I got a pressure canner for my birthday! I’ve been wanting a pressure canner for years. Ever since I started waterbath canning 4 years ago, I’ve wanted a pressure canner. I’ve also been sort of terrified of pressure canners, though. I have a story much like everyone else’s. A grandma of a friend’s uncle’s nanny had a pressure canner loaded with beans explode in her kitchen. Not only could someone have been maimed for life, but the poor woman was scraping black beans off of her ceiling for months. (I’m being a little bit dramatic here, in case you couldn’t tell). One of the things that I was most looking forward to pressure canning was beans. We eat a lot of beans, and I try to buy them dry in bulk because it’s what’s most affordable. But then I always forget to soak them. I tried precooking them and freezing them, but our freezer is full with 1/4 steer and 1/2 pig. So freezer space is limited. Plus…I always forget to pull them out to thaw anyway. Having them canned is just so much more convenient. I read this post from one of my favorite homesteading blogs about canning beans, and consulted the instruction manual that came with my pressure canner (<referral link). And I did it! I might have nested nervously in front of the thing while I watched for any signs of pending explosion. But I did it. And now we have a pantry full of beans, cooked and ready to heat up and eat. You might notice that my jars don’t have the metal rings on them. After the canning process is done, […]
Archives for June 2014
A June Garden Update
Sometimes as a northern gardener, it can be really frustrating to see blog posts of southern gardeners harvesting zucchini as mine is only just getting its first set of true leaves. Or seeing green tomatoes being harvested, when I’m only just seeing my first tomato blossom! Ah well. Could be worse, right? I watch the show Alaska: The Last Frontier and can only imagine how difficult gardening must be up there … but they still do it, and they do it well! So here’s a picture update of what’s going on in our garden these days. I had some root maggots attack my radishes. I purchased some beneficial nematodes, diatomaceous earth, and some of this stuff and applied all three. Maybe it was overkill, but I kinda panicked. I ended up just pulling up all of the radishes. I have some beets and other veggies planted nearby that root maggots would just love. So I decided to err on the side of caution. So far I haven’t seen any evidence of them since pulling up the radishes and applying the nematodes. We’ll have to wait and see! Here we have rhubarb in a pot, peas almost ready for harvest, beets, and one of the 4 types of peppers plants I have growing: Here we have butternut squash, apples, and a little tomato blossom! And here some purple cabbage, cauliflower, and zucchini: This isn’t everything. We also have blackberries, strawberries, pumpkins, kale, broccoli, green cabbage, asparagus, cukes, cow peas, blueberries (still too young to produce at 2 years old, but growing well!), a total of 3 varieties of tomatoes (san marzano, black cherry, and brandywine), and 4 […]
Organizing Spices and Herbs with Mason Jars
I’m always trying to find ways to use what I have on hand to make my home more organized or to give it that homemade comfy feeling. I don’t do a lot of decorating. I find that it usually just adds more for me to dust and more for me to pack if/when we move. I try to keep it simple. So when I do decide to have something displayed in my home (spices/herbs in this case), I really try to make it functional, practical, and pleasing to the eye. I have this shelf in my kitchen that doesn’t really have a purpose. At first glance, it appears to just scream, “SPICE RACK!”. The odd thing, though, is that the previous owner had installed a pull out spice rack inside one of the kitchen cabinets. Did they have two spice racks or something? I’m not sure. As our family has grown, though, I’ve realized that this unclaimed shelf in my kitchen functions better for me as a spice rack than the small pull out option. I like to buy my spices and herbs in bulk, meaning that I need space for larger containers. Mason jars are usually perfect for this purpose. I saw this post on Keeper of the Homestead, and just had a lightbulb moment. I’m really pleased with how it has turned out. Everything is right at my fingertips while I cook and bake, and I had all of the materials on hand. I just used various mason jars, and made little labels out of card stock cut into 1in by 1.5 inch rectangle, and then covered them with packaging tape. I love […]
