We love maple syrup. But sometimes it is nice to have something else on our pancakes. Enter: preserved fruit! Today we used peaches and strawberries. I made a triple batch of pancakes for everyone and then we brought out the jars. Mmmmm.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Pancakes and Fruit
We love maple syrup. But sometimes it is nice to have something else on our pancakes. Enter: preserved fruit! Today we used peaches and strawberries. I made a triple batch of pancakes for everyone and then we brought out the jars. Mmmmm.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Apple Pie for Breakfast?
Sort of! This morning breakfast consisted of whole wheat toast, cream cheese, and "Apple Pie In A Jar." This is a preserve (conserve?) of apples and raisins with a bit of lemon. It is wonderful, and really tastes like apple pie. Next fall after apple picking I'll make little 4 ounce jars of this to give away for Christmas!
Friday, January 23, 2009
Another New Cookbook!
Nana and Papa brought me two cookbooks! This one has some nice flavor combinations I wouldn't have thought of myself. And there are some good pickle recipes I can't wait to try!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
New Cookbook!
Many thanks to Nana and Papa for my newest canning/preserving cookbook. This one has a big section on drying food and even how to build your own root cellar! One never knows when that might come in handy...
Pressure Canners Still Scare Me
Last night I roasted a chicken for dinner so, as usual, made chicken stock from the bones. Because it was real
ly late, I put the stock in the fridge, saved the meat that came off the bones, and planned to make soup today. First of all, I had to get the pressure canner out and buy new jars. I found that stock in wide mouth jars doesn't really do well - it leaks out all over the canner and makes a mess which is difficult to clean. But maybe it's that the past few times I used the pressure canner, I forgot to let it vent for 10 minutes before putting the little weight on. Anyway, I bought the regular mouth pint jars for the stock. See how big the canner is?
The next step was reheating the stock and putting it in the jars. I had just enough to make 4 pints of stock, which are sitting in the canner in 1.5 inches of water. Then the top goes on. My canner does not have a rubber gasket. It's milled for a perfect fit. The screws are applied 2 at a time, on opposite sides (see below), until it's tight. Then it's heated and when the steam starts to come out, vented for 10 minutes (the step I always forget) and then the weight goes on. 10 pounds. Adjusting the heat to keep it at 10 pounds without a 
lot of rattling of the weight takes time. The stock was processed for 20 minutes, then I turned off the burner. When the pressure went down to zero, I took the lid off, removed the jars, and then replaced them with the jars of soup and started the process again.
For the soup, I took the fat off the stock before I heated it up, and used it to saute leeks, celery, and onions. I added water, carrots, and the chicken meat I'd saved from yesterday, plus salt, pepper, and thyme. This simmered for about 2 hours. It made 2.5 quarts. These were processed for 90 minutes and removed when the pressure dropped back to zero.
ly late, I put the stock in the fridge, saved the meat that came off the bones, and planned to make soup today. First of all, I had to get the pressure canner out and buy new jars. I found that stock in wide mouth jars doesn't really do well - it leaks out all over the canner and makes a mess which is difficult to clean. But maybe it's that the past few times I used the pressure canner, I forgot to let it vent for 10 minutes before putting the little weight on. Anyway, I bought the regular mouth pint jars for the stock. See how big the canner is?
The next step was reheating the stock and putting it in the jars. I had just enough to make 4 pints of stock, which are sitting in the canner in 1.5 inches of water. Then the top goes on. My canner does not have a rubber gasket. It's milled for a perfect fit. The screws are applied 2 at a time, on opposite sides (see below), until it's tight. Then it's heated and when the steam starts to come out, vented for 10 minutes (the step I always forget) and then the weight goes on. 10 pounds. Adjusting the heat to keep it at 10 pounds without a 
lot of rattling of the weight takes time. The stock was processed for 20 minutes, then I turned off the burner. When the pressure went down to zero, I took the lid off, removed the jars, and then replaced them with the jars of soup and started the process again.
For the soup, I took the fat off the stock before I heated it up, and used it to saute leeks, celery, and onions. I added water, carrots, and the chicken meat I'd saved from yesterday, plus salt, pepper, and thyme. This simmered for about 2 hours. It made 2.5 quarts. These were processed for 90 minutes and removed when the pressure dropped back to zero.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Snowstorms are Good for Comfort Food
Considering w
e had just managed to drive 57 miles home in the snowstorm today AND make it up the driveway we felt that today was a good day for some soup. So I grabbed a quart of the turkey vegetable soup and a pint of the turkey stock, brought them to a boil, and then added 1/2 cup of acini di pepe (the little balls of pasta used in Italian Wedding Soup).
We had a wonderful lunch!
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