Stocking Up On Canned Goods! Seriously, look at all those jars!
Yesterday we popped by The Kiln Guy and The Chef’s house to check out the new addition they’re having built on the front of their house. They moved from our previous neighborhood a few months after we did and although we don’t live right next to each other anymore, we still find time to meet up for lunch or stop by each other’s places. And I love that!
Anyway, after we checked out the new addition to their house {which is coming along nicely I might add} we then made our way inside where I noticed a bunch of canning jars on the kitchen table.
72 pints of home canned goodness! Holy cannolis, they’ve been busy.
There were jars of homemade bread and butter pickles {a old recipe they promised to share with me next summer}.
And tons of tomato sauce.
When I mentioned the color was a little brighter than mine, The Chef mentioned that they didn’t bother to peel their tomatoes before turning them into sauce.
Their secret was to core the tomatoes, cut them into quarters, season them and then roast the tomatoes in the oven. After that they tossed the tomatoes into a Vitamix to puree the tomatoes into sauce.
After a few hours simmering on the stove, the sauce was ready to can {with a little lemon juice in the jars first of course}.
They also made a few dozen jars of regular and habanaro salsa.
And when they ran out of canning jars… They froze the rest of their tomatoes.
And if that wasn’t exciting enough, they also made a half dozen jars of mincemeat. For pies!!! How cool is that? Talk about stocking up on canned goods for the winter.
They were so proud of everything they had canned, they even sent us home with a few of their creations to try out. Friends that can. Does it get any better than that?
Have you done any canning this year? Did you try any new canning recipes that you want to share? Have you ever had mincemeat before {I haven’t but I’m excited to try it}.
I love canning. And I’m so glad there are others out there who love it as much as I do.
~Mavis
Mel says
I haven’t canned anything in years since we don’t have much (well, any) pantry space. We have ample freezer space though, so I freeze much of what I’d normally can, and I find that easier for the most part. I do miss having homemade pickles, so I might get back to that at some point.
My husband picked 90 lbs of apples for us, so last week I made two crockpots of applesauce to freeze (including some in baby food containers for when our guy starts solids). Next week, I have a friend coming over to hold the baby while I make apple butter to freeze. She’s also agreed to come back another day as well so I can finally deal with the 70 lbs of tomatoes in our freezer.
Mavis Butterfield says
Are you going to make cider this year?
Mel says
Only if my husband follows through on his threat to bring home another 90 lbs of apples, so I’d give it 50/50 odds.
Rachel Morgan says
I did a lot of canning last year and this year. I wish we could share pictures here.
I love making stocks, jams, green beans, corn, pickles etc. when it’s in season, it’s canning time at my house
Brianna says
Mincemeat…..I bet his recipe is a really good classic one. The commercial ones are rubbish and taste nothing like they should. I enjoy the complex flavors though and I have found it to have a lot of flavor variation from one bakery or another. Some are lovely and palatable and others can be so disappointing. Kind of like a true homemade fruitcake, it actually has real dried fruit in it and other ingredients and not the neon waxy fruits the grocery stores sell and some commercial places produce. Once you have or make the real deal, then you realize the rest out there most likely will not meet your expectations. Enjoy the mincemeat, it will make a wonderful pie to go with your tea during a snowy day.
Delma says
I make my grandma’s mincemeat which involves suet not meat – it has lots of raisins and involve lots of green tomatoes. It is a lot of work, but I love it! I think mincemeat is one of those things that falls into the ‘people love it or hate it’ category. Years ago, I baked mincemeat filled Christmas cookies with the precious homemade mincemeat and took them to a Christmas party. Many cookies were discovered at the end with one bite taken out of them and discarded. I do not take them to gatherings or give them away anymore! Nothing says Christmas at our house quite like warm mincemeat pie with vanilla ice cream. My husband and 5 of 6 of my kids love it. So far we are 4 for 5 of people who have married into the family loving it. : )
Wendy C says
I can tomatoes, salsa, pears, and jellies and jams. If I have enough pears I will can pear sauce and pear butter. Pear preserves are a big hit around here. I have done pickles before but it is not my favorite. 🙂 I still have about 7 gallons of tomatoes frozen and I need to do something with them.
Mavis Butterfield says
Pear butter! I need to add that to my list. I love that stuff on toast. Thanks for the reminder.
Mary ann Allen says
This year I had a huge amount of tomatoes and peppers from my garden and after making 54 jars of tomato sauce I did some searching and dehydrated the the tomato and peppers in my oven. I then ground them into powder store on glass jars. Just add spoonfuls to your soups stews sauces for rich tomato flavour. You can do this with all sorts of veggies and fruits.
Linda Viderman Viderman says
We use a dehydrator to preserve lots of wonderful things. Tomatoes, peppers, onions, chives, spinach, dandelions, apples, bananas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, are some of our favorites.
Frankie Brown says
I can everything I can from the garden. We bank on my green beans, tomatos, corn, peas, and turnip greens. Won e blue ribbons at the fair, 2 2nd place, and 3 3rd at the fair with veggies and jellys.
Angie Davenport says
How do you prepare your tomatoes to freeze them until you’re ready to can them? I didn’t think that was even a possibility! I’m new to canning. I canned tomatoes for the first time this year. Made blackberry and peach preserves last year andpear preserves and pear butter this year.
Janice says
I just wash them and freeze them whole. You can do the same to the berries and fruit if you are turning it into jams.
Jenny says
Wow! That is good to know! Thank you Janice!
Diane Woodie says
I can tomatoes, green, corn, pickled peppers , grape juice and apple juice. I also make all kinds of jellies and jams. There’s nothing better than home canned food!
Jenny says
I agree Diane!
DOUG says
I canned Green beans, beets, dill and bread &butter pickles tomatoe juice for soup, peach butter,
apple sauce and butter, pear suce and butter, grape jam and juice not bad for a 70 year old.
Guy Skeer says
We keep Our Freeze-Dryer going all the time. Former Guests Write and call us, begging for Our FD Pears, Honey/Lemon Dipt Banana Slices, Lasagna, Meatloaf, and more! With all the Freeze-Dried ingredients for Cottage or Shepherds’ Pie at hand, It is only a matter of Minutes to whip One up.
We Pickle, Bake and Can as well. We can cook better meals Cheaper than Fast Food. It is a great family activity to Cook together.
Marla says
Salsa, I can’t make enough salsa for nacho chips. I use salsa in my soups, beans, chili, and goulash!.
Lisa says
Would The Chef be so kind as to share the tomato sauce recipe? I’m intrigued by roasting the tomatoes first!
Mavis Butterfield says
I will ask. 🙂
Jodie says
I really like this idea. So much easier than peeling.
BIBBI says
When roasting tomatoes, if you still want to peel them, the skin easily pulls right off, saving the time and effort of boiling and icing first.
Debbie says
Per safety guidelines, National Center for Home Preservation, tomatoes should be peeled…. otherwise looks great. I can year round, just finished with meals in a jar, Stroganoff, Hearty Chicken Stew, Chipotle Beef for tacos, etc, Bolognese and dried beans.
Marla says
Yes. I cut a 4-slit on top before placing in hot water for 15 seconds, then ice cold water for 10 seconds. The peels will start to curl. Easy peeling!
Conni says
Pam, on Youtube at Rose Red Homestead, did an unpeeled tomato sauce how to recently. I watched and canned some yesterday and it came out fabulously,
Kim says
I can usually get free apples from my mom and uncle, but the last few years they have not had any yields for various reasons (storms, frost, etc). This year they both had a bumper crop and we canned 135 pints over a couple days. This will last our family of 4 two years.
Mavis Butterfield says
WOW! That is awesome Kim.
Jennifer says
Who else thought The Kiln Guy and The Chef were totally unrelated? I must have not been paying attention that day. Lol
Angie says
I love finding friends that can! My neighbors do and we share recipes and swap yummy jars all the time.
I canned quite a bit this summer putting away peach jam, peach bbq sauce, apricot jam, strawberry jam, tomato sauce for both spaghetti/lasagna & chili, dill pickles, banana peppers, jalapeno peppers, sweet pickle relish, & cherry jam.
I also don’t peel my tomatoes when making sauce. I wash them well, quarter and stew them with whatever spices I want, puree them with an immersion blender and add to jars with lemon juice. I like the body that the whole tomatoes give the sauce.
The cherry jam was a first for me but after finding fresh cherries for $1.25/lb I figured it was my duty. It is delicious! The peach bbq sauce is also a first. A Ball recipe and it is tasty on chicken and pork – basically tastes like summer to me which will be great when it is 30 degrees outside.
I bought fresh blackberries as well but they went straight to the freezer for later canning or baking. I also have frozen strawberries for Winter Spice Jam making when cranberries are fresh, blueberries for baking, cherries for baking. Field peas & peppers of all kinds are frozen as well. Shelves are full and the freezers are full and that makes me very happy indeed. Beautiful weather this weekend…time to get the fall garden in the ground!
Jenny says
What do you plant for fall? I’m in US zone 5 I may have waited to late for that!
Linda Practical Parsimony says
This post makes me want to can again!
Maile says
I’ve never peeled my tomatoes, or cored for that matter. Depending on the size, I cut into 2″ or so pieces, throw it on a baking sheet with fresh garlic, salt and a drizzle of olive oil. Bake “until” (30 min?) the beautiful aroma fills the air. Then the normal processing the freezer (cool bag freeze), or for canning recipes. So easy and delicious.
I figured the tomato is perfect as it is. 🙂
Jennifer says
I made the salsa recipe that you did and canned that this year. My family says it’s the best salsa they’ve ever tasted. I also canned relish, diced tomatoes and pizza sauce.
Mavis Butterfield says
That’s great to hear. I’m glad they liked it.
Susan H. says
Have you tried ‘dry canning? I have dry canned oats, dry cereal, Ritz crackers, rice. You fill dry sterilized jars and LOOSELY put on flats and rings, put them in a cold oven, turn on the oven to 230°, when the oven reaches the 230 time for 30 minutes. When 30 minutes are up take out of oven, tighten the rings, place on counter and cover with a towel and leave until cool. You will hear them sealing. I have opened Ritz crackers 3 or 4 years later and they were as crisp as when I bought them. Rice keeps indefinitely and cherrios and chex cereal are great. I found saltines do not work though. I don’t know about sweetened cereals.
Linda says
That’s awesome Susan, and some thing I will try with rice. Thank you.
Mary says
That’s good to know with the Ritz crackers do you take out off the rapper? Thanks
Susan H. says
yes! I take them out of the rapper and just pack (gently) as many as I can. I have found that large mouth jars work best.
E.C. Smith says
I’ve followed you a very long time, I’m still just soaking in your wisdom and all you do. I keep thinking when my my kids are out of house, and we can move, I will grow more food and can. Right now I just have containers. my yard is on a steep hill, very hard to grow in. Your “camp” is dreamy, love reading your blog and wanted to say thanks for all of the inspiration.
Mavis Butterfield says
Thanks E.C. 🙂
Tammy says
I have four jars of tomato soup in my canner right now. If they all seal, that will bring my jar total up to 177 this summer.
Mavis Butterfield says
Way to go Tammy!
Renay says
I used to peel my tomatos, and even bought a tomato press. Then I got a Blendtec blender and quartered them and blended. It’s so easy and less fuss. Also, those good blenders, like Blendtec and Vitamix, pulverize it all down to nothing. I don’t put anything in my tomato sauce. That way I can use it for marinara, tomato soup, stew, etc. I figure I add all the flavorings when I am making dinner, so why waste it on canning? Works for me!
Angelia says
I canned a lot of jams, strawberry, also new to the menu and will be my new fav. is blackberry burbon jam I do not drink any hard stuff but this my friend was a winner. Also, blackberry burbon syrup, fig, rhubarb, orange marmalade…
Melissa says
I love stocking up for winter with my home canned goods! I’m a life long, year round canner. We just harvested our massive pear tree, and now I have 3 bushels of pears to deal with. I will do “pretty in the jar” ones ( that’s just halves of pears), pear sauce, pear juice, pear butter, and possibly pear pie filling. Then it will be time to harvest the apple tree:) I always set aside my best jar of whatever I’m canning for the Fair next year. So good to know where your food is coming from, and it really can save you money if you grow it yourself or get it from a friend!
Carrie Valentin says
Years ago I saw mincemeat at a grocery store. I read the contents on the label of apples, raisins, and spices. It sounded wonderful to create a Fall/Christmas dessert. I made my first trifle for Thanksgiving slicing Sara Lee pound cake in 3/4 inch layers, alternated with the mincemeat, canned pumpkin pie filling, mincemeat, and very sweet whipped cream (A mere quart of it)! I also used an almond liqueur to soak the layers of pound cake. (I have a secret to remove the calories!) It is amazing!! There are several brands of mincemeat including Cross and Blackwell (British), Borden etc. last I looked. And any nut based liquor would work. Trifles are fun…layer away lady fingers, pound cake, or other denser goodies and add a fruit, a liqueur if you want, chocolate syrup, whipped cream….use your imagination! Great for holidays!
Wilma says
I have canned around 400 jars from dill spicy breadn butter sweet pickles pickles squashed peach and strawberry jam peach butter salsa pasta sauce tomatoes green beans chow chow fig preserves old fashioned pears preserves pickled peaches plain peaches with simple syrup and sauerkraut and corn
Carrie says
That is beyond amazing! Everyone here is inspiring me to can next year!!
Wendy C says
Wow! That is awesome!
Sweetheart says
I canned close to a hundred pints of pickles;bread&butter, dill, and spicy. I also canned close to 30 pints of tomatoes. Started out canning 12 pints of beans, they did so good I replanted in August and have canned 24 pints since. I have a digital presto canner and it is worth every penny.
Clair says
My husband and l can. I do the prep, he packs and fills. One thing g that struck me in comments that no one mentioned Dilly Carrots. Is it a more Northern preserve?
Sarah says
I have canned approximately 500 quarts of fruits and vegetables this year! 3 kinds of Pickles, green beans, salsa, pizza sauce, stewed tomatoes, tomato juice, ketchup, bbq sauce, dried beans like pinto and northern, pickle relish, pears, applesauce and peaches. I am going to do grape juice and jelly next and call it a year! I froze my corn and strawberry jam.
Kittie says
What haven’t I canned us the question. Green Beans, corn,bpeach salsa, regular salsa, diced tomato, pizza sauce, pickles, dilly beans, frog balls, pickled asparagus, strawberry honey butter, peaches, pears, soups, caramelized onions, basic sauce. Tomato juice just to name a few.
I am also freezing anything I can purchase locally from farmers and dehydrating. Nothing compares to fresh food on your shelf and big bonus you know salt, sugar ect in n your food.bI love canning and learned pressure canning this season which opens up great opportunities. Highly recommend Balls complete guide to home preserving book. So many options! Happy harvesting
Jojo says
I canned years ago, but ever since I started watching a lot of Homesteader channels on Youtube (and there are lots of really good ones,) I caught the bug this year. It began in the spring. I bought myself a Pressure Canner for the first time. Thus began my adventure in Canning. I have had so much fun canning everything from pickles, tomatoes, various kinds of soup, carrots, potatoes, jams, barbecue sauces, salsas, cowboy candy, Onion Jam, pork, beans, (brown & the dry kind like pinto and black beans.)
I have done all this between March and the current date. I have cases and cases of produce that I have canned. My best friend Carole retired in January and I recently talked her into joining me on my endeavours and she did with gusto. We have had so much fun working side by side sometimes chatting away, and others in that comfortable quiet that best friends can share in. It’s been a load of fun.
I will be 65 in December and I live in a 1 bedroom apartment with no storage room to speak of and let me tell you that we have been very creative in our finding room for all my canning goods.
Not that it’s important, but I am in a wheelchair and am disabled so quite often I need to take a break. It’s not always easy, but it’s been so fun for me. And at the end of this I will have all this canned food to live off this winter.
You might ask well, “how did you get the produce to can?” The answer to that is simple; we searched out the best prices from the grocery stores. I am on a limited income, and though I would have liked to buy only organic from farm stands; that was not an option for me, so I did the best I could with the resources I have. I feel very blessed to have what I do. Along the way I have found others to teach this craft to as you will find the canning can be contagious! Of course you will run into two schools of thoughts… One, they think you are nuts for spending so much time and recourses making something you can get at the supermarket, and then two, people are impressed with what you are doing and wish they had the same skills. Me? I really don’t care about the people that don’t understand it…. I know I am preserving food at the best prices I can find and I will have all this to live off in the coming year. I know I have frozen the prices that I paid for things.
And you know what? I’m having fun. I’m not sitting there feeling sorry for myself… I’m doing something to become a little more self-efficient!
David says
I was blessed with a bountiful garden of tomatoes and peppers this year. I canned 12 pints of tomatoes, 6 pints of salsa, 18 pints of a sausage and mushroom pasta sauce and 3 pints of pickeled hot peppers. I also froze about 8 pints of regular pasta sauce. In addition, I made a dozen 5 oz bottles of a super hot pepper sauce.
Andi says
I think I have finished my canning for the winter. Too many jars to count. Jams, preserves, pie filling, 3 kinds of cucumber puckles,pickles
dilly beans,beans,, tomato products, apple products, soups. My cabinet is full.
Mavis Butterfield says
Well done Andi!! 🙂
Ruthie says
Where can I get cucumbers. My garden is done outside but have a greenhouse for things for winter. I have canned bread and butter pickles, sauces, salsa, jams. Just wanted to do more pickles like dill and more relish.
Ruthie says
Also canned green beans and froze corn.
Gary says
My wife and I raised a big garden this year, we shared it with everyone and still managed to can quite a bit. We have eight canners and six pickling crocks. After sharing, we still canned green beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, black beans, wax beans, greasy back beans, honey select corn, ambrosia corn, bodacious corn, tomato juice, whole tomatoes, pickled beans and corn, sauer kraut, apple juice, grape juice, bread and butter pickles, dill pickles, pickled zucchini and summer squash, pickled relish, chicken, pork, beef, soup, cherry jelly, and when we dig potatoes we will be sharing and canning some of them also. My wife normally does the picking and I do help with it too, I normally do the canning. We were blessed with a very good yielding crop and will co tinue to share with those in need and family. I do know that it sure saves us money at the grocery store all year long.
Joyce says
Would you post your recipe for the mincemeat , would love to try ?
Thank you
Mary says
How do you can potatoes?
Julie P says
Mincemeat, if you want to make some then check out Delia Smiths recipe. She was an English tv chef, a huge football supporter, and she has inspired a couple of generations by being an amazing cook/baker. I have made her Christmas cake for 30 years. Her mincemeat recipe is the only one I’ve ever made from scratch. Mince pies can then be made at Christmas time! They are a British stalwart! They can be made in shortcrust pastry or flakey! Everyone has a personal preference then they are dusted with icing sugar. They should definitely contain alcohol usually brandy.
This year I have canned dilly beans, beans, tomato sauce for pasta, chilli tomato sauce, plain tomato sauce, rhubarb, pears, apples. Plum, cherry, rhubarb and strawberry, strawberry, raspberry and spiced plum jams. I’ve made marmalade, cucumber relish, cucumber pickle and piccalilli and I’ve dehydrated apples and courgettes (zucchini). I’ve frozen apple sauce, roasted tomato and vegetable sauce, enough soft fruit and vegetables to see us through the winter and I’m not quite finished, tomato soup with the last of the tomatoes I think then I should be done. Must catch up with the housework then.
Porcia says
Hello fellow canners. This’ll be the first time I’ve ever shared my secret obsession with any one other than family and it’s very exciting to see so many enthusiastic people excited about canning. I’ve been a novist for years until this year. I purchased my first presto pressure canner about a month ago. Previously I was using an electric pressure cooker to can and cook. But then the inevitable happened… My electric pressure cooker died . What was I going to do ? I took the big dive and purchased my Presto pressure canner and haven’t looked back since. I just finished canning boneless chicken (8 pints) This weekend, I plan on doing some ground beef.
I usually have a garden, but during COVID I tried to expand my small garden and in my haste to get things planted, I purchased the wrong soil. So this past year I’ve been composting like crazy to get my soil ready for this Fall. We’ll see how it goes, I haven’t planted anything yet, but I’m hopeful.
So what I plan on doing until that happens is use the grocery store for produce to can. Can’t wait. I can can so much more now than I ever did before , which saves me way more money. And yes my family can’t understand the passion.
The best to everyone and their canning projects, keep up the good work. I think it’s the best thing you can do for your family, taste better too.