I had a chance the other day to speak with a Chicken Scratch
member, Kelly Nale, about canning and what I need to know to get
started. She shared with me her knowledge. She has been canning for 30+
years.
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Kelly
Nale was raised in California and married her husband in 1979. That
year they moved to Indiana where they still live. Since then they have
had three wonderful children. Samantha, Charles Jr. , and Heather. They
are now all grown up. Kelly also has a few grand kids that she thinks
the world of. I asked her why she got into canning. " I started
gardening and canning as soon as we moved to Indiana. It was June and
all of my husband's family was working in the gardens and canning
so I had to jump in there and learn how to do it too! His mother showed
me
how to can things and his father showed me
how to grow it all. It has been our way of live here for our whole
marriage and I love it. I love planting something and watching it grow
and I love to can it, freeze it, and dry it. We grow 95% of all our
food. I love knowing what my family is eating and looking at all the
jars of food and a freezer full. It is very comforting to me."
Kelly,
like a lot of Americans are beginning to do in today's economy, has
figured out how to provide for her family. They skip most all processed
foods and eat what comes from their land. They know that there is no
chemicals going on the food that they eat. I myself am very proud of
her.
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| Orange Marmalade and Candied Apple Jelly |
So, You want to start canning? Here is the info from Kelly on how to do that.
Kelly gave some links to things that you will need.
Of
course you dont have to buy from those links, you can find them at your
nearest Walmart. Just make sure that you get something that is good
quality so you can use it for years to come.
 | |
| Canning done by Kelly Nale. That is a lot of jars! |
Before we get on to
the recipes that Kelly uses, it is very important that you read and
memorize the next information. It is how to prevent getting food
poisoning. It helps to identify what you need to know about your canning
process to make sure that you kill the bacteria that can make you
sick.
 |
| 21 quarts of Green Beans |
Now we get on to the fun stuff! Recipes!
Kelly
has so many photos of things that she has canned I cant possibly share
them all with you at once. You would be reading for weeks! So, we
thought we would share the simple ones first. Applesauce, Pickles, Green
Beans and Grape Jelly. I would say pickles have to be my favorite. I
love them so much that I had a cat named Pickles when I was young.
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Applesauce
Applesauce is very easy. You can add cinnamon or other flavoring to create variations on just plain applesauce.
- Use sweet apples. Such as Fuji, Gala, Red Delicious, and Rome. Using sweet apples will make your applesauce sweet enough that you wont have to use sugar.
- Wash and Peel your apples. Slice them up and cut out all of the cores.
- Cook the apples. You can cook them in a few inches of water or you can use apple juice. Cook them until they are soft. Apples are 99% water so you dont need much liquid.
- For thicker applesauce, ladle off the excess liquid once the apples are done cooking. Save that liquid! Is apple juice, home made and it tastes great!
- Now, make the applesauce by mushing or blending. You can use a masher, a food processor, a blender. Anything that will make a sauce consistency.
- Put the applesauce in a big pot, heat it up and add your cinnamon (optional) You do not need to cook it any further, you just need to get it hot.
- Wash your canning jars. You can put them in the dishwasher or soak them in boiling water for 10 minutes to sanitize. To wash the lids, do them the same way! Only boil them for 5 minutes though.
- Fill the jars. You want them to be filled to within 1/4 inch of the top of the jar. Wipe any that may have spilled on the top of the jar.
- Place the lid on and screw on the ring. Tight.
- Place the jars in your canning pot, boiling. Make sure the jars are covered with about 1 inch of water above the lid.
- Boil the jars for at least 20 minutes. Keep the water level above the jars. Dont boil them any longer than 30 minutes.
- Remove them from the boiling water and put them in a draft free place to cool. Loosen or remove the ring while they cool. It will keep the lids from rusting.
- Let them cool overnight.
- Once they are cool, check to make sure you have a good seal. If they are sealed correctly, the lid will not pop up and down when its pressed on. Replace the ring.
If you would like to see the website that Kelly uses for this recipe , Click here
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| Kelly's Apple Canning |
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Other simple recipes:
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Kelly recommends that you also check out the Ball Canning & Recipes for more tips and tricks. Lots of great recipes can be found there as well.
I hope to find that many of you will try canning! If you have any questions you can leave a reply here or Email Me and I will do my best to get you an answer! Now go get some fresh cucumbers or green beans and get started!
Dont forget to thank Kelly Nale for all her help with this! Thanks Kelly!
You can also contact Kelly directly on her FB page! The Empty Nest Farm
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