Canning from the Garden

This last year I have been learning to can. I never thought that was something I would ever be into, but it turns out when you start getting a lot of things from the garden there is a limit of how much you can eat. Plus on occasion we like to go pick our own fruit at one of the farms out in Fredericksburg, Texas, which is a great option for not only eating but making jam. I am a sucker for some homemade jam.

Every spring we usually go and get strawberries. While my garden does produce a decent amount of berries in the spring, they all get eaten before there is any left for jam making. The field picking usually has bigger strawberries than I can grow, and a lot more of them. We've made strawberry jam, blackberry jam, plum jam, and still have leftover jam from our peach picking time 2 years ago.

Last year I had a large amount of tomatoes, so I learned how to can those. I also made salsa with the over abundance of jalapenos that came in. One can only eat so many jalapeno poppers before it's time to find some other options. So far everyone who has experienced the salsa has been a big fan of it. You just can't beat blending fresh vegetables.

This year I have added onto my canning knowledge by canning spaghetti sauce, jalapenos, and even pickles. This is the first year I was able to get cucumbers to grow and could finally experience making pickles. Hopefully my new cucumber sprouts will do well and I can get more cucumbers out of them. 

I thoroughly enjoy looking in the pantry and seeing a small amount that came straight from the garden. So satisfying. 

I do not have a pressure cooker, so everything has been done one the stove. I've made sure the water is the appropriate temperature, and the cans cook for the right amount of time. Yes, I always use new seals and lids as well. It can get messy, and it is a long process, but I love that it's a new thing I have learned.