Any canning going on right now?

[quiltys41]

My garden is all ripening at once even though I staggered the planting! I just hope I can get it all canned up before some of it turns bad....

 

Q

[rootdiggr]

Yesterday I did 6 pints of bread and butter pickles, and 11 pints of yellow squash. I love just looking at the jars!

[preparing]

I was wondering why the Ball Blue Book does not have a squash recipe for canning. Can you post how you can squash?

[preparing]

Me too! It is so hot here and I hope I can keep up. Tomatoes will be awhile, but the squash are starting to scare me!

[Violet]

You cannot safely can zucchini or summer squash by itself. That is why you won't find it in the books. It becomes too dense and the heat cannot penetrate it enough to make it safe.

You can only safely can in mixed with other vegetables or tomatoes.

Tomatoes with Okra or Zucchini

Quantity: An average of 12 pounds of tomatoes and 4 pounds of okra or zucchini is needed per canner load of 7 quarts. An average of 7 pounds of tomatoes and 2-1/2 pounds of okra or zucchini is needed per canner load of 9 pints.

 

Please read Using Pressure Canners before beginning. If this is your first time canning, it is recommended that you read Principles of Home Canning.

 

Procedure: Wash tomatoes and okra or zucchini. Dip tomatoes in boiling water 30 to 60 seconds or until skins split. Then dip in cold water, slip off skins and remove cores, and quarter. Trim stems from okra and slice into 1-inch pieces or leave whole. Slice or cube zucchini if used. Bring tomatoes to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Add okra or zucchini and boil gently 5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon of salt for each quart to the jars, if desired. Fill jars with mixture, leaving 1-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process in a pressure canner.

 

Variation: You may add four or five pearl onions or two onion slices to each jar.

Hot packed pints 30 min. quarts 35 min.

 

Mixed Vegetables

6 cups sliced carrots

6 cups cut, whole kernel sweet corn

6 cups cut green beans

6 cups shelled lima beans

4 cups whole or crushed tomatoes

4 cups diced zucchini

Optional mix – You may change the suggested proportions or substitute other favorite vegetables except leafy greens, dried beans, cream-style corn, winter squash and sweet potatoes.

 

Yield: 7 quarts

 

Please read Using Pressure Canners before beginning. If this is your first time canning, it is recommended that you read Principles of Home Canning.

 

Procedure: Except for zucchini, wash and prepare vegetables as described for carrots, corn, lima beans, snap beans or italian beans and tomatoes. Wash, trim, and slice or cube zucchini; combine all vegetables in a large pot or kettle, and add enough water to cover pieces. Add 1 teaspoon salt per quart to the jar, if desired. Boil 5 minutes and fill jars with hot pieces and liquid, leaving 1-inch headspace.

 

Adjust lids and process in a pressure canner, pints 75 min. quarts 90 min.

 

 

 

[rootdiggr]

Hmm, I had never heard this. I follow the directions in my Ball Blue Book, 1982 edition. I do always add sliced onion in the jar, but that is just for flavor. I cut young, tender squash in small chunks, cover with water and bring that to a boil. Boil for 3-5 minutes. Ladle into pint jars (I put sliced onion in the jars first), process at 10 lbs for 30 minutes. I know that saying "Never had a problem" means "Never had a problem, YET", but I have never even heard of anyone having a problem with squash. I am going to have to look into this.

[Leah]

My books say use chunks NOT sauced squash. The sauce does not get hot enough in the middle to be safe.

[Dora]

Over the weekend I went to the discount grocery and they had tomatoes for THREE DOLLARS A BOX, so of course I got a box lol. Now have 5 pints plain tomatoes and 1 1/2 pints plain juice canned, plus 6 pints "rotel" and 1 pint "rotel" juice canned. Still have a gallon of tomatoes left.

[quiltys41]

Okay...I picked corn yesterday morning...then shucked it with the help of a friend and DH. Then proceded to pressure can 38 pints of the stuff after cutting it all off the cobs. I was up until 1 AM doing this. Now today I have a big cooler still full over the top with corn on the cob...guess I will blanch that and vacuum seal it.

 

Then I have a big table full of tomatoes staring at me wondering when they will get canned up.

 

I love canning season! Busier than heck but boy does the stuff look good on the shelves after you get done. I may need a long break sometime in the next week. Probably sleep one whole day lol!

 

Q

[Violet]

Any canning books older than 1994 should not be used. Even some information has been updated since then, too. I would highly recommend a new version of the Ball Blue book. The squash was removed from the books as it was found to be unsafe to can by itself. No pumpkin butter, either. It needs to be frozen.

Most all tomato products need bottled lemon juice or citric acid added, too. Some need pressure canning and that is the only safe option for stewed tomatoes. Things are being updated in food preservation safety. There will be a new USDA guide coming out soon, too to replace the 1994 version.

 

[Vic303]

8 pts of salsa yesterday plus 1 qt frozen (not enough room in the pot for the qt jar).

[Leah]

I keep all my old cookbooks, but I write in them any recommended changes with the date ie: tomatoes to be pressure canned because of low acid varieties; 1999, etc.

 

That way when the time comes that they get out of my hands into a new cooks hands, the changes are in there and they are safe.

[Jewlzm]

Wooo hoo!! I did 9 qts apricots and 11 qts peaches today.. plus dehydrating some cherries and blue berries. Im tired.. and I missed chat!!! Arrrgggg

[preparing]

Boy I feel lazy now. lol This heat is killing me in Idaho. I went to the fruit stand yesterday and there are apricots and peaches there.

[Jewlzm]

Dont feel to bad preparing.. its not much better in this part of Idaho.. its supposed to be 105 today... I can already feel my garden wilting.

[WiccadStargazer]

Thursday I canned 5 quarts and 9 pints of cherries.

 

And I expecting my "fruit man" to bring me up to 20 lbs more cherries (if they haven't turned to raisins by now) and 50 lbs of apricots.

[rootdiggr]

I got 9 pints of butter beans put into the freezer. I will can the rest of them tommorrow. I bought the beans already shelled from a family farm nearby. They have the old store on the property opened back up, and are selling direct. I plan to give them as much support as possible.

[lindahoney]

Originally Posted By: Violet

Any canning books older than 1994 should not be used. Even some information has been updated since then, too. I would highly recommend a new version of the Ball Blue book. The squash was removed from the books as it was found to be unsafe to can by itself. No pumpkin butter, either. It needs to be frozen.
Most all tomato products need bottled lemon juice or citric acid added, too. Some need pressure canning and that is the only safe option for stewed tomatoes. Things are being updated in food preservation safety. There will be a new USDA guide coming out soon, too to replace the 1994 version.

ACK!!! I just canned 7 pints of diced tomatoes yesterday per my 1995 Ball canning recipe. They have 1 T. lemon juice, 1/2 t.salt per pint, & were processed 40 minutes in a water bath. Is this okay???? Or do I need to pop lids and start over with the pressure canner?!!?!?!

[Necie]

I'd say they're fine.

 

My Ball Blue Book-2003, has that recipe on page 22. Same thing. Water bath pints for 40 and quarts for 45 minutes.

 

But then on page 67 it has the same IDENTICAL recipe, but says to process for 10 minutes at 10 lb pressure in pressure canner.

 

????? Go figure.

[WiccadStargazer]

I did 4 pints cherries and 10 pints apricots today.....back to work I go....

[quiltys41]

Processed another bushel of tomatoes to juice...have it cooking down now on the stove. Not quite sure what I want to make this batch into just yet...maybe it will come to me while it is cooking down?

 

Q

[preparing]

How many tomato plants do you have? Corn, now this

[Dee]

Good work everyone!!!!

 

A friend called and asked me, "do you want some greenbeans, I am sooooo sick of them already". Of course I jumped on it and have 7 quarts cooling and another 3 quarts in the canner. She'll can more later but is tired of it right now. Mine are just starting.

 

We've had 4 ripe tomatoes with gobs more getting ready and hers haven't started yet. We live 2 miles from each other...go figure!

[ArmyOfFive4God]

I have 3 pints in the pot right now and an almost full one that will have to go straight in the fridge (not full enough) of blackberry jam! YUM!

[quiltys41]

HA! It finally came to me what to do with these tomatoes...I made BBQ sauce! No I have to figure out how long to process this stuff for and I'll be all set...for another 3 days LOL!

 

Q