Violet

I have high blood pressure and take magnesium supplements for leg cramps. I had not been told that it was harmful. Maybe I better check it out some more. My doctor knows I take calcium and magnesium. I take blood pressure meds. too. Thanks for letting me know. I will do some more research.

The larger jars take too long to process the foods. Often the food becomes too thick or dense for the heat to properly penetrate while canning. Botulism can grow in those cases or in high acid foods, like fruits, the fruits can mold or ferment. Ony fruit juice, not even tomato juice in the half gallon jars. I don't know how you can really find a canner tall enough for them considering the water would have to come up over the tops of the jars by 1 or 2 inches and still have room to boil. From USDA: What can I process in half-gallon canning jars? At least one canning jar manufacturer is selling half-gallon canning jars. That manufacturer has a printed note on the top that says half-gallon jars are only used for some highly acidic foods in a boiling water canner, with instructions to call a toll-free number for the instructions. When we last called, the only choices are grape juice and apple juice, as we also recommend. The only processes that USDA, the National Center for Home Food Preservation and the University of Georgia have to recommend for half-gallon jars are for very acidic fruit juices (and juice only): Apple Juice (http://www.homefoodpreservation.com/how/can_02/apple_juice.html) and Grape Juice (http://www.homefoodpreservation.com/how/can_02/grape_juice.html). This process time is not to be used for tomato juice, for example. There are no other research-tested processes for half-gallon jars. Boiling water processes for other foods for jars larger than those published with recipes (usually pints and/or quarts) cannot be extended by any formula to a larger jar. We are aware that there are historical recommendations for canning foods in half-gallon jars. However, these are not currently accepted or endorsed by the USDA, Cooperative Extension System or U.S. manufacturers of home canning jars.

The only safe way to can bananas is in a banana jam recipe. It has lemon juice added to it, too. Not just any banana jam or banana butter recipe is safe. Be sure it comes from a reliable source. The safe ones I know of are from Sure Jell/Kraft foods. Bananas are low acid and need to be properly canned to be safe. http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/surej...read-51023.aspx ph of Banana, yellow 5.00 - 5.29 The recipe you sent is fine, it has the lemon juice in it.

Hello good people, This forum thing is new to me so if I make a mistake, just let me know... My husband and I are very interested in getting a pressure canner. I have water-bath canned for years, but my freezer fills up every year with the produce that I can't can in that manner...Anyway.... I am trying to decide between the AA 921 or the AA 925. The only advantage that I could think of is that perhaps the 921 won't take the 1.5 quart jars. Having never actually seen either canner, I'm not sure if this is true... If I don't have to get the bigger, heavier one, I would prefer not to. But, there are times when I use my larger jars.... Any help on this matter? You are not able to safely can anything in a jar larger than a quart. Not other than fruit juice, not even tomato juice. Besides, you need a really tall canner in order to use larger jars. I don't think there is an advantage to the larger one in this case. I would go for price on the two models.

I got whipping cream on sale for 79 cents a pint. Made butter out of it. So good, sweet, creamy, and less salt. It is really tasty. As usual, washed out some bread sacks to reuse, things like that. Went shopping and got more chopped ham for 99 cents a lb. and froze a bunch.

Yes, Arby. The center by itself with no rings on is 5 lb. pressure, then add one ring for 10 lb. The whole thing together is 1 5 lb. There are charts for canning fruits with the 5 lb. weight in case you need to know for later on.

Arby, You can use the online methods and recipes from the National Center for Home Food Preservation. You don't need to wait for the Ball Blue Book. The Ball book just has some more recipes, but all the basic, safe methods and recipes come from USDA to begin with. They are the leading authority on home preservation at the Univ. of Georgia. http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_05/ground_chopped.html

I got 25 cent shampoo and free hair mousse ! I got a brand new nightgown, priced reg. at $46 for $4. A nice suedelike black blouse for $3.50. Just have to take the cuffs off and shorten the sleeves. Yesterday I got six boxes of free food. Four we gave away to the needy, and kept 2 for us to eat. Also got 15 lb. free bread flour. Made potato salad out of some free red potatoes that had just started to sprout. Got some free razor clams from the neighbor. My Dh went over and showed them how to clean them and they shared with us.

I am not sure I will be able to explain it . I am not trained in a whole lot of the chemistry behind foods. Wish I knew more of the scientific,technical things behind it all. I hope I am going to make sense. For example, when you make salsa, the ph reading would be a certain number. As it sits and the veggies acidify the ph can change. It was explained to me that foods will in the beginning sort of "reject" the acid, then relax, and accept it. I was told that is why recipes like salsas need to be tested for safety. Also, why salsa is not packed raw into a jar and processed. It takes time for the acid to penetrate the cell wallls of a food, is my understanding. I am also thinking things like pickles. The cucumbers will eventually absorb the acid as well as the flavor. This is why we should never make up our own recipes. We just have no idea what the ph level is or the density. Also, something to think about, the recipes that are tested are tested with those EXACT amounts and EXACT ingredients. If you change anything, then the processing times would be different for that food. The density of food will also determine the processing times. That is why something like a juice will require less processing time than chunks of fruit. The chunks are more dense and will take longer for the heat to penetrate. When they test the recipes, they are tested at all stages. The time it goes into the jars and then later on as the food has sat. There is just so much to learn. Even the temp. at which you store your jars makes a difference. If they get too hot, foods can acutally spoil, or at least change colors. Fruits can get pale if left in light. In all honesty, the person to ask more scientific, detailed things would be Elizabeth Andress at the National Center for Home Food Preservation. She is the one who has shared so much of her wisdom with us.

The reason you must peel potatoes is that no matter how much you scrub or wash, you cannot get all the botulism spores off. They may not all be killed during processing. The processing times are for PEELED potatoes. If it was possible to be 100 percent sure the botulism was destroyed with peel, the processing time would be longer. May or may not even be possible to destroy all the spores by processing. I just know this is what I am taught and what I am to pass along as safe processing, to peel all potatoes and root crops. This would also be for carrots, etc. anything that grows underground. The spores can grow into the toxin in the absence of air, as in the sealed jar. If you decide to use the ones with peels you have, be sure to boil at least 10 min. before you ever taste them.

Arby, Walmart here has the canning/pickling salt during part of the year when they have canning supplies. You will just have to check and see if they have it now. I get mine at the grocery store. When I can meats I use boullion, which has salt in it. I do use canning salt in my veggies and pickles, though. Glad you got your canner ! Finally. If you want to play with it, go ahead and just put some water in there and check to see if the gauge goes up and also if the seal leaks,etc. Vent for the full 10 min. then put on the counterweight. If you want to take it up to 15 lb. pressure, it should rock at that point. You will have to keep a good eye on it though, since you will be regulating the pressure yourself with the heat. It is not self regulating as the weights will be. Well, you do adjust it some so it doesn't have to rock like it is going to fly off, but basically once you set the temp. on the stove it will just rattle the whole time and keep it at the right pressure. Woo hoo ! You are going to be canning away soon !

I am glad it will work on yours. There is only one really old model that I have found it doesn't work on so far. It works on my oldest canner, which is about 30 years old.

You are welcome for the help. I also have gone to using the weights even though I test gauges. I do it so I can also just listen and not have to babysit watching the gauge. Glad it is working so well for you, too.

The top 2 pictures are only counterweights. They are not meant to regulate the pressure, only hold it in and allow pressure to build. The first one is the new model counterweight. The second picture is the kind that came on my old canner, but still a counterweight. The third picture is a three piece weight set. It comes apart. It is part number 50332. Taht is what you want to use for making it into a weighted gauge canner. Leave the dial on, just don't rely on it for accuracy. No more having to test the gauge every year.

This is where I order. You can even see a pic of the weight set. http://www.pressurecooker-outlet.com/prestoregulators.htm

Arby, This is a seperate three piece weight set you buy. What comes on a Presto is a counterweight.It is only meant to hold pressure in the canner, not for regulating pressure for canning. A Presto uses a dial gauge. It will keep climbing in pressure if you keep the heat on high. The dial MUST be tested before you use it as it may be off by as much as 4 lb. and it would not be safe to use. I test many brand new gauges that are bad from factory. I contacted Presto, as well as the National Center for Home Food Preservation a year or more ago. I came up with the idea to use the weights instead. Both Presto and NCFHFP told me it was fine to do so. You then leave the dial on, but you don't have to test it before use or each year like otherwise you would need to. You then use the weight off the set for your altitude. Most everyone uses 10 lb. weight. You then use the weight and it will rattle the whole time you are using it, but it will self vent and keep the canner at 10 lb. pressure. You don't have to sit and watch that gauge the whole time. Makes life easier, for sure. Any more questions, just ask. You order part number 50332 for the weight set. It comes apart. You have 3 pieces. The center is 5 lb. Add one ring and you have 10 lb. , add the third piece along with the other 2 and you have 15 lb. pressure.

Andrea, So happy to hear they loved the mushrooms ! Makes you feel really good, doesn't it, when they like things so much. Here I can get mushrooms on sale during the year so I can them when they are cheaper.

Powd. and liquid pectin are not interchangeable. They are added at different times during making the jam. Normally it will never gel if you use the wrong type for your recipe. Sorry ! Here is a liquid pectin recipe. You can leave out the raisins, of course. Dutch Apple Pie Jam 1 pound tart green apples 1/2 cup raisins 1 cup water 1/3 cup lemon juice 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 4 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon butter or margarine 1 pouch Certo liquid fruit pectin Peel, core and finely chop enough apples to measure 2 cups. Place in large pan with raisins, water, lemon juice, cinnamon and allspice. Stir in sugars and butter or margarine. Place pan over over high heat and stir until it comes to a full boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and immediately stir in liquid fruit pectin. Bring to full rolling boil and boil hard for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir and skim foam for 5 minutes to prevent floating fruit. Pour quickly into jars, filling up to 1/2 in from the rim. Process in BWB for 10 min.

I am now wanting an Aebleskiver Pan. They are little round pancake things. You can put the apple pie jam in the middle of them. I didn't get to eat any on our recent anniversary trip due to my blood sugar being too high that morning. My husband said they were really good. The lady served them with apple cider and cinnamon syrup. That would be easy to can, too ! Darlene, there is a seperate recipe for the apple pie jam using liquid pectin online if you ever need it. I use powd. because it is cheaper to buy here than the liquid. Hope it gels for you. If not, you can always call it syrup ! Sometimes I add the allspice, sometimes I don't. It is all good.

I like mine about 1/4 of an inch thick. I use my applepeeler/corer/slicer handcrank machine. Works really well. I do not dip mine in anything. I just put on the trays and dry. Takes about 4 hours, or so. Dry until they show no signs of moisture when you bend them. I like mine crispy. Normally I go by taste. I just eat one and see how dry it is. I store mine in ziplocs in the freezer. You don't have to, but I just do for longtime storage.

It is my understanding that gelatin products should not be canned because they are an animal product. I am not sure of the ph level of them. I should see if I can find out more about this. Of course, there isn't any info in the USDA guidelines about that. There are always more things that pop up that I need to find solid answers on. Interesting question for me to research.

Glad you are trying this recipe. You can make juice from those peels and make jelly or something. I save mine and add to other juices for my sugar free jellies.

This has both white and brown sugar. I get so many requests for this: APPLE PIE JAM 4 cups tart apples, peeled and finely chopped 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 4 cups sugar 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar 1 box powdered pectin 1/2 teaspoon butter Add water to chopped apples to measure 4 cups.(This is NOT 4 cups each, but water placed on top of the diced apples to come up to the 4 cup mark.) Place apples and water into large, heavy saucepan. Stir in lemon juice, cinnamon and allspice. Measure sugars. Stir pectin into fruit. Add butter. Bring mixture to full rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Quickly stir in both sugars. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon. Ladle quickly into hot, clean jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands on finger tight. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Apple pie jam !!! It is so good. I really need to take time and make up some low sugar for myself. I have only made the full sugar version so far. Makes a lovely gift. If you don't have one, those apple peeler/slicer/corer hand crank machines are great ! I found mine at the Goodwill for $4. Really saves me time. A tip, I put down some old bath towels on the floor under the cutting board when using the peeler. Plus, I open up the drawers under and near it, too. Close a towel in the drawers. It will catch a lot of the splatters and saves me from a lot of sticky cleanup. Toss the towels in the wash and Voila ! it is mostly cleaned up.