Is a freeze dryer worth buying?
Freeze drying is not for everyone. The initial cost of the machine is pretty substantial. Should you get a freeze dryer? Is it worth it?
Putting By the Summer Harvest
The summer starts with putting in: putting in the garden, putting in the time and energy to ensure it produces well. And now it’s time start thinking of putting by. This is what your grandmother called it: preserving all the surplus from the garden and putting it by for future use. As much as I…
What is Safe Canning?
Is canning safe? If you’ve done any reading on social media about canning, you’ll find a whole lot of strong opinions on whether or not canning is safe and a good thing to do. There are two extremes on the spectrum of whether or not canning is safe. On the one side is the Nervous…
Best tools for canning
Let’s make canning less of a chore Canning can be a pretty overwhelming task, especially if you want to put up enough food to last your family all year. But if you have the right tools for the job, you can make the job a lot easier, saving your hours of work and headache. Let’s…
Is Canning Worth the Trouble?
First, a short history In the 1860’s, a tinsmith named John L. Mason invented what we now call the Mason jar—a glass jar with a threaded lip and a reusable metal lid. Since then, this homemaker’s wonder has allowed people all over the world to preserve fruit, pickles, relishes and jams. Even though people of…
The Well-Equipped Canning Kitchen
There’s not much that you really need to get started canning. A canner with rack and some canning jars with 2-piece lids will get you started. And maybe a jar lifter, magnetic lid wand, funnel and timer. Altogether all of this can cost you as little as $10 if you buy it at rummage sales…