Canning season

VermontCathy

It's definitely canning season. I just made my second batch of blueberry jam from end-of-season blueberries. Here's one jar of the seven I made:

And for the first time this year, I'm trying to make "bread and butter pickles". These are vinegar/mustard cucumber pickles that also contain chopped onions in the recipe.

I think I will have enough tomatoes to make a small amount of tomato sauce, which will also be a first for me.

COWLOVINGIRL

That's supper cool! I am also making tomato sauce for the first time this year! I'm saving them in the freezer for a big batch!

VermontCathy

I was able to can 2 quarts of whole tomatoes. It took much longer than making jams and jellies, partly because it took longer to get a canner with enough water to cover quart jars up to temperature, and partly because the quart jars have to be processed for 90 minutes instead of 15 minutes for half-pints.

I also made some bread-and-butter (sweet and sour) pickles from the pickling cucumbers. These haven't been as productive as I hoped, mainly because I didn't know what I was doing when I set up the garden bed. But I'm getting enough to try pickling. Next up will be dill pickles.

This was also the first year to try making Sichuan spicy bean pickles, which have that mouth-numbing flavor of Sichuan peppercorns. I love them, but they have to be kept as refrigerator pickles rather than canned, so they'll need to be eaten in the next couple of weeks.

Merin Porter

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/871884#Comment_871884

I actually ordered a pressure canner this year (I have a water-bath canner already). Of course, so did the rest of the world, so it is still back-ordered after more than 2 months. But hopefully once it comes, it will have been worth the wait....

mcarryon

I grew pickling cucumbers this year, so I just made bread and butter pickles. They turned out great. Onion, vinegar, and mustard seeds. Store in fridge.

ltwickey

I'm so excited and so jealous of all of you... As a renter, having a garden that I want, is not allowed... But I did have a garden, just not enough for any canning this year...

Hoping the wild chokecherries yield enough for a good jelly supply!! Also, going to hit the apple orchard and make me some applesauce for the winter season!

Wish me luck.

VermontCathy

@ltwickey If you can't have your own garden, sign up for a local CSA. That's what I plan to do if I'm ever in that situation again.

naomi.kohlmeier

My produce is coming in slowly. Sometimes I only put up a pint or two at a time, but it's pretty amazing how they add up! I'd love to have blueberries to make into jelly! Good for you! @VermontCathy

OhiohillsLouise

Something new for me this year is Ground Cherry Salsa yummy, the sweet of the ground cherries mixed with cilantro....

oh so good and beautiful too.

marcy_northlightsfarm

I cleaned out my freezer this summer and made 29 pints of strawberry jam. Some was straight strawberry, some was strawberry raspberry and lastly strawberry rhubarb. I knew I had a lot of berries in the deep freeze but still was surprised how much was actually in there. I had a habit of only making a few batches of jam then freezing the rest of the berries "for when I had more time". Now I had to clean out the freezer to fit a beef, so I made the time.

I've made 10 quarts of pickles too. My cuke vines are now done because of cucumber beetles. So I made the one pickle recipe that I cannot buy which is Russian Dill. It's a sweet dill and recently at a cooking party my friends voted it the best tasting item at the party.

Here's the recipe: Russian Style Dill Pickles

3 cups sugar, 3 cups vinegar, 3 Cups Water, 6 tbsp salt, cucumbers, fresh dill (two heads per jar), garlic (peeled). Makes 3-4 Quarts

Put one head dill and one large clove garlic in each jar. Tightly pack with cucumbers. Place second head of dill on top. Make boiling hot brine of the sugar, vinegar, water and salt. Pour over the cucumbers. Seal with lids and bands and immediately place in boiling hot water bath canner. Process for 15 min.

The trick to getting crisp pickles is to make them the same day they are picked. If you can't do that, place cukes in plastic bag in the refrigerator and do them soon.

marcy_northlightsfarm

@VermontCathy Just wondering why you canned your tomato pints in the hot water bath only 15 min? This trusted resource says at least 45 depending on what you are making with the tomatoes. Just curious because I don't know what you made. I want to make sure everyone else new to canning uses safe tested methods.

Here is my resource: https://extension.umn.edu/preserving-and-preparing/canning-quick-reference-chart

By the way to get a hot water bath up to temperature quicker, I fill with hot tap water. Then place the lid on and cover with hot pads and oven mitts. This keeps the heat from escaping out the top. I have an electric stove but for those using gas you wouldn't want anything overhanging that might catch fire.

VermontCathy

Sorry I wasn't clear. Let me explain.

Up to now, all my water bath canning has been jams and jellies in half-pint jars. My recipes call for 15 minute processing at my altitude (above 1,000 ft). I also did some bread and butter pickles in pint jars with a 15 minute processing time.

My tomatoes, on the other hand, all went into quart jars this round. That recipe calls for 90 minutes processing at my altitude.

So no, none of my tomatoes got short processing times, and none were canned in small jars. It's just that my planning habits and expectations have been set by faster recipes.

VermontCathy

"The trick to getting crisp pickles is to make them the same day they are picked. If you can't do that, place cukes in plastic bag in the refrigerator and do them soon."

The challenge I have is my one small bed of cucumbers doesn't produce enough in one day's picking to be worth canning. It can take a week of harvesting to get enough to bother with.

This is my first time growing cukes, and it's been a learning experience. I made mistakes that will be fixed next year. So yields are quite low, unlike those of my tomatoes and strawberries, which pour out more fruit than I could possibly use in fresh form.

naomi.kohlmeier

@VermontCathy @marcy_northlightsfarm when did the hot-water bath canning tomatoes method change to 90 minutes per quart???

I've only ever canned quarts for 15 minutes. (I hot pack them after boiling for 5 minutes.

naomi.kohlmeier

Is anyone able to buy canning lids? Everywhere I've looked is sold out and cannot get any more. My sis-in-law said when COVID hit, Ball was not considered an essential business and had to shut down. The earliest they will be able to send more lids out is October??? Sigh. Guess I'll can what I can until my lids run out and freeze the rest until I can get more.

COWLOVINGIRL

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/872106#Comment_872106

Check this out.

https://www.mason-official.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_7Hmtcu76wIVC-DICh2MawFpEAAYASAAEgI9kfD_BwE

Torey

For anyone in Canada looking for lids, Bernardin lids are available at Amazon.ca. I just tried to place an order and it said standard lids were back ordered for 2 weeks but wide mouth lids and Gem are available now.

VermontCathy

"when did the hot-water bath canning tomatoes method change to 90 minutes per quart???"

I'm making a recipe for Canned Whole Tomatoes in "Put 'em Up" by Sherri Brooks Vinton. It calls for 60 seconds of blanching and icing followed by 85 minutes of processing. The same book calls for adding 5 minutes to processing times if you are above 1,000 feet, and even more if you are above 3,000 feet. So 85+5 = 90 minutes.

I am no expert on this, so I am following recent recipes. (Older ones I can be risky, partly because the science was less well understood, but also because modern tomato varieties can be lower-acid than the ones common 50+ years ago.)

moreyshadypines

I've started making spiced pears this week. My pear tree produced 5 - 5 gallon buckets of pears. I'll be there a while - I call it a canning marathon. These are very yummy. :)

OhiohillsLouise

@naomi.kohlmeier I’ve been using Tattler lids for a few years now. Since they are reusable no need to worry. The rubber ring will need to be replaced eventually but I have yet to replace mine. There is a learning curve as to how to adjust them but I adapted. You might try checking them out. I still use the metal lids for things I will give away (which isn’t much).

marcy_northlightsfarm

@naomi.kohlmeier Good question, "when did the hot-water bath canning tomatoes method change to 90 minutes per quart???

I've only ever canned quarts for 15 minutes. (I hot pack them after boiling for 5 minutes."

My salsa recipe that I've always used calls for 15 mins in the canner and that is what I've always done with my salsa and other tomato products. When trying to nail down the correct time I found recommendations all over the place. I did figure out that canning tomato recommendations changed in back in 1985. Then I looked up the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) tomato home canning guide and I think this is the most reliable source. Salsa is still 15 min in the hot water bath, other tomato canning times vary widely up to 85 min. I'll leave the reference here: https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/usda/GUIDE03_HomeCan_rev0715.pdf

Gail H

@moreyshadypines Could you share your recipe for spiced pears? I picked 15 lbs or so this morning and want to can them.

moreyshadypines

@Gail H certainly it would be my pleasure.

Make a light syrup, 2 cups sugar to 1 quart water, add 2 cinnamon sticks, a couple drops of red food coloring. Put in a good sized soup pot, and heat and stir until sugar is dissolved (no need to boil it, just heat it).

Pears ripen off the tree, so after they are picked and turn yellow it time to get to work. Peel and core pears. I have found chunks to pack better than slices. I like slices for the look, but then end up with too much excess room in the jars. Add the pears to the syrup and cook until pears are translucent - but not mushy (they will continue to cook when being processed). Hot water bath process for 20 minutes, using best practices for sanitation. This easily becomes a family favorite. :😊

Onlookers, that was off the top of my head, so if you have any input don't hesitate to chime in.

naomi.kohlmeier

thanks @marcy_northlightsfarm I'll check that out.

Merin Porter

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/872106#Comment_872106

I was able to pick some up from my local Wal-Mart and City Market. But we live in a farming region, so maybe the supply is higher here to accommodate demand?

marcy_northlightsfarm

Darn, the canning lid shortage has just evolved into the canning jar shortage! The only jars left are pints and half pints. I just bought a case of the half pints (hoping I get lucky in mushroom hunting)

. I'm down to only 9 quart jars left, I've been canning more then ever this year. Next I'm going to go through my dried herb stock and transfer any that are in canning jars into my collection of recycled glass jars. I've always saved jars and those are going to come in handy. By the way I save jars with the original lids. Sometimes I'll try to can with them but the necks of those jars are slightly narrower than a normal canning jar. Thus the funnel won't fit in it. Makes it really hard to pour a hot brine or sauce into the jar. Does anyone have a solution for this?

Gail H

@marcy_northlightsfarm I'm not sure if this will work for hot liquids, but I use it all the time to put things like seeds and dried elderberries in jars with narrower necks. I got a disposable water bottle (the kind you buy by the case at the grocery). I cut the bottom off ,leaving about 2.5 inches past where it begins to narrow. My canning funnel fits in the cut off bottle and then I put the bottle's neck in my jar. I will try to take a picture and post it. It would probably take me less time to make and send one to everyone on this forum than it will to figure out out to post a picture, but I will give it my best effort!

If you make one, you might want to try it with hot water just to see how it performs. I have only used mine for dry things. It's handy for putting tooth powder in jars, too.

Gail H

Here are the pictures, as promised!

OhiohillsLouise

@naomi.kohlmeier I just went to our local “bulk food” store run by the Amish/Mennonite community in my area. They have lids, price here is $4.98 for 24. They also have a larger sleeve. If you have those type stores in your area check with them.

Acequiamadre

"when did the hot-water bath canning tomatoes method change to 90 minutes per quart?

We used to live at 8,300 feet and canning took 4-ever. Even canning fruit jam was a venture. We are now at about 5,600 feet and it is much quicker.

Especially with tomatoes, I would recommend following the extra time for altitude. Adding lemon juice is also often a suggestion, and I following it to keep my tomatoes botulism free.

naomi.kohlmeier

@OhiohillsLouise thank you for the information!