Canning

Canning
Last summer I wasted so much veggies from my garden because I could not eat them all and they went bad. So this year I'm going to try canning.  SSSSSOOOOO---------

Well today I'm researching canning. (why today? because there is a snow blizzard today and woohoo my work place closed for the day)   I want to make sure all my food is safe and sealed to last 2 years or more.   One important thing I did not know was that are two different canning methods BASED on the type of food. You must know if the food is acid or alkaline.  VERY important. Acid foods can use this type of canning because you don't have to get the food that hot to kill bacteria. 

Acid foods are foods that contain enough acid to have a pH of 4.6 or lower. Acidic foods can be processed safely in a boiling water canner, usually without added acid (lemon juice, vinegar or citric acid). This is necessary to control botulinum bacteria. Acidity may be natural, as in most fruits, or added, as in pickled food. Low-acid canned foods are not acidic enough to prevent the
growth of these bacteria. Acid foods contain enough acid to block their growth, or destroy them more rapidly when heated. The term "pH" is a measure of acidity; the lower its value, the more acid the food. The acidity level in foods can be increased by adding lemon juice, citric acid, or vinegar.

Low-acid foods have pH values higher than 4.6 up to 6.9. (non-acidic, or alkaline foods have pH values of 7.0 or greater) .They include red meats, seafood, poultry, milk, and all fresh vegetables except for most tomatoes. Most mixtures of low-acid and acid foods also have pH values above 4.6 unless their recipes include enough lemon juice, citric acid, or
vinegar to make them acid foods. Acid foods have a pH of 4.6 or lower. They include fruits, pickles, sauerkraut, jams, jellies, marmalades, and fruit butters.

Although tomatoes usually are considered an acid food, some are now known to have pH values slightly above 4.6. Figs also have pH values slightly above 4.6. Therefore, if they are to be canned as acid foods, these products must be acidified to a pH of 4.6 or lower with lemon juice or citric acid. To be safe, we simply recommend always adding 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to each quart of tomatoes or tomato products. Properly acidified tomatoes and figs are acid foods and can be safely processed in a boiling-water canner.

Botulinum spores are very hard to destroy at boiling-water temperatures; the higher the canner temperature, the more easily they are destroyed. Therefore, all low-acid foods should be sanitized at temperatures of 240° to 250° F, attainable with pressure canners operated at 10 to 15 PSIG. PSIG means "pounds per square inch of pressure as measured by gauge". The more familiar "PSI" designation is used hereafter. At temperatures of 240° to 250° F, the time needed to destroy bacteria in low-acid canned food ranges from 20 to 100 minutes.

The exact time depends on the kind of food being canned, the way it is packed into jars, and the size of jars. When it is even possible*, the time needed to safely process low-acid foods in a boiling-water canner ranges from 7 to 11 hours; the time needed to process acid foods in boiling water varies from 5 to 85 minutes. Note: * in many cases, no amount of water bath canning will kill the type of bacteria present, because the temperatures never rise high enough.

Summarizing, low acid or non-acidic foods must be:

• pickled,
• frozen,
• dried or
• canned in a pressure canner (where there is a safe recipe determined for them - there is no safe recipe for canning pumpkins and squash)

• Foods can be acid because they are:

• naturally acid foods
• foods that have acid, such as vinegar or lemon juice, added
• fermented foods, such as sauerkraut. During the fermentation process bacteria produce an acid.

Naturally acidic foods include most fruits, such as:

• apples
• berries
• blackberries
• blueberries
• cranberries
• peaches
• pears
• raspberries
• strawberries

Tomatoes are borderline - and must be considered a special case, with acid added!

• Low Acid or Non-acidic Foods

  These are considered to be LOW acid foods:
  Certain fruits:
• figs,
• Asian pears,
• melons,
• bananas,
• dates,
• papaya,
• ripe pineapple,
• persimmons

Almost ALL vegetables, such as:

• asparagus
• beans
• corn
• cucumbers
• garlic
• green beans
• greens (lettuce, kale, collards, spinach, etc.)
• onions
• peas
• pumpkins
• squash (summer or winter varieties)
•  

Sweet Potato Biscuits

Just wanted to give you an example of how you can use veggies in breads and other items. Will post more later.

1 cup (1 medium-size) sweet potato 

1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup buttermilk (i use the powdered buttermilk in the can, in the baking area of your store)
 
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Pierce sweet potato in several places. Bake potato until very tender, approximately 1 hour. Remove from oven. Cut potato in half and cool slightly. Scoop flesh from potato into small bowl and cool completely.
Place 1 cup sweet potato flesh into large bowl. Add butter and brown sugar; beat until smooth. Sift flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon into a medium bowl. Mix dry ingredients into sweet potato alternately with buttermilk in three (3) additions, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
Transfer dough to a generously floured surface. Roll to 3/4-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out biscuits; place on an ungreased baking sheet. Gather scraps into ball; reroll and cut.
NOTE: If you need to hold the uncooked biscuits, the cut dough rounds can be refrigerated for up to 1 hour.
Bake biscuits until golden and puffed, approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer baking sheet to rack and cool slightly. Serve biscuits warm or at room temperature.
Makes 10 to 12 biscuits.

Savory Cashew Spread Recipe

You don't need to be vegetarian - or vegan - to appreciate a savory nut spread. This mixture can be thinned for a dipping sauce or spread like peanut butter. Season it as you wish - if you make it once, you'll probably never make it the same way twice.

1 1/2 cups plain, raw cashew nuts
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons dry white wine (or water)
2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice or good vinegar
2 cloves garlic, finely minced (to taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
freshly ground pepper, cayenne, paprika (any or none - to taste)

Directions

1. Place the nuts in a large bowl, cover with cold water, and let stand for 2 hours.
2. Drain the nuts and place them in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add 1/4 cup water and the rest of the ingredients, and mix until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl every once in a while. Add more water if necessary to process - remember that the spread will thicken as it sits.
3. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and place in a cool cupboard (not the refrigerator) to ripen for 24 hours. Store in the refrigerator.

Organizing and saving space

I have so many spices that are taking up so much room, even though I have a few 3 tier stair stack thing, it is still taking up valuable space in my kitchen.  I found these and they are cheap, going to order 2 sets, but instead of using the screws or their sticky tape, I going to buy that sticky tape that is removable. 3M command adhesive strips.  That is because I rent and don't want to leave them when I move or mark up the cabinets as they are new.

Thinking of starting your own veggie garden?

Let these books inspire you to start growing your own veggies.  It is a great way to save money.

This review is from: Grow Great Grub: Organic Food from Small Spaces (Paperback)

I bought "Grow Great Grub" because I got so much out of "You Grow Girl". I really didn't see how the author could come up with that much excellent material again, but she did.

You probably should stop reading and just buy the book. The quality is excellent. Photographs are beautiful. The book is easy to read and doesn't waste time. Well done!

Pictures of what vegetables are supposed to look like always help. I'm always turning to my neighbor and asking, "Did I plant that or is it a weed?" Usually the neighbor says it's a weed, but I'm never sure.

The text covers harvesting, drying, preserving, and storing, only one of which I want to do, harvesting, but the other topics are beautifully covered for those who are ready. I'm pushing my luck just to grow and harvest a plant from seed. Maybe next year I'll preserve and store.

She lists plants that grow well in depleted soil, shady or very hot spots and makes coverage interesting on topics of nutrients, fertilizers, containers, pests, building self-watering planter boxes cheaper than buying, a great idea.

I learned about heat-loving spinach I was already growing, but had no idea what it needed! Lists of recommended varieties of vegetables and those that work well in containers are especially helpful.

Now I know when to harvest vegetables, something that always baffled me, including when to dig up onions, when to stop watering, and hang them to cure, and when my radishes were ready to harvest, unfortunately I didn't learn that in time for the current crop, how radishes can be used as a pest repellent for squash, that carrots are slow to germinate but ready to eat at any size, and when potatoes are ready to harvest. I had been about to pull mine out to check. I'm glad I didn't. I had no idea some gardeners say squash plants produce too much squash! I can't wait to have that problem. She covers spacing and staking squash plants, preferred pot size for these space hogs, when to pluck them for best taste, and how to help pollinate, "to make sure the job gets done."

Sections cover special needs of tomatoes, potatoes, blueberries, cucumbers, squash, and radishes, etc.

My notes include why not to let water splash up on lower leaves of tomato plants and how to give them certain nutrients while making leaves and stems, when to stop so they will produce fruit, and when and what to give them at that point. There are special planting needs, since they have lots of root growth, and companion plants for best use of space. Then she gave the best definition I've heard of the differences between determinate, indeterminate, semi-determinate (new to me), dwarf hybrid tomatoes, and which one is right for me.

There is a section on growing fruit in small pots. Now I think I'll grow some strawberries after all. Blueberries - hedge or containers. I think I'll do both. I learned why nothing grows around my pine tree and why blueberries might, why, what and how to prune out to increase growth and discourage fungal problems, needs of high-bush and low-bush blueberries, which one is right for me, how to get the best crops by promoting cross-pollination, when and when not to pick flowers off so the plant can put its energy into growing healthy roots, why/why not to grow fruit from seed, how to prepare citrus soil for fruit plants, when and when not to water, how much sun and heat they need, and how long it takes for them to grow fruit, I might have given up, and finally, how to plant, elevate, and hand-pollinate.

How did she make all this so interesting and easy to read? I don't know, but I'll be referring to this book often. It's a keeper!

My kitchen is in need of some container help.

Every summer (in the house I'm in now) I always get those tiny moths that like my beans and flour, I think these may help. I plan on baking more bread. Last night I made up a bread recipe, it had coconut kefir milk and coconut, and I added some french vanilla extract with all the other ingredients for bread, and it turn out so soft and yummy.   I all ways add about 4 tablespoons of soy flour per loaf and that keeps it moist also.
I'm hooked on amazon.com, can you tell.

OK- Received my containers, I love the sugar one with the pour spout.  You just leave your sugar bag or flour bag in there open one end and the top stick down in the bag.  Love it.

Making Baby Food

I think I will show these to my Daughter In Law, she said she was going to make Rylan's food as soon as he is old enough to have solids.