Canning is a safe and nutritious way to preserve the harvest — a few jars at a time or by the bushel!
Tag Archive | home canning
Canning skill-share a fun success! Next one is Nov. 1.
“My mother used to can everything, but I never really learned and I even gave away all her canning jars. Looking back, I wish I hadn’t done that.”
This comment was overheard at OKT’s canning class on Saturday. Co-facilitated by OKT’s cooking coach Ms. Toni and garden coach Jeff Smith, this particular Cook, Eat & Talk session shared how to can applesauce. Every one of the participants said they had never canned anything before, but were excited to learn about the process.
Everyone took part in peeling a cutting up the apples, necessary before cooking them down to make sauce. They made a batch of plain applesauce and one batch with honey and cinnamon. Once all the apples were cut and cooking down, they had an opportunity to talk about the canning process a bit more and discuss techniques for preserving food.
During the discussion, participants were able to enjoy some food that Ms. Toni prepared. This made the conversation about food preparation even more meaningful.
Once the apples cooked down, they put the sauce in jars and did two rounds of hot-bathing, one for the plain and the other for the spiced applesauce. Everyone took a turn at filling jars and then taking the jars out to cool down. Every time one of the jars made a popping sound, people expressed excitement about how quickly the jars were sealing.
By the end of the session, people felt like new friends brought together by great conversation and food. Each participant went home with two pints of canned applesauce. People were so enthused that they gave input on what they might like to learn to can in the November. Suggestions included pickled veggies, pumpkin, apple butter and sweet potatoes. Stay tuned for the next session, which will be held on Saturday, November 1.
Yes you can can.
The last Saturday of the month, Our Kitchen Table has been presenting canning workshops as a Southeast Area Farmers Market activity. In June, participants made low-sugar strawberry jam and in July, garlic dill pickles. The next canning class is August 25. We will be canning and oven roasting tomatoes.
Canning at food used to be a regular summer activity for many families across the US. Some of us can remember going to granny’s house and seeing the basement shelves filled with canned peaches, tomatoes and pickles.
While few households do it food today, canning still has many advantages. One, you can buy fresh, local, nutritious produce in season at a lower price. Two, you don’t have to worry about toxic chemicals and high amounts of sugar or high fructose corn syrup being added. (Go to the grocery store and try to find pickles without chemical additives!) Three, it’s simply delicious!
The corporate food system has scared us away from canning. They’ve put a false message out there that canning is difficult to do, can result in food poisoning and requires all kinds of fancy equipment. Not true! Did you know that just about all reported food poisoning issues came from factory canned foods not home canned foods? Canning is simple. You can do small batches. And, you don’t need to invest a lot to get started.
Stop by the farmers’ market for fresh local produce 2 to 7 p.m. Friday at Gerald R Ford Middle School, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at Garfield Park.
Our Kitchen Table 