Can U Can It: Wrapping Gifts from Your Heart, no, not that kind ...

Can U Can It: Wrapping Gifts from Your Heart, no, not that kind ...:         I mention in every blog about giving what you make as a gift. I am not sure if any of you have tried that. This time of year ...

Wrapping Gifts from Your Heart, no, not that kind of Rap

        I mention in every blog about giving what you make as a gift. I am not sure if any of you have tried that. This time of year gift giving becomes insanity. Trips to mails and stores scattered everywhere leads to many headaches and foul words. You might be able to save yourself some misery. You can give your homemade items as gifts. Something that you make in your kitchen means a lot more than an item that you picked up at your favorite super store, or outlet store. Just think about the past. They did not have stores like now. They had to give the things that were made over the year. Baskets or packages were given and enjoyed by the lucky person or family.

(Click on photos for a better look)

Think how you would feel if a family member or friend, or neighbor gave you a gift basket of delicious goodies. You would probably use the gift on that special morning when everybody is present. Breakfast or brunch would be heighten by those jams or jellies or butters. Even a relish would liven up a buffet table. Just a little time and a little effort to make a treasure.


Use Raffia or ribbon or yarn to close up your bag or to put around your jar dollie. All simple and easy to do. Raffia is found in craft stores. Use a rubber band to hold on the dollie before you tie a ribbon or raffia around it. This is easier than having four hands.

Let's get started with a simple gift. Giving a single jar is easy; just a little addition of things you probably have around the house. This makes your jar of apple butter a special thing for someone.  It is even better if you give them something that you know is a favorite of that person. If they are a "Hot Head" (someone who loves HOT foods), your gift of something extra spicy would be very much appreciated.

A simple method of dressing up a jar is with an old-fashioned way.  A Jar Dollie is a method our grandparents used to make a jar of something more fancy. My grandmother (yes, the lady that started me with my love of cooking) would never put a simple jar of anything on the table. She would do something to make it look not like a jar of jam but a nice jar of condiment. A jar of pickles would not look like a jar of pickles. The contents of the jars along with a nice label and a jar dollie make a very special gift.


 

Take a little time and do a little extra to make your gift one that stands out from all others. Make a Jar Dollie from most any cloth. Cut it 5 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches.

 
Mary Lynn uses pinking shears, the blades of which are saw-toothed instead of straight. They leave a zigzag pattern instead of a straight edge. The sawtooth pattern does not prevent the fraying but limits the length of the frayed thread and thus minimizes damage. Thin cloth works better than thick.

Another way to give single jar for a gift is a clear plastic gift bag. These are found in most craft and dollar stores. Very inexpensive and easy to use, just put you gift in and seal the top.  Most come with a nice twist tie to close the top. You don't have to be a great decorator or artist to make something look nice. Just a little effort making your gift product, and a little time shopping for your gift bag. You will be surprised at how much better your gift looks than just a jar with no added touches.
 

Don't want to use a plastic bag, but still want a fancy gift? How about using your imagination and make a gift tag that looks out of the ordinary.  A little ribbon or a nice gift tag makes a single jar look very fancy. How about cutting up old Christmas cards for your gift tags. Maybe even a fancy label that you make on your computer. Most computers have some sort of label program. You will be amazed at what you can do with just a little effort. You will find that you get more enjoyment in giving these items when you have gone that extra mile.

If you want to give more than one jar or want to use a special basket to hold your products, look around your house. You might have a basket. Take a look at the basket, does it have any special color accent. If so, buy some plastic grass (like the stuff in Easter baskets). It comes in many different colors. Pick a color that will go along with your basket and the color of your products. If you make apple butter you would want something to make the brown color of the jars stand out. If you make pepper jelly, pick a contrasting color so the jars really stand out. Another thing that looks great is look for plastic fruit in the craft stores. Use that to dress up your basket. Spend less on your basket and more on the way to make it fancy. The photo shows a simple market basket that has been dressed up and made to look extra nice. Notice the different types of plastic fruit, and flowers that can make it stand out. You don't have to fuss and sweat, just use your talents that you used to cook. I always say that you can't be a good cook if you don't have a good imagination.

What?? You mean you don't have enough time to do these simple things to dress your gift. You can always buy the plastic wrap at your local craft store and cover the whole basket in plastic. You can also buy a big bow to go on your package. It still works, and without much effort. Yes you have dressed your gift. Still not enough, just add a bow on the top and give with a smile. After all, it is all about the contents of the jar that matters.
 

If you are the type that loves to decorate or make every gift something dazzling, the sky is the limit. There are so many different things that you can do to make everything a work of art. You can make special bags for each jar, and different colored ribbon bows. You will find so many different things to sparkle and accent your gift. 

 

The person that receives your gift will consider themselves lucky to have someone like you. I have seen some things that people make for jars that I would call a special craft in itself. I have seen people crochet jar covers, sort of like a bag to place the jar into. A gift from people like this is truly an event in itself. Jars that have these covers really need a label telling the lucky person receiving the gift what is in the jar.



Make sure to put a label on your jar. Because of the cover, you don't have to make a big deal about the label. Just put the name of your product  and the ingredients. The ingredients need to be complete; use all the things you added. This is important because so many people have food allergies. They might react to something you used. You don't want that to happen.

After you have your gift ready to give, you have to think of the best way to ship it. Mary Lynn decided many years ago to put each jar in zip lock bag. That way if something happened, the contents of the jar would not damage the rest of the package. We used the shipping boxes from the US Post Office for our shipments. She lined the box with packing straw and then placed the jars in the box. Leave room between each jar so more straw will keep the jars from banging. You might even find other things to ship. Add a bag of potpourri or aroma candles that might match your gift. You might also send along something to remind the lucky person of the people giving the gift. Something like a picture of you making the product or your family in front of a fireplace. Don't get carried away with the extras, remember the jar and it's contents is still the main event of the package.

Make sure to double tape the bottom and top. You don't want your jars to fall through. You can even send several jars, but make sure that each is in a baggie. You can use styrofoam worms or even old newspapers. Pack the jars tightly so they don't rattle. You can also use bubble wrap to wrap each jar.  The more time you take in wrapping the jars to keep them from breaking, the more certain you will feel that each of your gifts will arrive just as you wish. You can send 6 - 9 jars in these Post Office boxes.

I guess the point I am trying to make is don't pack and ship in a hurry. You don't cook that way. To get the best results take your time; do the little things that make a difference. Do it right the first time and the gifts will be just as you want them.

I know this blog was about something completely different from any of my others, but I felt that you needed to know what we did and how we sent our gifts. No one wants the gifts opened and find a mess. I am reminded of a phrase that is used in other fields, "garbage in, garbage out". This is not what you want to happen.

It is about that time again, I have run out of space for this edition of CanUCanIt. I would really like to ask for some help in doing my blogs for the next year. I would like to ask for ideas; things you want to read about. Things you might have tasted and would like to make yourself. Maybe even something you remember from growing up that still holds a special place in your heart. Let me know what it is, I will try to come up with the best way I can find to help you with your wants or needs. I am not sure if I will have another blog ready before the end of the year, so let me just say at this time that Mary Lynn and I hope that your holidays will be enjoyable and your New Year be full of cooking all sorts of "old-fashioned" things. I will try to help you along, just tell me what you need.

Don’t forget…. let me know what you would like to make or any ideas you have for the next blog. Also if you have any questions you would like me to try to solve. Just drop me a note at jellymanga@gmail.com.

Don’t keep my blogs a secret, pass the word on to your friends, neighbors and family members. They just might make something and share with you. 

Please feel free to share my blog on Facebook or Twitter or even MySpace.com. I want to get as many people exposed to the good things as possible. So share and ask your friends to share, PLEASE.

Don’t forget, if someone asks you can you can it?




Say YES I can can it.

Can U Can It: It's Hot in Hot'Lanta. It's time to get into the S...

Can U Can It: It's Hot in Hot'Lanta. It's time to get into the S...:
I know I said that I was going back to Grandma's kitchen this blog, but I just had this pop into my mind (there is so little in there that...Let's get cooking!

It's Hot in Hot'Lanta. It's time to get into the Sauce.

I know I said that I was going back to Grandma's kitchen this blog, but I just had this pop into my mind (there is so little in there that it rattled around and wanted out).Grandma will be in the next one, I promise. Also if some of you received a blog with a similar name. It was a mistake. I hit the publish button instead of the save button. Writing in the middle of the night can cause things like that to happen. Just discard my wrong blog.
Sorry!
With that out-of-the-way, let's get busy.

Bar-B-Que spelled Pig

Summer time is the big time for Bar-B-Que. I know that in many parts of the country that means brisket or beef short ribs. But in Georgia, we spell Bar-B-Que PIG! Nothing like ribs or pulled pork or maybe tender loin. I can eat my weight in them. For those of you that know me, that would be a lot of both. Being a lifelong Southerner, I have tried brisket and found it tasty, but my taste still runs with pork. I love a big platter of ribs , or pulled pork. I don't think they make pulled brisket, I see it served in slices. Some places thick and others razor thin. I will just stick to Pig.

Another thing that is big is Hot Wings. Everybody has their own preference when it comes to wings. Some like them so hot that you can hardly stand it. Other like them milder and easier on the taste buds. Personally, I run along the line of hot, but I don't like to burn so bad that I sweat big time. I like my wings hot with a flavor. I will cover wings a little later on.
 
I want to tell from the start that our Sauces have won many Blue Ribbons and other awards at local, regional and national level. With all that covered, it is time to get cooking!

I will start with our basic Bar-B-Que sauce. One of the things that made our sauce so very different from others is the base. Our base to start building on is apple butter. You heard me, apple butter. It still is a Tomato Bar-B-Q sauce, but the big difference is the apple butter. Mary Lynn went thru several tries at other base flavors and the big winner was our basic apple butter. I have done a blog on the making of apple butter. As a manner of fact, it was my first blog. Very different from my blogs now. I am not nervous talking to all of you.
Here is the link my first try in the blog world: http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3943855710986618045#editor/target=post;postID=8835029455096342479 .

Check it out then come back, we have much more to do. Just one more thing to add: Mary Lynn did not want me giving out the recipe that she worked to develop. She tried for months to get it just right. So, I have had the final word because I am the writer. I also want you to know that I am in the doghouse for the next 6 months.

Apple Butter Bar-B- Que Sauce  6 cups tomato purée. One  6 ounce bottle Pickapeppa Sauce ( a flavoring sauce found on the condiment section of your grocers).  2/3 cups bell peppers, chopped. 1 quart cider vinegar. 1 tablespoon granulated garlic. 1/2 tablespoon onion powder.  1 tablespoon dry mustard. 1 tablespoons dried red pepper flakes. 1 tablespoons cumin. 1 tablespoons chili powder. 1/4 tablespoons ground allspice. 1 tablespoons ground cinnamon. 1 tablespoons lemon juice. 4 cups Apple Butter (hopefully not store-bought).

Combine all ingredients in very large pot. Bring to boil, simmer 10-15 minutes stirring constantly to keep from sticking. If you turn your back on this you will be sorry. It will stick in a heart beat. Put into 16 ounce prepared canning jars (you can use smaller jars if you don't use much sauce). Process in water bath 20 minutes. Make sure that there is 2 inches of water over the top of the jars. Store in a cool dry cabinet. After opening, store unused part in the refrigerator.

With our Bar-B-Que sauce, don't use till meat has cooked completely. For ribs cook then use a basting brush to apply sauce. For pulled pork serve that sauce as a side. Let everyone add as much as he or she likes. Mary Lynn and I hate to go to a restaurant that drowns their cooking in heavy sauces. We even ask for our salad dressing to be on the side.

Jalapeno' Peppers

To kick up the heat and flavor on this sauce we like to use Jalapeno peppers. We take fresh peppers that have been seeded and trimmed of the white membrane on the inside. I like to do that because that membrane has a bitter taste. I don't want anything messing with my pepper flavor. Put the peppers in a blender with a little vinegar. Puree' the peppers. Add 1/4 cup to the recipe above. Not enough heat, just add 1/4 cup more. Next time start with 1/2 cup. Heat the sauce just a little and add the peppers, stir and let cool. You are the Boss in your kitchen, you can make it hot or not if you want. You know your families likes and dislikes.

Habanero Peppers

If you are a "Hot Head" like me and love the flavor that Habanero Peppers bring to the dance. Prepare the peppers the same way as Jalapeno peppers. Do not purée in a closed room, when I did this at our store I ran and extension cord out side and worked outdoors. The pepper fumes did not bother me as much. The fumes will choke you, so take care. But before you start doing anything with real hot peppers, put on disposable gloves. All it takes is one try not using gloves and you will never try it again. The juice of the pepper will burn your skin big time, and if you should touch anywhere around your eyes it is so bad. Habanero peppers are many times hotter that Jalapeno and thousands of times hotter that mild peppers. Add to your sauce, simmer until the flavor of the pepper is well blended. Not sure about the level of Hot that you want? Add 1 tablespoon of your pepper puree, stir, then taste. You can always add more, but it is impossible to take the peppers out after you have added them. Use care with this pepper: it is hotter than you think. At one time the Habanero pepper was the hottest pepper in the world. Now I have heard that a pepper in China is the hottest. Not sure of that so check before quoting me. I have not tried any of those because I found my heat limit with Habanero peppers.

Chipolte Peppers

Another pepper that we liked very much was the Chipolte pepper. Many do not really know what kind of pepper that is. It is a dried, smoked Jalapeno pepper. Surprised? I was too when I first found these peppers at our state farmers market. They were in a zip lock bad to keep them dry. I opened the bag and was hooked. When you use these peppers in this recipe break off the top off the pepper. Shake the seeds out. Use hot water in place of vinegar.  Just chop and put into the blender. Pulse the blender a couple of times and let it sit on the counter top for several minutes. This gives the peppers a chance hydrate (absorb some of the water). Continue to pulse til the peppers are pureed. Add just like other peppers.

We found that we liked this one best with a pork tenderloin. Mary Lynn put the tenderloin in a zip bag in the refrigerator and covered it with the Chipolte B-B-Que sauce over night. She then put it in a crock-pot along with the sauce from the bag, added more sauce to make sure that it covered the meat. She slow cooked it and the smell just about made us crazy. When it was done cooking, she took the tenderloin and put it on a plate. We stood there and ate the whole thing with nothing else but a fork. We laugh about that now, but at the time it just seemed like the right thing to do.

Next sauce on the menu is Hot Wing Sauce. This is the basic sauce that I made all the other varieties we sold from. I left out some steps because they took too long. We sold 8 kinds of Hot Wing Sauce. I even used a little of this sauce in a sauce that I called Not So Hot Wing Sauce. I called it that because it was not hot, maybe just a little warm. The only people who said it was hot can't eat ketchup because it is too hot. So here it is:

Hot Wing Sauce   As my base for fast wings sauce I use Texas Pete Hot Sauce. I use Texas Pete instead of Tabasco Sauce because the later has salt as one of its ingredients Texas Pete doesn't. Salt changes the taste and you really don't need but a pinch salt in my wings sauce.

1 cup Texas Pete Hot Sauce  2 teaspoons cumin. 2 teaspoons chili powder.2 teaspoons cayenne powder. 1 teaspoon garlic powder. 1 cup sugar. A pinch of salt. 1/4 cup vinegar. Mix all ingredients (except sugar) with sauce, stirring til all until mixed. Bring to a boil, add sugar, bring back to a full rolling boil. Put in canning jars. You do not have to process this sauce, just keep in the refrigerator with the lid closed tight. You can process if you want to store your sauce. Follow your processing basic instructions.

Drip-less Hot Wings

Use this sauce anyway that you normally use your sauces. I like to fry my wings, drain them. Then pour them in a big bowl, add the sauce and mix til all wings are covered. If we are serving wings at a party with other foods, I like to have drip-less wings.
I make them by taking the wings from my mixing bowl and put them on a cookie sheet. Place them in the oven at about 250 degrees. Leave them in till the sauce starts to bubble. Take them out and keep warm to serve. No drips to spoil your friends' clothes.

Garlic, one of my favorite things

I am going to give your one more recipe for wings.


It is Garlic Hot Wing Sauce. To the sauce above add 2 teaspoons garlic paste. Also add 1/4 cup minced garlic. Simmer the sauce and you will not believe the flavor. It is awesome. I love garlic and I love wings, so this is just a combination of two of my favorite things. Don't think Mary Poppins listed them in her list, but they are on mine. Garlic taste great and it keeps Vampires away. Don't have any Vampires in your area. Well just use it for taste. We have a couple of TV shows that film in our area. One is Walking Dead, about Zombies and the other show is Vampire Diaries. Don't think garlic works for Zombies. I have a personal interest in Vampire Diaries, Mary Lynn worked as a extra on the show for the first two years. We watched to see her on TV. It was so much fun. She has worked in extra parts for 4 movies and 2 TV shows. She is quite a celebrity. Well back to cooking....

I mentioned Not So Hot Wing Sauce, I am going to give you a recipe, please taste it to make sure that whoever gets this is not going to be mad because they thought it to be hot.

Not So Hot Wing Sauce:1 tablespoon, 1/8 tablespoons cumin, 1/4 tablespoons chili powder (Make sure it is not hot, some varieties are hot), 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder,
1/2 cups sugar, 1 pinch canning salt, 1/4 cups apple juice, 1/2 cups corm syrup.
Mix all ingredients (except sugar), stirring til all mix. Bring to a boil, add sugar, bring back to a full rolling boil. Put into canning jars and process. If you are going to use soon, just pour into a large enough container to hold this. Store in refrigerator till needed.

It is time to close because the rules of how you do a successful blog says I have written enough for 2 blogs.  Just as I getting on a roll. The next will probably be more along the Grandma line, you are going to have to check back and find out just what is under the big white hat.

Don’t forget…. let me know what you would like to make or any ideas you have for the next blog.  

Just drop me a note at   jellymanga@gmail.com.    I have had several readers e-mail me and ask for recipes. I love sending them back. They try them and sometimes even send photos back with there cooking things. Makes my day when I get those kind of e-mails. Also the comments people make about the blogs really make me feel good. Want to post one, just look for the thing that says comment and click.

My last blog was suggested by a reader, Maybe my next one will be your idea.

Don’t keep my blogs a secret, pass the word on to your friends, neighbors and family members. They just might make something and share with you.

Please feel free to share my blog on Facebook or Twitter or even MySpace.com. any place you want to share it.


Don’t forget, if someone asks you if you can you can it?  

Say YES I can can it.

Just like the Jellyman.

Do you know Salsa? No not the dance, the other kind of Salsa.

Not this kind of Salsa!!

From the e-mails I received, Salsa is going on big time. I love Salsa, especially the ones with other ingredients than tomatoes.
What, you didn’t think it could be salsa without tomatoes?
Also I say that this blog is about cooking like Grandma did. Well this blog is one that I don’t think my Grandma ever thought about. Just one more comment and we can get cooking.
I don’t know how to Salsa  dance, I just cook.

Have I got your attention?

 Let’s start with a couple of more traditional and work our way to the unusual. Here is a great named Salsa that tastes great.

Quickie Salsa

This is a recipe for a Salsa that can be made for a time when you want a salsa, and you haven’t canned any yet. This uses canned ingredients, but if you have fresh use fresh. Fresh always tastes better than canned.

Burger & Dog Salsa     

1 can Diced Tomatoes or 2 large Tomatoes (or 3 medium) chopped fine. 1 clove Garlic, crushed. ¼ cup Onion chopped (any kind will do, but Vidalia or Red Onions really make a better flavor). 2 tbsp. chopped canned Jalapeno Pepper, or 2 fresh peppers that have the seeds remove as well as the white membrane. ½ tsp. Cumin and ¼ tsp. Dried Pepper Flakes. 1 tsp. dried Cilantro.


 In a large bowl combine all ingredients and mix completely. Let sit in a cool place for at least 30 minutes for best taste. You can use it immediately if you need it now. For those of you that don’t like any heat, you can substitute Poblano or Serrano peppers. If you want more heat, add a Habanero pepper that will take the heat level thru the roof.

How about another that is easy to prepare and tastes good.
 

                                                   Burger & Dog Salsa

4 cups Tomatoes, diced. 1 can diced Green Chilies (7 oz.). 2 cloves Garlic, crushed. 1/2 cup Cider Vinegar. 1/8 tsp. ground Cloves. 1 tablespoon Cumin. 1 tablespoon fresh Cilantro, chopped.



Combine all ingredients in a cooking pot. Simmer for 15 minutes. Let cool before serving. Can be kept in the refrigerator and served another time. Great on hamburgers or hot dogs. Try this in place of mustard and ketchup. You are in for a surprise. Not bad on Brats, but I am a Brat purist, only spicy mustard on my Brats. One more note, this is best on grilled burgers and dogs. That taste you get from grilling can not be had by anything in the kitchen.

Now let’s change things a little. Time for one that you probably never heard of.

                                                     Watermelon Salsa   

1 ½ cup Watermelon, diced and seeded.   1 cup Jicama, peeled and diced (What is a Jicama? It is a large, edible, tuberous root of a tropical American plant, eaten as a vegetable either raw or boiled). Taste is similar to a radish or apple; rhubarb may be used in place of Jicama. 1 cup Orange, peeled and diced. 1 Jalapeno, chopped and seeded with the white membrane removed. 3 Tbsp. fresh Cilantro, chopped. 1 Tbsp. Lime Juice.

 Mix all ingredients, place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Served Chilled. If you are going to make enough to can, multiply ingredients by 4. Heat to a boil and place in 8 ounce canning jars. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes with at least 2 inches of water covering the jars.  The Jicama really thru me for a curve. I had to look it up to find out what it was.I was glad when it gave me other things to use if I could not find Jicama in my local farmers market or grocery store.
Canned Watermelon Salsa will have a different taste compared to fresh. Pick whichever one you like. I like the uncooked better. But try them both, pick for yourself and family.
I told you it was going to be different. The next one is also a little different.

                      Lime Salsa/ or Lemon Salsa

8 large Tomatoes, diced. 8 Tomatillos, diced (fresh or canned). 1 cup Red Onion, diced. 1 cup Bell Pepper, any color, diced.                      1 tablespoon Cilantro. 8 tablespoons FRESH Lime Juice (or frozen not from a bottle). 8 teaspoons Lime Peel, grated.

Dice tomatoes, remove husk from tomatillos and dice. Mix together and add other ingredients. Cover mixture and refrigerate overnight (at least several hours). This will allow flavors to blend. If you wish to can this, then heat to a boil and put in prepared canning jars (8 ounce preferred). Process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath with at least 2 inches of water over the jar tops.
For Lemon Salsa, just replace lime with lemon. Everything is the same except the taste. We did find a lime juice from Key West that was made from Key Limes. This bottle juice tasted great. Look at your local store for Key Lime Juice.
 

The next Salsa has a Mediterranean flavor. If you like olives on your pizza, you will love the taste.

                                              Black Olive Salsa                                                    

 4 large Tomatoes, chopped. 2 cups Black Olives, sliced or chopped (you decide). ¼ cup Onion, diced. ½ cup fresh Cilantro, chopped. 1 tbsp. Vinegar. ½ tsp. dried Basil

Combine all ingredients, mix and chill several hours. Mix again before serving. Great for Tacos or Taco Salads. Serve as a topping for grilled fish or chicken.

The next one is something we use plenty of. We love to grill Taqitos and served with Sour Cream and Salsa Verde. I wish you would try this combo. It is so very good.

Salsa Verde                                  

1 can Tomatillos, drained and chopped, use a 15 ounce size. 2 Jalapenos, seeded and chopped. 1/3 cup onion. 1 teaspoon Cilantro, fresh or dried. 1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil.

Place Tomatillos, Jalapenos, onion and Cilantro in blender. Blend till you get a smooth mixture. Put into cooking pot add all other ingredients. Sauté till mixture is smooth. Store unused portion in refrigerator.

Here is another salsa that does not have to be canned, enjoy it fresh for best taste. I know this blog is about home canning. You got to give me a break, some things taste better uncooked, and uncanned (if that is a word). So pretend that you are reading a magazine and saw this recipe. You ripped it out and took it home. Don’t we all do that in the Doctor’s office?

                                                                         Fresh Garden Salsa
2 large tomatoes, diced. ¼ cup onion, diced. ½ cup cucumber, diced. ½ cup zucchini, diced. ½ cup yellow squash, diced. 1 Jalapeno pepper, chopped and seeded with the white membrane removed. 1 tbsp. Lime or lemon Juice (fresh is best). ½ cup fresh Cilantro, finely diced.

Combine and serve proudly. If you don’t like squash or zucchini try a ripe Avocado. The lemon or lime juice will keep it from turning brown. Not a salsa that should be canned. Fresh salsa is the item of choice in certain occasions. But just think, here is another way to use those zucchini that your neighbors brought you.
It is that time again. Just as I get rolling. Well there is plenty of room in future blogs.  The next will probably be more along the Grandma line, but you are going to have to check back and find out just what is under the big white hat.

Don’t forget…. let me know what you would like to make or any ideas you have for the next blog. Just drop me a note at jellymanga@gmail.com

Don’t keep my blogs a secret, pass the word on to your friends, neighbors and family members. They just might make something and share with you. 

Please feel free to share my blog on Facebook or Twitter or even MySpace.com.

  

Don’t forget, if someone asks you can you can it? 

Say YES I can can it.

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Can U Can It: Preserving the Past with Preserves

Can U Can It: Preserving the Past with Preserves: When you here someone talking about Preserves, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  For many  Preserves mean Strawberry . Others...

Preserving the Past with Preserves

When you here someone talking about Preserves, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  For many Preserves mean Strawberry. Others think of Peaches. Still others think of something else, depending on where you grow up and the type of fruit available in your area. When I hear preserves I think of Fig Preserves.

My father's mother made the absolute best Fig Preserves in the world. That sounds like a big boast, but you need to remember that this was the lady that started my on the road to where I am today sitting here typing for you to read. The very first thing I made was Fig Preserves. Now I am going to tell you how she made them, the same way Mary Lynn and I made them, please feel free to substitute any fruit any place it says fig. I know there are people that do not like figs. Strawberry, or Raspberries or any thing you like works almost the same way. Here is a photo of what old fashioned Fig Preserves look like.

If you are going to make Fig Preserves you have to look at the type of figs available. Some Figs are large, and some are small. If you pick the large ones you may have to cut them in half. The smaller types are best whole. In the photo we made this with whole figs. If you have to cut your figs, they will still look nice, but totally different than ours. They both are the same, the only difference is the fig. As a manor of fact some say that sliced make a more attractive preserves. Compare the two types of Fig Preserves. In the first photo whole figs are used. The second photo to the left shows sliced figs. They are both Fig Preserves but they taste a little different and the look completely different. So it is your choice on the type of Preserves you make.

Before you can make Preserves of any type you need to know what real Preserves are. They don't resemble the things you get in most restaurants and fast food places.

According to Wikipedia: Fruit preserves are preparations of fruits, vegetables and sugar, often canned or sealed for long-term storage. The preparation of fruit preserves today often involves adding commercial or natural pectin as a gelling agent, although sugar or honey may be used, as well. Before World War II, fruit preserve recipes did not include pectin, and many artisan jams today are made without pectin. The ingredients used and how they are prepared determine the type of preserves; jams, jellies and marmalades are all examples of different styles of fruit preserves that vary based upon the ingredients used. Many varieties of fruit preserves are made globally, including sweet fruit preserves, such as strawberry, as well as savory preserves of culinary vegetables, such as tomatoes or squash. In North America, the plural form "preserves" is used to describe all types of jams and jellies. In British and Commonwealth English most fruit preserves are simply called jam, with the singular preserve being applied to high fruit content jam, often for marketing purposes. Additionally, the name of the type of fruit preserves will also vary depending on the regional variant of English being used.

Sounds like many different ways of describing something. When we make preserves we use the definition described by one of the oldest cook books. It states that Preserves are whole or large pieces of a fruit that has been cooked down til the juice has made a thick syrup. With our preserves you could tell the fruit just by looking at the jar.

The first thing you need to do is decide if you are going to have to cut your fruit. In the case of strawberries you will probably need to cut them. Next is wash the whole fruit and make sure you have no  bad spots or fungus. Next put the fruit in a bowl that you can put in your refrigerator. With the fruit in the bowl cover completely with sugar. Gently move the fruit so that all pieces are exposed to the sugar.  If the fruit soaks the sugar, add more to cover the fruit. If you use some of the more juicy fruits you probably will only need to sugar one time. If you use some of the more juicy fruits you probably will only need to sugar one time.   Now place a cover over the bowl and put in your refridgerator. The next day carefully drain the juice the has accumulated in the bowl and save it. Add more sugar to cover again and put bowl back in fridge. Several hours later check to see if all the sugar has dissolved. If it has drain and repeat the process. Keep doing this till the fruit has absorbed as much sugar possible. Now take all the juice that you have collected and put in a large enough pot to hold the fruit.

Now cook your juice slowly til it reduces to half volume. Add a few slices of lemon. This will help make the fruit strong and not fall apart. Carefully add your fruit and cook gently till your fruit is soft without falling to pieces. Cook this juice till it starts to thicken, the fruit will look a little translucent. With a slotted spoon or wooden spoon carefully remove the fruit from the mix. With the fruit removed, cook the syrup til it reduces to a thick syrup. 

Now carefully put your fruit in clean canning jars that have been rinsed and sterilized. Do not fill to the top, save run for the syrup. Now using a ladle and a jar funnel (if you have one) fill the jars to within 1/4 inch of the top. At this point you have to make sure there are no air bubbles trapped. It is a very important step. Air bubbles take room that is needed for the juice. Next take a wet paper towel and clean the jar tops. This is needed to insure a good seal between the domes and the jars.Now place the jar domes on the jars. Make sure your domes are clean. Then place the rings on the domes. Finger tighten the rings. Do not over tighten, this will make it difficult for air to escape. Too loose and water will leak in and ruin your work. 

At this stage of cooking, if you have any juice left over, save it and in a upcoming blog I will tell you how to turn the left over juice into a delicious syrup.

Process your jars in a boiling water bath that has enough water to cover the jar tops at least 2 inches. This important for a good seal. Boil the jars 15 minutes, then remove from the water bath and place on a cooling rack or counter top. The right equipment makes boiling your jars easier than trying to rig something up.


After you have removed the jars from the boiling water and placed on a drying rack you will hear the jar domes pop as they cool. This is a great sound when you are canning. This means that your jars are sealed. After your jars have sat over-nite check to see if any have not sealed. If you have some, don't worry you did everything right. Some jars just won't seal, so you have to remove the domes, clean the rim again and place new domes on and reprocess. After the jars cool, they are ready for your labels or whatever you want to put on the jars. I do suggest putting on  a label of some kind as you want to know what you are grabbing out of your pantry. If you have several types of preserves, some can look similar. Also labels are nice when you give your jars as gifts.

When you are making preserves you don't always get the best results trying to keep the fruit in whole or large pieces. Whenever we make fig preserves about 1/4 of then become fig jam.  The big pieces or whole figs just fall apart, so just add pectin and make jam. Don't feel bad when this happens, even canning pros' have this happen. It still taste great, so just try again with fresh fruit.

Another thought when you are doing preserves is making more than one fruit in a batch. Combinations of fruit make some "killer" preserves.

Combinations that we have made are: Strawberry/Fig, Blueberry/Blackberry, Blueberry/Peach, Peach/Mango. As you can see, the combinations are limitless. Try combining two of your favorites and see how they come out. Don't worry how the contents of the jars look, you are going for taste. 

We first made Blueberry/Blackberry from a accident we had. We put our fruit in the freezer in measured amounts in each bag. If it was 8 ounces or any other amount, we wrote that at the top of the bag. Doing this makes it much easier to work with more than one fruit. By writing at the top you can still read the amount and contents easier. The accident we had was when we took a bag of blueberries and a bag of blackberries out of the freezer. I placed them in a bowl and put it into our refridgerator to thaw. The next day they had thawed, but when I went to take out the bags, they had leaked due to a hole. So we had a large bowl of Blueberries and Blackberries mixed together.We never threw anything out that might work, so we tried the combination. We called it Black & Blue Preserves.

Black & Blue Preserves

It sold great and when it was all gone, we had many customers asking us to make it again. So a star was born by accident.

Combinations make labels important. Look at the Black & Blue, can you tell the difference looking at it. Is it Blueberry? Blackberry? or both?
Look at this jar. Is it Strawberry, or Strawberry/Fig? It is Strawberry/Fig. So you can see while it is hard based on just looks.

Figs that broke apart while cooking turned into a Blue Ribbon Fig Jam at the Georgia National Fair. In a latter blog I will give you some awesome recipes for things made with preserves. They make a lot more than you might think.

So it is getting to be that time again, just as I was getting going. Oh Well! Can't fight the blog wars with a blog to long. So I want you to try to make something with the ideas listed above. As you can see the possibilities are limitless. So get out there and find you some beautiful fruit that is saying "Yes make us into Preserves".

Don't forget.... let me know what you would like to make or any ideas you have for the next blog. Just drop me a note at  jellymanga@gmail.com

Don’t keep my blogs a secret, and pass the word on to your friends, neighbors and family members. They just might make something and share with you. 
Please share my blog on FaceBook or Twitter or even MySpace.com. The people that see your share might even make something and give you some. So don't be shy, pass me along.

 

Don’t forget, if someone asks you can you can it.Say Yes! I can can it.

Can U Can It: Revisiting Apple Butter

Can U Can It: Revisiting Apple Butter: I realize that Apple Butter has been covered in past blogs, but after Mary Lynn and my experience this past week I thought I would go th...

Revisiting Apple Butter

I realize that Apple Butter has been covered in past blogs, but after Mary Lynn and my experience this past week I thought I would go thru the whole process with pictures to help describe what we are doing.

Another reason for doing Apple Butter again is a talk we had at a dinner with some cousins. We got to talking about what is your "Comfort Food". To me comfort foods are one thing, and everybody else had a different comfort food. I come up with this description of comfort foods, it is something you eat that takes you back to a good time in your memory when you enjoyed the food and the company. So just about any kind of food could be classified "Comfort Food". So I am going to nominate apple butter made from fresh apples as a real honest to goodness Comfort Food. I will bet that there are many of you that will agree with me. Maybe a time with your mother or grandmother as you were growing up. There is not many things that can bring memories back like the smell of apple butter cooking. Not even the taste brings back more that the smell. So it is time to treat yourself to a trip thru your memories. Here is a photo of Mary Lynn cooking apple butter, maybe our grandkids will remember and cook like this in the future.

Well now that I got that little job out of the way lets get busy with the real reason for my blog, making apple butter from "scratch". I have almost got to the point were I think everything is made from that ingredient, scratch. So here is the scratch apple butter blog.

We started our quest to get real apples from real farmers by driving out to the State Farmer's market in Forrest Park, Georgia to get some real Georgia Apples. (Check your phone book or call your state department of agriculture if you don't know of a Farmer's Market in your area).

Boy did we luck out!!!! Our state market has rows setup for Georgia growers to sell their fruits & produce. Other rows are for people who buy wholesale fruits & produce for resale. We found these three types of apples at the first farmers stall we stopped at:
Rome Apples              Granny Smith Apples    
  Arkansas Black Apples   

He had other varieties, but we wanted to purchase bushels and 1/2 bushels, we save money that way. Smaller quantities cost more than larger amounts. Buying in larger quantities means you have to dedicate yourself to preparing the fruit within 3 or 4 days unless you have a really big fridge (or an extra fridge in your garage) to store the fruit. If you put off working with what you have bought, you will get spoilage. This drives up the cost, because you are throwing away your fruit to goes bad.

First job: washing each apple and drying them. This is needed because fresh fruit from local growers may have been sprayed with something or picked up something else that you don't want in your apple butter.

Next comes slicing and coring the apples. Mary Lynn fixed up a cutting board in front of the TV so I wouldn't miss football.Mary Lynn made for me I could sit and work with no problems.  She used a large plastic container and a cutting board.

This was necessary because I can't stand and work in the kitchen due to a problem with my spine and legs that won't allow me to stand for more than 4 or 5 minutes without problems.  So with the setup Mary Lynn then cooked the slices in fresh apple cider (also local) and 1/4 water. She put the cores in a mesh bag and cooked them with the slices. A lot of pectin is in the core and seeds. We also leave the peel on the apple slices for added flavor, color and pectin. this way when we make apple jelly from the juice we process later it sets up really well. We cook only one type of apple in a pot, this way the juice resembles the apple (Arkansas Black apples have a really dark red color and the juice has a red color. Really pretty jelly is made from the juices and the jellies all have a different look to them. Granny Smith has a greenish color, the Arkansas Black has a reddish color, etc...

The slices we cooked for about 1 1/2 hours. You want the peel to be really soft so it will go thru the food ricer/press or food mill easily. Allow the apples to cool and then pour or dip off the juice. Put the apples thru a food press or mill to make it to apple sauce. We still us an antique food mill we have had over 20 years. It works fine.

Food Mill

You can purchase one at a store that carries kitchen supplies. again, check your phone book or the internet for a store near you.

The apple sauce is now put into quart jars and processed for 30 minutes in a boiling water bath with water at least 2 inches over the top. Do not start the timer til the water comes back to a boil.

The juice we removed from the cooking pot is strained one more time thru muslin to get extra pulp out.  You will then need to put into quart jars and do the processing just like the apple sauce. You can also save some of the juice to drink. It is awesome!!!!

Putting the pulp and juice in jars and processing them will let you decided when and how much apple butter or apple jelly you want to make.  The processed jars keep really well in a cool, dark place.

After the cooking of all our varieties we are now ready to make apple butter. You have put in a lot of work so far, so we make our first batch a few days after the slicing, cooking and processing of the apples. If you have used more than one type of apple, check out the jars. They have a different color and juice content. Don't plan a particular variety of apples from your supply and knowing it by its color. Use a felt tip marker and write the name on the top of the jar before you water bath the jars. You might think you will remember, but you won't.
When we cook, we mix pulp from all the different apple types to give us a better flavor. Apple Butter from one flavor is good, but if you mix at least 3 varieties together, the flavor is better. This is how we come up with the name Georgia Apple Butter, it is made from varieties from our state, bought in our state from the farmers that grow them. We don't always use the same three varieties, and even if we did, some years the Granny Smith apples come from a different farm, some times they are a little more sweeter some times more tart. It all depends on the weather and the farm and even the farmer. It still is Georgia Apple Butter, just different Georgia apples. Something we noticed, apple butter made from sweet apples turns a darker color than apple butte made from les sweet. This is because the sugar caramelizes, not just the added sugar, the sugar from the apples also.
Any time you make something from scratch it is not going to taste exactly like the last time or next time. So many things going into the variable. The weather, the temperature, the pots you use, the stove or cooking pots you use. All these things have a reason in the taste.
We have noticed a slight difference with certain crock pots from others. Some may cook just a degree or two hotter or cooler than the other. So remember when you cook, all things change just a little, so don't add more changes than necessary.
This is the recipe for apple butter using real pulp in place of apple sauce. I gave you both recipes in earlier blogs, but I am going to give you the pulp one again.

12 cups apple pulp, 9 cups cane sugar, 1/3 cup cider vinegar, 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon, 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice, 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves.

Mix together in cook in a crock pot 8 to 10 hours. Stir the butter often to prevent sticking. After about 6 hours check the thickness of your butter. If it is still to runny, remove the crock pot lid and let cook a couple of more hours. Make sure you put a screen or mesh tent or food umbrella over your pots to keep unwanted things from landing in you apple butter. We bought food umbrella's at a local store called Dollar Tree. Check you area for a store like this.

When you are putting in the spices, if you don't like so much cinnamon, don't use it. If you use less use more allspice. At a family reunion recently I was asked by one of my favorite cousins if they could leave out cinnamon all together. Any time you leave something out of a recipe it is going to change the taste, so think long and hard about what you change or leave out. If you drop something, something else is going to have to take over in the taste.

In one of the photos you can see Mary Lynn using something to remove the air bubbles from the pulp before putting on the domes and rings and processing.

We one batch she forgot to do this and when she set the hot jars from the boiling water bath on the counter..... Holy Toledo!!!! What a mess!!!!!!!!!!!! The apple pulp started coming out of every jar. Now she will have to remove the rings and domes, wash the rings, replace the domes with new ones. You cannot reuse a dome once it is processed. Rings can be reused, but be carefull using older ones they may have some rust. Don't use any ring with rust!! Mary Lynn was so very angry with herself for forgetting to use something to get out the air pockets. Most home-made products need to be "de-bubbled".

As you can see, there is plenty of work in making apple butter from real apples and not store-bought apple sauce.

Here is an idea how much pulp we got from our apple purchase;

Arkansas Black Apples (medium to small apples) 1/2 bushel (about 70-75 apples) produced 8 quarts pulp.

 Rome Apples (medium+) 1/2 bushel (about 50 apples) produced 7 quarts pulp.
        
Granny Smith Apples (mixed, small to large) 1 bushel (80-85 apples) produced 14 quarts pulp. We always use Granny Smith no matter what other varieties w use. They seems to really give the Georgia Apple Butter its best taste. We tried not using GS in a batch and the taste was very different. So we have never left it out again. as a way of fact, the batch we made with out was added back and recooked with the Granny Smith.

In response to so many requests, Mary Lynn and I are starting back with our production  and sales of a limited number of our most popular items. In other words, "We Are Putting the Jam Back Together". We are selling thru a website that is working as you read this. now. The name of the web site is www.austinhouse.biz . Check us out, look around try something.

This will give you the chance to compare our products with the things you are making at home. Keep watching and reading, and now tasting is added to the menu.

Please subscribe to my blogs. I enjoy getting ideas for future blogs from you. Also be sure and check out my other blogs, you might have missed one. If you have an idea or a suggestion, contact me at jellymanga@gmail.com .


Don’t keep my blogs a secret. Pass the word on to your friends, neighbors and family members. They just might make something and share with you.  
Don’t forget, if someone asks you if you can can it. Say Yes I Can Can It!