my first time (using a pressure canner)

Over the years I’ve done quite a lot of canning. However I never owned anything but a regular water bath canner. Years ago I canned everything in a hot water bath. That included green beans and other things now considered unsafe to process that way.

Later I quit gardening and canning for a number of years because I was busy working and raising a family and food was fairly cheap, not to mention I didn’t question the quality and safety of commercially grown and packaged food back then.

When I returned to gardening and preserving my own food I continued to use my old water bath canner and for safety sake I resorted to freezing beans, beets, and any and all low acid foods. Freezing foods is fine and good if you have dependable power and adequate insurance to cover your loss in the event of a power outage. Here in our area the electric is far more dependable that it used to be, but there are still times when the power goes out. I like the idea of having my preserved goods canned…safe and sealed and being in no harm of losing them over an energy outage. I put a lot of energy and love into growing my own food so I sure don’t want to lose it or have to replace it which, in the truest sense would be impossible to do. So for that reason and safety of course, I had a strong desire for a pressure canner despite my slight fear of them.

Over the 2007 holidays I was thrilled (to the point of tears) when my dear son gifted me with a pressure canner.

I knew when the beets were coming on I would have to get that baby out and examine it and study the booklet. On Monday after pulling the majority of our beets, I followed the directions methodically and carefully and successfully canned them. Yay!

Now when I do the beans I won’t be quite so nervous. : )

6 things

Granny Sue has tagged me to write six things about myself that others may not know. I'm not that interesting, so this may be tough but here goes...

1. As an animal lover I always thought I'd like to work as a veterinarian's assistant or in some animal care position. Although I never so did professionally I have ended up taking in and caring for many animals in my lifetime. Among other things I have even sat up in the wee hours of morning with a distressed dog or cat, helping them deliver their young, breaking amniotic sacks and encouraging their nurturing instincts when they were at a loss as to what to do naturally.
2. I worked for eleven years in an auto body supply business and am trained and certified in auto body paint, materials and safety and I know how to handle a paint gun…woo hoo! (And I'm glad to be out of that line of work!)
   
3. I left school in the tenth grade and since then have never resumed any formal education although academic tests have revealed my equivalence to one who is college educated. I was never ambitious about having a career so a diploma never felt necessary. I consider life experience the best teacher. Aside from the previously mentioned interest in animal care and despite having various jobs through the years I have never wanted more than to be a stay at home woman tending to domestic duties and being creative.
   
4. In my late 40's I decided to get a tattoo of a blue phoenix on my inner left lower arm. I love it. At nearly 50 on a whim I decided to get my right eyebrow pierced...just because I could. : ) Silliness maybe, but I don't regret either decision.
5. I've always had an interest in natural methods of healing and well being. This led me to consider studying Reiki, an ancient mode of energy healing. Just last year I took my interest further and went from level two Reiki to being certified as a Reiki master.
   
6. For me, having order in my life is necessary. On those rare occasions when I feel I have it all together within and without I feel wonderful sense of serenity. As noted, these occasions are rare since more often than not I find it difficult to quell my thoughts, imagination, creativity...not that I'd ever want to completely or permanently, but I think it would be nice if I had a little kill switch to use when plagued with excessive thinking

my most essential cookware

I don’t know why I felt compelled to post about this, but the other day while puttering around in my kitchen I got to thinking about those items I use most. It was probably when I was putting them away that it occurred to me how often I'm putting them away.

Now I have a lot of things I use quite often because I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Aside from an assortment of various sized strainers, (which I kind of have a thing for) and my crockpots, the two items I use most often are pictured here.

Yep, a good old cast iron skillet and a stoneware (clay) baker, both of which have been in use in my kitchen for years. I have a few other type of skillets, but none serve me as well as the cast iron. I have vowed that once my others are worn out (which is in the very near future) I will not purchase any other nonstick cookware but instead cook only on my cast iron.

Now if you want to know about seasoning cast iron, there’s lots of info out there including here at the Barber Bunch blog. Carolyn also mentions how to clean your cast iron as well as some no-nos such as not using steel wool or soap. Here are a few other tips from yours truly…

• I use a nylon scraper made for cleaning stoneware and cast iron to take off stuck on food while washing as well as a Chore Boy Golden Fleece scrubbing cloth. These seem to clean best for me.
  

• Never soak your cast iron for a lengthy time, like overnight. It’s iron and it will rust.

• One way to clean off really stuck on food is to add water to the skillet, heat on burner and cook it off for a few minutes, then wash as normal.

• Never put cast iron in a dishwasher.

• After rinsing, always dry cast iron with a towel or heat on stove top to dry.

A lot of the same principles of care that apply to cast iron apply to stoneware as well. By stoneware I mean the unglazed clay kind.

• Season if or when necessary by wiping interior lightly with oil. Wipe out excess with a clean, soft cloth or paper towel.
  

• You’ll find that just like cast iron, the more high fat or greasy food you cook in clay the better seasoned it becomes. This is especially true when you are breaking in new stoneware. The darker your stoneware gets the better it gets. Don’t even be concerned about appearance. :)

• Do not put in dishwasher.

• Like cast iron, hand wash in warm water without the use of soap. Stoneware is porous so not only will you remove the season with soap, you’ll imbue the flavor of soap into it. Yum. A nylon scraper will be your stoneware’s best friend.

• Do not soak stoneware for long. Soaking it will weaken it making it more prone to breakage.

• You can leave clay stoneware in the oven while baking other items to help hold and distribute the heat.

The things I love about cast iron and stoneware are that both cook evenly and well, plus keep food warm longer. Plus cast iron can be used on the stove or in the oven. With proper use and care both will develop a smooth, stick resistant cooking surface and will work as well as any Teflon type skillet or bake pan. Not to mention they won’t warp or wear out but instead will serve you well for many, many years.

Purchasing quality cast iron or stoneware can be costly, but I consider it a long term investment well worth the money spent.

My Monday

The beets we pulled last night are cooked, sliced and pickling. I’ll be adding eggs to the jar soon. A variety of veggies are coming on, but not a lot of any one thing just yet. So I cleaned a few snow peas, a few beans, some green onions and zucchini. They will be put together for a veggie stir fry this evening.

I strained and bottled the calendula oil that has been infusing on my windowsill for the past two and a half weeks. Calendula is very good for soothing and healing the skin. I have skin problems so I’ve been meaning to try it for some time. Most calendula preparations are pricey, so that was a deterrent. Naturally I decided to make my own.

Here’s how.

I filled a sterile pint jar with dried calendula flowers. Next, fill jar with high quality oil. I used apricot kernel oil, because it’s less greasy than some. Almond oil is good, too. I set it on my windowsill for 2-3 weeks, shaking the jar at least once or twice per day. Some say to set the jar in a sunny window, others say not to, some say infuse it for a longer time, also. Some say heat the oil slightly before adding it to the jar. My thoughts are that heat and sunlight destroy essential oils so I opted for my kitchen window which is on the north side, so it gets light but no direct sun. After said duration, strain oil through a couple layers of cheesecloth and bottle in dark colored bottle(s). I recommend storing excess in the fridge. Tah dah! I may add some pure essential oil to it such as lavender for its therapeutic value and the added antibacterial/preservative properties of essential oil.

On a sad note, my twin sister’s beautiful color point kitty “Sky” died unexpectedly the other day. He had eaten a ribbon off a balloon and required emergency surgery to remove it. He came through the operation perfectly the vet said, but upon checking him the next morning, the vet was shocked to find him expired. He thinks a blood clot may have formed and caused his death. My sister is just heartbroken over the loss of her best friend and kitty boy. When I learned of this, all I could do besides cry for my sister was to gather my kitty boy Arther up in my arms and be thankful for his presence. Please dear readers, take good care and cherish your pets. You never know when something tragic may happen to them and they can be gone from your life in a heartbeat.

weekly round-up & product review

Well, despite my recent posts about cats, turkeys and puffballs, life has been busy here at Keepsake Acres...

More raspberries were picked by Coop this week. Some frozen, some made into cobbler and some into jam. I also made my first trial batch of homemade castile soap and it seems to have come out right. I am letting it cure now. I have city mouse to thank for inspiring me because it was his homemade soap that impressed me. I added oatmeal and patchouli essential oil to it and am definitely anxious to try it.

Some of our Detroit Red beets were ready for pulling and were they ever tasty!

I love beets, no matter how you cook em’! Friday’s lunch was hot buttered beets! We finished them up as a cold side at dinner time. All gone! Did you know you can eat them raw, also? It never occurred to me until our Amish friend Fanny mentioned it. Not quite as tasty in my opinion, but an option.

Friday I ended the week by having canned another 10 half pints of raspberry jam. I now have 19 half pints of black raspberry jam put up. If you’re wondering what the two of us will do with all the jams I’ve made this summer, the plan is to use many of these jars as gifts later in the year at holiday time. Part of being frugal minded requires thinking and planning ahead! Plus, as is typical, more than one person has walked out of my kitchen already with a jar of jam in hand.

This jam and the batch prior were made with Pomona’s Universal Pectin.

I purchased this product at my local bulk/health food store. I will never go back to any other brand of pectin.

What I absolutely love about Pomona’s is that you can cut way back on the amount of sugar in a recipe and make just about any size recipe you like. Other pectin requires that you make jam or jelly in small batches and using a lot of sugar is essential to the pectin working correctly…trust me on that one. With Pomona’s you can adjust ingredients for the amount you want to make and you can adjust the amount of sugar used. Or you can use honey in place of sugar.

This last batch of jam I made yesterday morning has 12 cups of fruit and only 3 ½ cups of sugar. I use raw or organic sugar which a lot more costly than refined sugar so I have a significant savings in cost using Pomona brand. Not to mention that sometimes jam can be just too darn sweet for my taste. With the sweetness of the fruit, who needs so much added sugar? I am in love with this product and will never use Sure Jell or Ball brand again!

Pomona’s Universal Pectin goes further than other pectin, too. With brands like Ball or Sure Jell you use an entire package for one recipe of jam or jelly. With Pomona’s you get 2-4 normal batches. So, despite Pomona brand pectin being a little costlier on the “per box” basis it’s really a lot less costly. When I factor in the decrease in sugar necessary to make jam, the savings is huge! Btw, I am not being compensated for recommending this product (I wish), just telling it like it is.

puffballs & wild turkeys

Here in the country one never knows what they might see walking up the road. Could be a deer, a fox, a pheasant, a coyote or maybe wild turkeys. These two turkey hens had youngsters hiding in the ditch across the road, some of which flew off when they saw me step out to get photos. I tried getting a shot of one or two in flight and didn't realize I had until I uploaded them.




Now, about puffballs. They are very fascinating things. I had never actually see one before, let alone tasted one...well, that is until the other day when Coop came up from the old barn bank with this one.

That baby was freakin' huge!

When I cut into it it was the texture and consistency of angel food cake, but...

...it still tasted like a mushroom.

mewest addition at the homestead

No, the title isn't a typo. Jerry the cat is our newest addition here at the homestead. He just appeared one day scared and starving for both food and attention. He's young, nearly a kitten still. A drop off I'm sure. We get those out here from time to time. Once it was two beagles in the middle of winter. People can be heartless.

Jerry and Molly reluctantly meet

"She is scary so I will stay out of her way for now. This is a good spot where I can observe yet not be observed so well."

"nah nah nah nah nah nah, she can't see me!"
"aw sh@$!"