forward; a good jam for beginning canners.

If you're looking for a easy recipe to start your canning adventures with, here it is:

Berry Jam

Supplies needed:

a water bather canner (or a really large pot)

a rack to go inside the canning pot

canning jars- Ball and Kerr are two frequently-used brands

a set of jar lids & bands

canning tongs to grab the hot jars
a potato masher                                                                                 

9 cups crushed berries
6  cups sugar

Directions:

Combine berries and sugar in a large saucepot. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring until sugar disolves. Cook rapidly to gelling point. As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking. Remove from heat. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Place the lid and the band on the top of the jar, and screw on. Process 15 minutes in a boiling water canner.

                           

                                             Then Ta-da!! Jam.

Preserving Fruit- Canning Raspberry Jam

I almost can't believe it, but this summer is my 4th year canning- whoa.

My knowledge on canning has definitely grown since that first summer canning in my sweltering kitchen in the apartment overlooking Michigan Ave in downtown Ypsi. Since then, I've got my own canning supplies, tried my hand at pressure canning, added freezing and dehydrating to my preservation "tool kit", and even taught a few canning classes!

There's several particularly satisfying things about canning; I enjoy the time spent during the process, working with the fruit or veggie or medium of choice. Canning allows me to really focus on that product and feel like I'm truly appreciating it.

Also, as I so articulately said it 3 years ago (ha ha- first blog post ever!), canning makes me feel like a "settler", or a pioneer of sorts. What I mean by that is the feeling of connection to the seasons, to the history of canning and preserving of those that canned before me in my family. Most would say that in 2012, we don't "need" to can at home in order to survive. While I think that's true to a point, canning helps me to live a more season-oriented lifestyle, and to save costs on food year round- not only through gardening in the summer.

The Farmers' Market was overwhelming today, in the best sense possible. There were lots of "new" things to the market this week- firsts for the season. Peaches, blueberries, potatoes, as well as more raspberries and strawberries. I couldn't even let myself look at the peaches- too tempting to buy 6 quarts and go to town canning them up.

I picked 3 pints of blueberries and freeze those. I also got 2 pints of raspberries, and I was going to freeze them, but upon getting them home realized that they were melting into a messy blob.  When you're faced with such a blob, you make jam.

I didn't realize how much I missed canning until I got my first taste of it for the season today! Only 1 pint and 1 half pint of jam done today, but that's ok- there will be more to come. Lots, lots more!


Have you canned yet this summer? If so, what did you make?

Strawberry Jam Smoothies

Smoothies are pretty much the perfect breakfast- any time of year! My ability to make smoothies year-round depends greatly on how ambitious of a canner I've been the past summer and what kind of frozen, local fruit I can get my hands on.

I accidentally discovered Jam Smoothies when I was trying to fix a blender problem- when making smoothies in the past, I'd add yogurt and ice first. The ice wouldn't crush quickly or easily because it would get all clogged up at the bottom of the blender.

I had several jars of strawberry jam from last season that hadn't set right- they are more "strawberry puree"- so I tossed some into the blender with the ice and yogurt. Voila! Enough of a liquid base that the ice broke down much more easily, and the strawberry "jam" added a hint of sweetness to my drink! If you're not a canner with unset jam, you should probably substitute strawberry puree for your smoothie instead.

                                                                                                                        "Jam" Smoothies

Ingredients: 1 pint Jam of your choice/or fruit puree
1.5 cups Frozen Mixed Berries
1 cup plain greek yogurt
6 ice cubes

Directions: 

• Add the yogurt, the jam, and the ice cubes into the blender. Set the blender to "ice crush" and then blend until ice is incorperated into smoothie mixture. The liquid from the yogurt and jam will help you blend the ice down without having to manually un-jam (haha) the blended several times
• Now add the Frozen Mixed Berries! Blend to your liking

Serve and Enjoy!