When the Washington State Fruit Commission asked if I would be a 2015 Canbassador for preserving local, sweet, amazing Washington-grown fruit I lept at the opportunity. You see, as a local Washingtonian, I already believe the fruit being grown by our orchardists throughout the state is the best in the country. This isn’t just hometown pride talking. Washington is…
Canning
Ten Simple Steps To Prepare For Canning Season
I don’t know about you, but I am feeling a little behind in my canning planning. If you are too, worry not! If we follow these ten simple steps, we’ll both step into preservation season calm and prepared to tackle those bushels of tomatoes and pickles and corn. I was just chatting with my friend and mentor Margaret…
How To Peel A Lot Of Tomatoes Fast
If you’re like me, you are in the thick of canning season. Over the past three weeks or so I’ve gotten something like 240 pounds of tomatoes turned into sauce, chopped tomatoes, salsa, various relishes, savory jams, etc. So it’s fair to say I’ve peeled many, many tomatoes. At this point, I think I’ve honed the…
Reader Question: What Foods Should I Preserve?
My wife and I are newer to the preserving game and are super pumped on it. Last year we preserved a lot of food but it wasn’t really conducive to living off of. We canned mostly jams, jellies, some pickled veggies (cauli, beans, asparagus, etc) and then did a lot of peaches! What I hope…
Can-o-Rama 2013
This past weekend was pretty much dedicated to canning. Homebrew Husband and I did this last year (see: Can-o-Rama 2012). Dedicating a solid weekend to putting up staple foods like pickles and tomatoes can be a bit of a whirlwind, but it feels fantastic to take the pantry from nearly-bare to nearly-full in 48 hours….
How Not To Die From Botulism: What Home Canners Need To Know About The World's Most Deadly Toxin
You may have seen this article. A Seattle man recently contracted botulism from his improperly canned elk meat and is lucky to be alive. His description of how he canned the elk is like a checklist for everything you never, ever do when canning food. I love to see so many new people taking up home…
Turmeric Garlic Dill Pickles by Popular Request
I have gotten a lot of requests for the recipe for my new favorite Turmeric Garlic Dill Pickles since mentioning them in my Can-o-rama post. Ask and ye shall receive, friends. Turmeric Garlic Dill Pickles 8 lbs small pickling cucumbers Pre-Soak: 3/4 cups pickling salt 2 gallons cold water. Brine:* 8 large cloves garlic (or…
Stop Throwing Away Free Tomato Sauce
It has come to my attention that many people are unwittingly throwing away free tomato sauce when they preserve their summer tomatoes. Here’s the thing: like all fruit, the skin of tomato is where much of the natural pectin resides. Pectin is the starch that gives jams their thickness and good tomato sauce its natural,…
How To Martha-Up Your Jam Labels For Nearly Free In About 5 Minutes
The pile of canned tomatoes and pickles and jams on my dining room table is begging to be put safely away in the pantry. The only problem: I like to Martha-up my jam with cute labels. Although I have, in the past, recommended inexpensive cut-out labels for jam jars, many readers have enlightened me to…
Can-o-Rama 2012
It’s 1:43 AM Monday as I write this. The past 56 hours have been a Can-o-rama from “where’s-my-coffee?” to way-past-dusk that has precluded the writing of any witty or useful blog posts. I’m eating good cheese with a spoon, too tired even to drink the well-deserved pour of wine next to me. I got nothin’,…
How To Make Pectin-Free Jam: Ditch The Box and Increase The Creativity In Your Preserves
Do you need pectin to make jam? I used to think so. I followed the recipe on the inside of the pectin box slavishly for 7 years before I broke free of the pectin bonds. Every year, my strawberry jam tasted exactly like the strawberry jam of everyone else who wore the Sure-Jell shackles. The…
Create Your Own Signature Jam By Mixing and Matching Flavors
It’s unofficial Preserve Week here at Northwest Edible Life. I know because my floor is sticky with canning syrup and my refrigerator smells like pickle brine. It’s hard for me to think of anything else but putting food by right now, so I’m going to be talking jams and pickles all week long. I hope…