Green Beans

I tried canning plain green beans this year. 

Cherry Pie Filling

Recipe from So Easy to Preserve

6 quarts fresh Cherries (I use bing), washed and pitted
7 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups clear gel
1 tsp. Cinnamon
9 1/3 cups water
1 tsp. Almond extract
1/2 cup lemon juice

Blanch cherries by putting 6 cups at a time in a boiling gallon of water.  Boil each batch for one minute after the water returns to a boil.  Remove fruits from blanch water and keep in a bowl, covered to keep warm while Clear Jel mixture is made.
Combine sugar, Clear Jel, and cinnamon in a large saucepan.  Add water and almond extract.  Stir mixture and cook over medium-high heat until mixture thickens and begins to bubble.  Add lemon juice and boil 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Fill jars with mixture without delay, leaving 1-inch head space.  Remove air bubbles.  Wipe jar rims.  Adjust lids and process immediately in a Boiling Water Bath.

Pints or Quarts: 40 minutes (original recipe 30 minutes, 10 added for altitude adjustment)

Pineapple

Pineapple was on sale last week for 99cents, so I finally took the plunge and canned my own pineapple, something I had wanted to try for some time, but just hadn't.  

Isn't it pretty!?

5 pineapples

4 cups water

1 cup sugar

Yields 5 pints (plus some extra pineapple got frozen)

Cut pineapples.  Place 4 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar in a large stainless steel pan.  Bring to a boil.  Warm the pineapple in the hot water for 1 minute, one layer at a time.  Use a slotted spoon to put warm pineapple into jars leaving a 1/2 inch head space.  Top pineapple with syrup used for warming pineapple leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Wipe rim, add lid.  Process 25 minutes for pints.  

*Original recipe is 15 minutes, 10 minutes added for altitude.  

2015 Harvest

Just some notes for me....

36 pints TomatoSauce
7 pints Roasted Tomato Sauce
64 quarts Pears
23 quarts Vegetable Beef Soup
28 pints Chili
14 pints Salsa

Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce

My mom gave me this awesome recipe this year, so I gave it a try.   

6 bulbs of garlic

3 T. olive oil

4 medium red, yellow and/or green bell peppers, halved and seeded
12 lbs peeled tomatoes
3 T. packed brown sugar
2 T. kosher salt
1 T. balsamic vinegar
1 t. ground pepper
2 cups snipped basil leaves
1 cup assorted fresh oregano, thyme, or flat leave parsley 
    (*I used 1/4 cup dried Italian Seasoning blend when I didn't have fresh)

*Bottled lemon juice

 Directions
 
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (I used my grill and wrapped prepared

 peppers and garlic in foil and grilled 45 minutes) peel away the dry outer

 layer of the garlic bulbs. Cut top off and leave bulbs intact. Place cut side

 up on a casserole dish and drizzle with one tablespoon of oil. Cover casserole 
and arrange peppers cut side down on a foil lined baking sheet. Brush 
with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil.
 
Roast garlic and peppers 
for 40 -50 minutes or until the pepper skins are charred or the garlic 
cloves are soft. Cool garlic on a wire rack until cool enough to handle.
 Pull up foil to enclose the peppers. Let peppers stand for 15 to 20 
minutes or cool enough to handle.  Peel off skin and discard. Set aside 
peppers.
 
Remove garlic by squeezing the bottom of the bulbs. 
Place garlic cloves in a food processor and add cut peeled tomatoes into
 chunks. Add some of the chunks to the garlic in the food processor. 
Cover and process till chopped. Transfer chopped garlic and tomatoes to a
 7-8 quart stainless steel heavy pot.  Repeat chopping the remaining 
tomatoes in batches in the food processor. Add all the tomatoes to the 
pot.
 
Add brown sugar, salt, vinegar, and black pepper to the 
tomato mixture. Add chopped roasted peppers, basil and herbs to tomato mixture.

Bring to low boil and boil steady for 50 minutes stirring often.  Low boil 
for 10 to 20 minutes more or until mixture reaches desired consistency 

stirring occasionally. Spoon 1 tablespoon of bottled lemon juice into each 

of the hot sterilized pint jars. Ladle hot sauce into jars with lemon juice

 leaving a ½” headspace. Wipe jar rims, adjust  lids. 

Process jars for 35 minutes in a water bath at a full boil. Makes
 8 pints. (I can 7 to use later and use one for dinner)
 
 

Vegetable Beef Soup

This recipe has replaced my "stew" recipe.  While quite similar of a recipe, the tomatoes and seasonings in this recipe put that old recipe to shame.  I make two pots of this soup at the same time and can 6 quarts at a time.  (each batch makes 3 quarts or 6 pints)

• 1 1/3 pounds stew beef, cut into small cubes ( I used an inexpensive round steak)
• 4 cups beef broth (I used 4c water and 5 tsp better than bouillon beef soup base from Costco)
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, peeled chopped
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 28 ounces canned tomatoes (two pints home canned tomatoes) (I used 3 ½ c fresh puréed tomatoes from the garden)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.
• 1 ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning mix from Winco

 
 
Prepare 6 - 7 pint jars, lids, and rings (or 3 quarts). 

 
Cooking: 
In a stainless steel or enameled dutch oven brown meat quickly using a 
tiny bit of olive oil just so the meat won’t stick to the bottom of the 
pot. Add to the pot the rest of the ingredients and cook on medium high
for 10 minutes only just to combine the broth and spices! Turn off the 
heat. Ladle. 
 
Filling the jars: 
On a dishtowel place your hot jars in a semi circle leaving room for your pot that has your 
recipe.  Using your slotted spoon ladle the meat and veggies into the 
jar filling a little over half way then add the soup liquid into the 
jars leaving 1” headspace.  Remove air bubbles and refill to the proper 
headspace if necessary. 

Taking a clean papertowel, wipe the rims of the jars with white vinegar removing any food 
particles that would interfere with a good seal. Add lids and rings. 
 
Processing: 
Make sure your rack is on the bottom of the canner and place the jars in the pressure canner. 
 Lock the lid and turn up the heat bring the canner to a boil. Vent 
steam for 10 minutes, then close the vent by adding the weighted gauge . 

Process pints for 75 minutes at 14 lbs of pressure* and quarts at 90 
minutes.  
 
When complete turn off the heat and let pressure return to zero naturally. 

Wait two minutes longer and open vent. Remove
 canner lid. Wait 10 minutes then remove jars and place on dishtowel in a
 place that they will sit overnight to cool. Do not touch or move them 
till the next morning.
 

*Original recipe is 10 lbs pressure, 2 lb adjustment to altitude and 2 lb adjustment for my pressure cooker reading off.  
 
 
 

2012 Harvest

Pears                         72 Quarts
Salsa                         31 Pints
Beef "Stew"              10 Pints,  15 Quarts
Chicken Soup            4 Pints
Chili Con Carne        5 Pints
Chili                          9 Pints
Cubed Potatoes         14 Quarts, 14 Pints
Apple Pie Filling       23 Quarts

Apple Pie Filling

I love having apple pie filling handy!  This is a great recipe!

Recipe from: National Center for Home Food Preservation

Yield: 1 quart or 7 quarts

Procedure: Wash, peel, and core apples. Prepare slices 1/2-inch wide and place in water containing ascorbic acid to prevent browning.

For fresh fruit, place 6 cups at a time in 1 gallon of boiling water. Boil each batch 1 minute after the water returns to a boil. Drain, but keep heated fruit in a covered bowl or pot. Combine sugar, Clear Jel®, nutmeg and cinnamon in a large kettle with water and apple juice. Stir and cook on medium high heat until mixture thickens and begins to bubble. Add lemon juice and boil 1 minute, stirring constantly. Fold in drained apple slices immediately (I find it easier to stir to pour the sauce over the warm, cooked apples)  and fill jars with mixture without delay, leaving 1 inch headspace. Adjust lids and process immediately for **35 minutes in water bath.

**Original Recipe is 25 minutes (35 minutes is for altitude adjustment)

Table 1. Apple Pie Filling.
	Quantities of Ingredients Needed For
	1 Quart	7 Quarts
Blanched, sliced fresh apples	3-1/2 cups	6 quarts
Granulated sugar	3/4 cup + 2 tbsp	5-1/2 cups
Clear Jel®	1/4 cup	1-1/2 cup
Cinnamon	1/2 tsp	1 tbsp
Cold Water	1/2 cup	2-1/2 cups
Apple juice	3/4 cup	5 cups
Bottled lemon juice	2 tbsp	3/4 cup
Nutmeg (optional)	1/8 tsp	1 tsp
Yellow food coloring (optional)	1 drop	7 drops

Cubed Potatoes

Recipe from: National Center for Home Food Preservation

Wash and peel potatoes. Place in ascorbic acid solution to prevent darkening. Cut into 1/2-inch cubes. Drain. Cook 2 minutes in boiling water and drain again. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jar, if desired. Fill jars with hot prepared potatoes, leaving no more than 1-inch headspace.  Cover hot potatoes with FRESH boiling water, leaving 1-inch headspace and covering all pieces of potato.  (Caution: Do not use the water you cooked the potatoes in; it contains too much starch.)

Process Quarts 40 minutes, Pints 35 minutes for **15 lbs in my pressure cooker

Original recipe: 11 lbs, add 2 for altitude, add 2 for pressure cooker being off. 

Chili Con Carne

This was a really good chili recipe.  I might up the spices next time.  I used red peppers.  I may try jalapenos in the future...this was a mild chili.  This made 9 pints. 

Recipe from: USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning

3 cups dried pinto or red kidney beans
5 1/2 cups water
5 t. salt (2 t. for salting beans when they cook & 3 t. for the chili)
3 lbs. ground beef
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped red bell peppers (you could use jalapenos for a spicier version)
1 t. black pepper
3 to 6 T. Chili powder (I used 4T.)
2 quarts crushed or whole tomatoes (8 cups)


Wash beans thoroughly and put them in a 2 qt. saucepan. Add cold water to a level of 2 to 3 inches above the beans and soak for 12 to 18 hours. Drain and discard water. Combine beans with 5  1/2 cups fresh water and 2 t. kosher salt. Bring to a boil, reduce and cook 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, brown ground beef, onions, and peppers, in a skillet. Drain off fat by spooning into a colander in the sink. Shake out the excess fat. Pour into large pot and add 3t. salt, pepper, chili powder, tomatoes. Drain beans after 30 minutes and add to meat. Simmer chili for 5 minutes.

Using sterilized jars fill leaving 1" headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with dampened clean paper towel that has white vinegar on it. It will help remove any fat that may have been dripped. Adjust lids and process in pressure canner. 

Process pints at **15lbs of pressure for 75 minutes.

*Original recipe is 11 lbs of pressure.  2 lbs adj for altitude, 2 lbs added for my pressure cooking being off. 
 

Chicken Soup

This is another new recipe I tried this year to have some quick, easy meals on hand.  When heating rice or noodles can be added.

Recipe from: Ball Canning Book

8 cups chicken stock
3 cups diced chicken (about 1 3-lb chicken)
1-1/2 cups diced celery (about 2 stalks)
1-1/2 cups sliced carrots (about 3 medium)
1 cup diced onion (about 1 medium)
Salt, optional
Pepper, optional
3 chicken bouillon cubes, optional
4 (32 oz) quart or 8 (16 oz) pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

Directions:

Combine chicken stock, chicken, celery, carrots and onion in a large saucepot. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if desired. 

Ladle hot soup into hot jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.

Process filled jars in a pressure canner at **14 pounds pressure 75 minutes for pints and 90 minutes for quarts. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

*Original recipe is 10 lbs pressure.  2 lbs adj for altitude, 2 lbs adj. for my pressure cooker being off.

Beef Stew with Vegetables

I tried this new canning recipe this year.  The meat is so tender!  It needs some thickening when opened, but is great to have on hand!  It is perfect for when I need a quick meal!
This recipe was supposed to make 14 pints.  I got 20.  

Recipe from:  Ball Complete Home Canning Book

4-5 pounds stewing meat cut into cubes (I used 5 lbs...cut in small pieces)
12 cups cubed peeled potatoes
8 cups sliced peeled carrots
3 cups chopped celery
3 cups chopped onion
1 tablespoon salt
 1 teaspoon dried thyme
 ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons beef bouillon

Directions

Cook beef in a large nonstick skillet, working in small batches. Use small amount

of oil if necessary.

Transfer beef to large stainless steel pan.  Add all other ingredients and cover 

with hot water.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. 

Fill jars leaving 1 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if 

necessary by adding hot stew. 

Wipe jar rims with a paper towel moistened with vinegar.  Center lid on jar, screw

on lid band.

 
Place jars in pressure Canner.  Place lid on canner.  Vent steam for 10 minutes then

close vent.  **Pressure at 14 pounds for 75 minutes for pints 90 minutes for quarts.

Turn off heat and let pressure return to zero naturally.  Wait 2 minutes longer, 

then remove vent and open canner lid.  Wait 10 minutes, then remove jars. 

Cool and store. 

*Original recipe pressure is 10 lbs pressure.  2 lbs adj for altitude and 2 lbs adj 

for my canner being off by 2 lbs.   

Nectarine and Blueberry Pie Filling

Or ice cream topping...or crepe filling. Mmmmm. You can change the amounts of blueberries vs. nectarines. Just make your total fruit 6 quarts. You may have to adjust the sugar, then.

4 1/2 quarts of peeled, pitted, cubed nectarines
1 1/2 quarts blueberries, I used frozen from Costco
6 cups sugar
2 cups plus 2 Tbsp. Clear Jel
1 tsp. cinnamon
5 1/4 cups water (If your fruit is super juicy, drain some juice off and use it in place of some water)
1 1/2 cups lemon juice

In a saucepan, mix sugar, clear jel, and cinnamon. Stir in water. Stir over medium heat until it thickens and begins to bubble. Add lemon juice and boil 1 minute. Fold in fruit and continue to heat for 3 minutes. Immediately fill jars, leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims. Adjust lids and process immediately in a Boiling Water Bath.

Pints or Quarts Water Bath: 30 minutes

Pears

This year (2011) I put up 27 quarts of pears.

Raw Pack:
1/2 inch head space.  
Syrup: 1 cup sugar to 4 cups water, boiled.
40 minute water bath for quarts**

**Adjusted for altitude, originally 30 minutes.  

Peaches

This year (2011) I put up 56 quarts of peaches. whew.

Tomato Soup

Made 2009: 20 pints, 2 half pints

Freezer Jam

I used to make freezer jam with lots of sugar thinking that was just how it was and wishing for something better until I found this...
Now I use this and feel much better about adding 1 1/2 cups of sugar (or you could use splenda)to 4 cups of fruit.

But what I really love is that it tastes like FRUIT more than sugar.

Our favorite jams to make:

Strawberry
Seedless Blackberry (my kids favorite!)
Seedless Raspberry
Seedless Blackberry and Strawberry (I mix 1/2 and 1/2 pulp or what portions I have to make the 4 cups)

Thanks to my parents for growing the raspberries and blackberries!!!

Crushed Tomatoes

Hot Pack--

Wash tomatoes and dip in boiling water for 60 seconds or until skins split. Then dip in cold water, slip off skins and remove cores. Trim off any bruised or discolored portions and quarter.

Heat about 1 pound of the quarters quickly in a large pot, crushing them with a wooden spoon. This will draw off some juice. Continue heating the tomatoes, stirring to prevent burning. Once the tomatoes are boiling, gradually add reaining quartered tomatoes, stirring constantly. These remainig tomatoes do not need to be crushed. They will soften with heating and stirring. Continue until all tomatoes are added. then boil gently 5 minutes.

In each jar put:
1 Tbsp of bottled lemon juice to pints
2 Tbsp of bottled lemon juice to quarts

If you wan to add salt: (I do not)
1/2 tsp. in each pint jar
1 tsp. in each quart jar

Then...fill jars immediately with hot tomatoes, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims. Adjust lids and process.

Boiling Water Bath:

Pints 35 minutes

Quarts 45 minutes

Salsa

This is our favorite canned salsa.  John LOVES it!   I got the recipe from my friend, Julie. 

 Salsa

6 pounds ROMA tomatoes
2 onions
8-10 jalapenos (less for a milder...more for hotter...we don't go too hot)
3 green bell peppers
1 1/2 c. white vinegar
2 large garlic cloves
1/4 c. salt (I use canning salt and mix a little course Kosher salt with it)
1/4 c. sugar
1 can 12 oz tomato paste

Core and remove skins from tomatoes (Steam and peel) Chop (however you like your veggies,) all the vegetables and garlic. Put in large pot, with thick bottom. Add salt, sugar and tomato paste. Simmer for 1-2 hours, the longer you simmer, the thicker it will get. Process in water bath or steam canner for *25 min. for pints.

I get about 6 pints from this recipe.

*Original recipe process is 15 minutes, 10 minutes added for altitude adj. 

Plain Jane Choke Cherry Syrup

If you are wanted a super simple syrup, (it is our least favorite, but still good) here you go...

3 cups choke cherry juice
3 cups sugar

Boil 10 minutes. Ladle in jars, wipe rims...put on lids...process 10 minutes in a water bath.