Canning

It seems fitting that my first post on this thing will be about something that I absolutely love right now. I don’t know what it is about preserving food but it’s rewarding to know that I know exactly what I’m putting into my body and how old it is. We started canning last year, mainly as an excuse to socialize with friends who were canning the night we were thinking of doing it. After that, I was hooked! I started looking up other recipes but since it was the end of August, I (dumbly) assumed canning season was over and we had missed the boat. All throughout last year I was looking into how to preserve, what tools you needed, tips and tricks, etc. I was so excited about preserving things, I wanted to dive right in and get a pressure canner (I mean why not go all out)! Lindsey was so sweet he bought me an electric pressure cooker for Christmas to help me out with my new obsession! TANGENT – That pressure cooker has not been used for canning because I am too scared to can with it, but it is the best cooking tool I have in my kitchen!

This year, I was prepared! I wanted to make Marinara sauce and crushed tomatoes. I was scared with the undertaking I was embarking on so I had my mom help me. That way I knew that I wouldn’t kill anyone! Plus, it’s nice to have someone show you the ropes! We bought 80lbs of tomatoes and honestly, I don’t think it was enough… I mean we got a fair amount of tomatoes and marinara sauce out of it but after I started thinking about it, I could have easily done 40lbs of tomatoes for myself (the 80lbs was split three ways) nevertheless, it was an all day event. Lindsey and my dad spent the morning peeling the tomatoes, we had a Rubbermaid that we washed out and put all the skinned tomatoes into that. It filled up the Rubbermaid quite nicely (as well as a five gallon paint bucket). We got an obscure number of cans out of both recipes (I can’t remember now, this is why I need to write these things down earlier)

After the tomatoes, I got the bug again and started looking at what else I could preserve. My mom had caught the bug too; we decided to do hot mix pickled veggies, garlic, applesauce and jam. However, I didn’t get over to her house in time to make the jam so she did it with my dad. As they were canning the raspberry jam, my father asked how hard it was to make seedless jam. My mom said it wasn’t happening and left it at that. Thinking I would be a nice daughter, I decided to make some seedless raspberry jam for my father. Now, let this be a rule to everyone. When you’re making seedless raspberry jam, DO NOT use pectin. It turns it into a jelly (which we all can agree isn’t nearly as delicious and doesn’t spread as well)! Furthermore, if you would like seedless raspberry jam, just go to the store and buy it! 

Making that jam was the most labour intensive job I have ever done within regards to food preparation. Straining out all the juice and smashing everything together so only the seeds are left in a giant seedy ball is hard work and rather messy. It took me over three hours to juice, cook and process the jam. Honestly, I would like to say I would never be doing that again however, I know that’s not the case. I really want to perfect this canning thing and I think that means that I need to have another go with the seedless raspberry jam one day! Plus, by the time next year comes along, I doubt I’ll remember the pain and torment it caused me, I’ll just be ready to go all over again! And this time, maybe I’ll keep some for myself (I gave it all to my dad… he can be the guinea pig!)

All of this canning lead us to another problem… Storage! Our little townhouse is well, little and storage isn’t something that there is an abundance of! To solve this problem when we first moved in, I bought a small shelving unit and hoped for the best however; it just wasn’t cutting it anymore! So I asked my dad to come over while Lindsey was away on business to help me (which means do all the work while I make lunch as a thank you) build a shelving unit. I asked my dad to come when Lindsey was away because he doesn’t like mess or loud noises and well, I bask in both of those things!

I have to say, I am beyond impressed with the difference the shelving has made. I wish I took a before picture but trust me when I say that it is night and day in there! Now I keep looking around the house for other places we could build storage, however our house is so small, we don’t need to look far to realize, every square foot of this place is pretty utilized!

I wish we had houses like they do in Japan with the crazy storage solutions they have! There’s absolutely no wasted space anywhere. Oh well, one day it will happen. Until then I’ll just have to bask in the glory that is my new shelving unit!