Whether she's an avid vegetable gardener, an aspiring beekeeper, or someone who always has a kitchen DIY project in the works, we've rounded up our favorite gifts for the homesteader in your life. Who knows? She might even be so grateful as to share the end result of her culinary adventures with you!
With ripe fruits and vegetables in abundance right now, it's impossible to imagine the possibility that Winter could be around the corner. That's why, while you've got it good at the market, you should take the time to preserve Summer's bounty at home to make anything — fruit jams, dill pickles, canned artichokes, hot sauce, you name it! — that fits inside a can.
If you're new to canning, be sure to start by gathering all the right canning equipment essentials, then read through our instructions for processing cans; the technique can be applied to anything that's piled in a jar. (If you're more of a visual learner, we've got you covered, too). Still feeling intimidated? Then skip the sealed-can process — just be sure to consume everything within two weeks.
Ready to start jamming to preserves and pickles? Get inspired with these recipes.
Making jams and pickles involves more than just throwing the contents into a glass jar; if you plan to store the canned item for several months, the cans must be processed using a method of suctioning the seal of the cans to preserve the jar's contents. But before attempting any recipe that calls for canning, it's important that you have all the equipment on hand, especially if you are making jam or pickles for the very first time. Here are the essential items you'll need and the purposes they serve:
My dad is a jalapeño fiend who is known to order and hoard bowls of fresh and pickled jalapeños every time we go to a Mexican restaurant. For Father's Day, I thought I'd attempt to make a batch of homemade pickled jalapeños so my dad can get his spicy fix while he's eating chips and guacamole at home.
Sweet, tangy, and very spicy, these homemade jalapeños give Mexican restaurants a run for their money. Prepare to engage in some hee-hee-hoo-hoo breathing, because these jalapeños are the real, mouth-burning deal.
Serve these jalapeños on chips, dice them into homemade salsa, or wake up just about any Mexican fare with them. Stay cool by washing down these jalapeños with a refreshing, crisp Mexican beer. Ready to take on this super-picante recipe?
Do you know somebody who buys case upon case of tomatoes and spends weekends canning them away in order to get a taste of Summer during the cold Winter months? Or perhaps you have a friend or family member that has a famous recipe for peach or raspberry preserves. Well, take a look at our gift guide for the avid canner, filled with lots of home pickling and preserving goodies.
This season, I made it a priority to educate myself on the basics of canning, pickling, fermenting, and food preserving. Thankfully, I was able to put my knowledge to work when I finally confronted a boiling-water canner and my Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. My parting thoughts after this first brush with home canning? It's not as hard as it sounds, and once you get the rhythm of it, it can be well worth the effort. My advice for those new to jarring: start with a project, such as this one, that isn't too complicated. To see how I canned whole tomatoes in their own juice, keep reading.
For every minute that I cling more desperately to the idea of Summer produce, I can feel it further slipping away. My soon-to-be saving grace? A frenzy of food preservation as the days get shorter and the nights grow colder. Who knows; perhaps I'll host a canning and pickling party or make a fruit jam of my own!
But before I share ideas and recipes with you, I want to find out just how versed you are on food preservation. One of the best-known methods of treating food is heat processing, or forming airtight seals around food in jars — but there's also fermenting, jellying, pickling, salting, and curing. Do you have the basics in the can? Let's find out when you take this quiz!
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Although I've always been a fan of quick pickling, it wasn't until recently that I tried canning at home. Although I wasn't sure whether it'd be worth the hours of effort, the end result was so delicious that I can't wait to try it again on other fruits and vegetables. Next time, however, I'd throw a canning and pickling get-together to pass the time. What do you think?
After making a savory version of French toast topped with tomato jam last weekend, it occurred to me that, when preserved, tomatoes are well-suited for both sweet and savory applications, too. Tomatoes are technically fruit, and when they're ripe they possess a level of sweetness that rivals a sassy nectarine. This means the seedy red rounds are ideal contenders for a traditional fruit jam style, spread atop bread or toast. But unlike most fruits, tomatoes also register high in glutamic acid, an umami provider that contributes to a savory, rounded flavor — so they're just as dreamy when reduced to peppery, vinegar-tinged preserves, then served atop meat roasts or crackers.
Make the most of the tapering tomato supply by preparing either — or both — jams when you read more.
In the Winter, I always love to invite my friends over for a cookie swap or edible gift-making party. However, I've never done something like this during the warmer months — until now. Inspired by a new Williams-Sonoma book, The Art of Preserving, I'm hosting a canning party and I suggest you do the same. First select a date — preferably a relaxed time, like Sunday afternoon — then decide what you want to make at the event. Throw in some homemade snacks and you've got yourself a fabulous little party. At mine, I'll offer guests two nibbles in the form of a white bean dip with parsley oil and an oven-dried tomato tart with goat cheese and black olives.
What will we be making? Peach-rosemary jam and classic dill pickles! If this sounds like fun to you, check out these recipes, after the break.
