Farm Fresh Recipes for Canning

The golden harvest season is finally here with gardeners and farmers hustling to bring in the last fruits and vegetables of their labor. The abundance of produce these autumn crops yield often requires preservation such as canning, and sometimes you can find these homemade delicacies at roadside stands, state fairs, craft shows, or even Grandma's house. I have great memories of helping my grandmothers pick squash and shell butterbeans that were later cleaned, prepared, and stored along with other canned treasures. To this day, I swear nothing has ever tasted better than what came out of those old Mason jars.

Whether you grow your own fruits and vegetables or purchase them from the supermarket, canning homegrown produce helps to preserve foodstuff longer by retaining vitamins inside and blocking bacteria out - plus, it is much more cost-effective and tastier than buying commercial brands. Canned goods also make wonderful and inexpensive gifts. And if there is a power outage, they won't spoil - in fact, most canned goods will keep on the shelf for years.

Don’t fret if you are not familiar with the canning process because it is not nearly as intimidating as you might think. If you can boil water and keep track of time, then you are ready to set up shop. Here are some sites to help you get started, followed by a couple of recipes that will impress your family and friends:

The Canning Pantry

Canning Basics

Successful Home Canning


Apple Pie Filling (To Freeze or Can) Recipe

4 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
10 cups water
1 cup cornstarch
1 tsp. salt
24 apples; peeled and sliced
2 tsp. cinnamon
3 tsp. lemon juice

Blend sugar, nutmeg, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon. Add water and cook over medium heat until clear. Add apples and lemon juice and cook till apples are soft. Pack in jars/containers. Makes 10 x 32oz containers. Thaw to use. One container is enough for a good size 9" pie.

Source: Abigail's Apple Pie Recipes


Dilly Beans

green or wax beans (about 4 pounds)
1/2 t cayenne pepper per jar
1 fresh dill per jar
1 clove
1/2 t whole mustard seed per jar
5 c distilled Heinz vinegar (5%)
5 c water
1/2 c canning/pickling salt

Wash beans thoroughly; drain and cut into lengths to fit in pint jars if necessary. Place pepper, mustard seed, dill, and garlic in each jar. Pack beans vertically in jars. Combine Heinz vinegar, water, and salt; heat to boiling. Pour boiling hot solution over beans, filling to 1/2" of top of jar. Remove bubbles with a spatula or a knife blade. Place a property pretreated lid on the jar and tightly screw band until firmly tight. Place jars in actively boiling water in a boiling water bath canner. Process jars in boiling water canner for 10 minutes.
Yield: 7 - 8 pints

Source: Blue Ribbon Recipes


Grape Jelly Recipe

3 lb grapes (to make 4 cup juice)
7 c sugar (c & h)
1 Certo liquid fruit pectin

Remove stems from grapes; crush grapes. Place in saucepan; add 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Place 3 layers of damp cheesecloth over a large bowl. Pour fruit into cheesecloth. Tie cheesecloth closed and let drip into bowl until
dripping stops. Measure 4 cups juice into a 6 to 8 quart saucepot. Stir sugar into juice. Add 1/2 teaspoon butter or margarine to prevent foaming during cooking. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.

Quickly stir Certo into juice mixture. Return mixture to a full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam. Fill jars, leaving 1/4" to 1/8" head space. Wipe rims; adjust 2 piece lids. Process 5 minutes in boiling water bath.

Yield 7 - 8 (8 ounce) jars

Source: Blue Ribbon Recipes

FREE Pumpkin Stencil Maker

The Better Homes and Garden website has a great interactive stencil maker for pumpkin designer enthusiasts. When you go to the home page, click on the link for "Pumpkin Carving" about midway down the page. You can choose from a large random selection of templates or design your own pumpkin face. My son has had the best time playing on this site.

This is a free tool; however, you will need to register your name, mailing address, and email address with the site. Have fun!!

Spoon Bread Recipe

This incredibly easy recipe is one of my husband’s all-time favorites and is frequently requested. I came across it 20+ years ago when I worked for a law firm in Naples, Florida. The firm used to send out a weekly newsletter that not only featured events and announcements within the office, but also fun trivia, personal interest stories, and favorite recipes. Here is one of the best of the best:

SPOON BREAD

1 stick of butter
2 eggs
1 9-oz. box of Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 8-oz. can of whole corn
1 8-oz. can of cream corn
1 cup sour cream

Melt butter in shallow dish to be used. Add eggs and beat slightly with a fork. Add remaining ingredients and mix well with a fork. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-35 minutes, or until golden brown. Cut into squares and serve while hot.

Note: Leftovers are great when heated up in the microwave.

Recipe e-Books

I love finding specialty recipe ebooks because they are a fraction of the cost of hardcover books and they are immediately downloadable to the PC, laptop or handheld. These electronic books are usually delivered in one of these two familiar formats: .EXE (requires no special software)or .PDF (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Some of the ebooks even give readers permission to resell or give away to friends and family. As a writer and avid recipe collector, I've climbed on the bandwagon by starting to create some of my own recipe ebooks. You can find these and others at the e-Book Haven, including a growing assortment of eBooks for self-help, inspirational, parenting, crafts, business opportunities and more.