Can Do Attitude: Easy Garden Salsa

 Yeah, all of those tomatoes are fresh out of my garden.  Everything else, not so much, but these ingredients made a double batch of salsa, so 16 and 3/4 quart jars.

Also, I only used one head of garlic, and one of those really large onions.
And yes, I did use all those peppers.  I wanted a nice variety of spice, so there are random hot red peppers and purple bells from my garden, Anaheims, poblanos, jalapenos, whites, and yellow bells.  You can use as much or as little as you'd want.  I love chunky salsas with lots of pepper.

As far as the tomatoes go, I just divided my crop in half (since I was doubling the recipe).  They're Roma tomatoes, so I seeded most of them, but there wasn't a lot to worry about.

For each batch, I diced half in bigger chunks, then used my slap chop to finely dice the other half.  The chopper also made quick work of the onions and peppers.  I still wore gloves, though, because that juice gets everywhere and I hate accidentally getting it in my eyes (or worse) when cleaning up.

So, the ingredients for one batch (about 6-8 quarts)
8 C tomatoes; chopped, diced, and drained
2 1/2 C onions, diced
1 1/2 C green peppers, diced
1 C jalapeno, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp ground pepper
1/8 C (or less) canning salt (optional)
1/3 C sugar
1/3 C vinegar
15 oz can tomato sauce
12 oz can tomato paste

Directions:
Mix everything together in a large pot.
Bring to a slow boil.
Boil for ten minutes.

Follow proper canning procedures.  Sterilized jars, boiling water bath for 10 minutes.  Let cool and wait at least 24 hours before storing.

Hint: to prevent the white grit from collecting on your tops, add about 1/2 C of white vinegar to your water bath.  It helps reduce/eliminate the residue.  ( I obviously forgot this step!)

Can-Do Attitude: Balsamic Fig Jam

Fig and Balsamic Jam

2 lbs figs (I used dried calamata pack from Costco)

4 cups sugar

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup very good balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup water

Prepare jars, lids, rings and boiling water bath. 

Place all ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil. Continue to boil, reducing heat when the jam starts to thicken. Use a potato masher to break down the figs as they cook. 

Stir frequently to prevent scorching. When jam begins to reach a desirablethickness, scoop a little out onto one of the spoons from the freezer and place it back in the freezer to cool to room temp. When the jam mounds nicely and does not run quickly off the spoon, it is ready. 

Remove the jam from the heat and skim off any foam. Ladle into hot prepared jars. Wipe the rims and top with prepared lids and rings. Process in the boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Turn off the boiling water bath and wait 5 minutes to carefully remove the jars to a towel lined tray. Allow to cool, undisturbed, until room temperature. Wipe off any excess water and label.

Makes 12, 4oz jars.

* This is a great, savory jam.  I'd recommend it with a nice crostini and brie.

Mmmm....  Fig jam and brie...

Can-Do Attitude: Pressure Canner

Who got a new toy?  This girl!

I've always said that with my garden, I can't fathom being able to throw the extra food away, but I've never really had a way to preserve it all without pickling it, and I'm not a pickle person.

Not the way Peter Piper ever wanted me to be, anyway.

But that's another story for another day.

 I wanted to try a recipe that I knew I wouldn't mind having a lot of as my inaugural run with my pressure cooker.  I went with carrots in an orange juice/brown sugar sauce since that's generally how I like to prepare my carrots.

Can-Do Attitude: Mrs. G's Chutney

As it goes, I found myself surrounded by South Africans on a near daily basis... Well, at least one, but upwards of 10-15 on the weekends. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying that I'm getting used to different flavors and products that you don't regularly find in America.

One prime example of this is Mrs. Ball's Chutney.  There a little sweet and spice and completely yummy that complements a good grilled meat, like sausage, chicken, pork, or anything that could be accented with it's peachy flavor.

The problem?  A bottle like this at a South African or British import store runs about $6, and it's a pain to go to one of these stores for a condiment.  My response?  Find a recipe and can it ourselves!

Sorting through online blogs, I found this recipe repeatedly.

I love recipes that are in metric, really I do.  However, when I'm grocery shopping for supplies, that doesn't really help.  So, here's what you (more or less) need (fellow, backward Americans):

2.7 C dried peaches (difficult to find, use more apricots as necessary)

1 C dried apricots

.8 gallons of brown vinegar (like malt vinegar)

11 C of white sugar

2 1/5 C of minced onions (just over 1 pound)

1/2 C of salt

1/4 C of cayenne pepper (OR LESS!!!!!!!)

To start, you need to soak your dried fruit in vinegar overnight.  It needs to be enough to coat, so between 4-8 cups.

The next day, you cook the fruit and vinegar (same from the soak before) together until soft.  Then, drain the fruit (reserving the vinegar) and put the fruit through a mill or fruit processor.

Process it to the consistency you'd like the fruit to be in the final product. I wanted it to be chunky, so that's what I chopped it to!    Next, cook your onions until almost clear, and add them (and the sugar) to your vinegar.  Also, add in your fruit at this stage. 

 At this point, you may need to add more vinegar.  It's up to you, but at this point you need to make the chutney to its final consistency.  If you want a thinner, more runny chutney, then you'll need more vinegar.  If you want it hardier, than use less.  Your call.

Finaly, add your spices and cook for an additional one to two hours.  Make sure you stir it occasionally to avoid burning.

 When I mixed everything together, I put it in my crockpot to cook it down.  That way it wasn't a burn issue, and I knew it'd be consistent.  There's a lot of cayenne in the recipe, and if you don't like the warmth, add less.  Next time, I know I'll only use about 1/8th of a cup.

Finally, when you have the color and consistency ready to be bottled (I left it about three hours -on low- because we left the house for breakfast and errands), bring the chutney back up to a boil.

Place the chutney in your hot, clean jars, leaving 1/2" of head space.

Then, you will process the jars for 20 minutes in a boiling water bath to help seal the self-sealing vacuum lids.  I made about 16, half pint servings.

It might not be Mrs. Ball's, but it's certainly Mrs. G's!

Can-Do Attitude: Cabernet Sauvignon Jelly

 This is a combo recipe, taking from Canning for the Next Generation and Blue Ribbon Preserves.  I met them in the middle, so follow quickly because this is an EASY recipe that ANY ONE can do!  Ingredients: 1 Bottle of a dry wine (like Cabernet, Chardonnay, or a Brut Champagne). 1/4 C strained fresh lemon juice, 5C sugar, and 2 liquid pectin packets.

To create: Boil your wine for 25 minutes to help reduce.  Then, add the lemon juice and sugar until it is all dissolved.  Boil for one more minute, then remove from heat, stir in 2 liquid pectin packets completely, then jar quickly.  Follow standard jarring procedure (leave 1/4" head space, add your vacuum seal lids, and process in boiling water for 10 minutes.  This will make about 6 half pint jars.

The final product is a beautifully clear jelly that is sweet, and not at all what you'd expect from a dry wine.  I really don't think you can even taste the wine once it's done.  Thomas expected it to go well on cheese, but it's great on a slice of bread, just like any other fruit-y jelly!

(I also followed this recipe with "Champagne" - brut.  I used only 3 cups of sugar and it was still outstanding!)

Can-Do Attitude: Bread & Butter Pickles!

Thomas suggested trying pickles the other day.  I haven't ventured in this realm before (ie: non-fruit canning), but I'm always willing to give a good recipe a try.

That being said, we couldn't agree on dill pickles (which he enjoys), or bread and butter (which I adore).  Obvious, I'm going to do both, but the B&B's sounded easier, so that is where I started.

Oh, and I love any excuse to use my crinkle cutter!

This recipe was found in Canning for a New Generation.  While there are literally a ton of recipes for pickles out there, I liked this one for using honey instead of sugar.  I'm not such a fan of adding onions, but I thought it would help with the overall flavor.

Honeyed B&B Pickles - made8 pint jars for me
Ingredients:
3 lbs pickling cucumbers (3-4" long)
1 pound small onions (about 2)
1/4 cup + 1 T kosher salt

2T yellow mustard seeds
1T celery seeds
1-2t of crushed red pepper flakes
6C apple cider vinegar (5% acidity)
3/4C mild honey
1 1/2t turmeric
1 1/2t dry mustard powder

To start, cut the ends off of your cucumbers, then cut into 1/4" rounds.  Cut your onions into quarters, then slice into thin half-circles.

Put cucumbers and onions in a large bowl, sprinkled with 1/4 C salt, tossing to combine.  Cover with a layer of ice cubes and refrigerate for 8 hours or over night. 

The next day, pick out any ice, drain well, and rinse under cold running water.  Then, toss with mustard seeds, celery seeds, red pepper flakes, then set aside.

 In a non-reactive (stainless) pot, combine vinegar, 1 1/2 C water, honey, turmeric, mustard powder, and 1T salt.  Bring to a full boil.

Working quickly, place your cucumbers and onion mixture into your jars (not too tightly).

Ladle the hot vinegar mixture into each jar, leaving 1/2" head space at the top.  Wipe the rims, place on your vacuum seal lids on, then screw down the rings until finger tight.  Finally, boil for a full 15 minutes.  Remove and let sit for 12 hours.  (Check after 1st hour to make sure the seal has set, if not, refrigerate that jar and use ASAP.)



Can-Do Attitude: Pear Preserves

Preserves are different that sauces, butters, or jams.  Preserves contain large pieces of fruit, and when you remove preserves from the jar, they don't retain any shape (other than that of the fruit).  A jam and a jelly will hold its own shape on a spoon, but a preserve is thinner.  The fruit is mostly translucent (after being cooked), and it's in a sweet sauce, mostly from a simple syrup, or similar concoction.

For pear preserves, you'll need 3 cups of sugar, 3 cups of water, 5 peeled/cored/sliced pears, and 1 medium seeded and thinly sliced lemon.

To start, take your water and 1 and 1/2 cups of the sugar and boil it for 2 minutes in a large pot.  Then, add your pears (I peel, then use an apple corer to core and slice) and boil them gently for 15 minutes.

Then, add the rest of your sugar and lemon, and boil until the fruit is transparent.

Then, cover and let stand for 12 to 24 hours in a cool place.  Since it's fall, I just left mine on the kitchen counter.

Fast forward to the next day...


Take out the fruit from the syrup and place into your jars.  One batch will take 5 or 6 jars.  (Here, I doubled the recipe and made 11 jars.)









Since the fruit is not cold, but room temperature, you don't have to worry too much about the glass breaking.  Always be mindful about big temperature changes since you're apt to make a bigger mess than you anticipate.

Boil the remaining juice for about 10 minutes to thicken.  Remove from heat, and skim off any foam as necessary.  Then, ladle the hot juice into the jars.  To process, add to boiling water (covering the jars by at least 1" of water) and boil for 20 minutes.  Then, remove to cool and let set.  Always wait at least a day before serving.

Can-Do Attitude: Black and Red Jam

Ginormous blackberry!

My signature jam?  Black & Red, combining blackberries and raspberries into a wonderfully jammy goodness!

Next to apple sauce, a simple jam is a piece of cake.  Jelly is difficult because you have to strain, but a jam is is just mash, solidify, and jar!

Black & Red recipe:
1 quart crushed blackberries and raspberries
1 pouch of liquid pectin
6 1/2 cups of sugar (yikes, right?!  substitute splenda or sugar equivalent at will...)

First, put your quart of fruit in your pot.

Then, use a potato masher (or whatever you have) to mash the fruit.  I leave it fairly coarse since it'll cook out nicely as you go through the process.

Then, add your 6 and 1/2 cups of sugar.  All jam recipes require a boat load of sugar.  I like using the Splenda Sugar Blend because it cuts the requirement in half, but it's still a lot sugar.  If you want it to taste nice, then you do it.

Once you have it mixed together, bring to a boil until all of the sugar dissolves.  Then, add one pouch of liquid pectin, and bring to a hard boil for one minute.  Be careful because you can easily foam up and boil over.


Skim off any extra foam from the top of the pot to keep your jars clean. 

Turn the heat off the pot after a minute of boiling.  Then, load into your hot jars with at least 1/4 inch of space before sealing with your vacuum sealing lids.

To process, place your jars in a large boiling pot of water, covering the jars by at least one inch of water.  Leave in the boiling water for 10 minutes, remove, and cool. It takes about 24 hours or so to set up the jam, but after that, serve up and enjoy!

Chunky delicious-ness!!

Can-Do Attitude: Apple Sauce and Apple Butter

Something that I started (for myself) last year was canning/preserving food.  We don't have a pressure cooker, so I'm limited to mostly acidic foods, like fruits, but this really is a "simple" process.  It just takes effort, and a few free hours of your time.  I started with the most basic process - apple sauce.

First, You need to peel, core, and slice your apples.  I've have the coolest inventions of all time.  This makes peeling/coring/slicing 14+ apples an absolute breeze.  Thomas flew through them in about 10 minutes.  You just load, crank, remove, and reload.  You get the perfect rings, and a core-less, peel-less apple ready for making apple sauce.

Then, you add your apples (about 16 medium, or 14 large, in my case) to 2 cups of water in a large pot.



Since apples are mostly water, it doesn't take too long for them to cook down, especially when you crank the stove up on high.

As the apples break down, they will even out with the level of the water.  When they're tender, take them off the heat. 

I drain the apples to remove the water.  You can reserve it, if you want to thinner sauce, but I generally discard it since I like my apple sauce chunky.

Load up the apples into a food processor.  My loving husband bought a 14 cup one for my birthday, so throwing in all those apples is no big deal.

Pulse/puree your sauce to the desired consistency.

Now is the time you decide - do you want sauce or do you want the butter?


For sauce, return the apple pulp to your pot, add up to1/4 cup of sugar per pound of apple.  If you choose a sweeter apple - like a Gala or Red Delicious - you shouldn't have to add much, or any sugar.  You can also add Splenda or a sugar equivalent if you'd like the sweetness with out a lot of extra calories.  Boil the apple sauce, stir in cinnamon, if you'd like.  It's all about your preferences.  If you're canning, you can skip the next few steps and go to the boiling.  If not, use tupperware to save/freeze, etc.  You'll get about 5 half pint servings, which isn't a lot, but it tastes phenomenally!!

For the apple butter, this is a good place to pause.  Moving from apple sauce to apple butter takes a good 6+ hours.  NO WHERE in my original recipe did I realize this - the recipe just said to cook slowly until thick enough to round up on a spoon.  Well, half my day later, I learned!!  Then, I found a new recipe idea - The Crock Pot!

Load your apple pulp into your Crock Pot.  Add your spices - I add about 4 cups of sugar, 2 teaspoons for ground cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves.  Stir it well.  I also like to add about 3/4 cup of apple cider when it's in stock at the store, if not, you can add apple juice or water.

Set up your pot to cook on low for about 8 hours.  This will help reduce some of the liquid and the apples will really absorb the spices. 

After eight hours, the apple butter will be darkened, to a more recognizeable color for apple butter.  In order to cook it down more, I leave the lid off, kick it up to high, and let it cook for another 3 hours.  It's not as bad as sitting in front of the stove for all of this time.  WARNING: Boiling apple sauce/butter will HURT like anything as it boils and flies up and hits you.  Try and avoid this at all cost.  Unfortunately, this Crock Pot doesn't get that hot, so after this step, I move the apple butter to the stove.

I have an immersion blender that I use at this step to help liqueify the the butter.  You can leave it to be more "rustic," but that smooth, spreadable texture comes from repeatedly processing the apple butter to your desired consistency.

For jarring, you need to boil the apple sauce, and the apple butter.  The hotter your process the food, the less likely you are to let bacteria grow and poison your friends and family!

When your sauce/butter is ready and has boiled, then you can pour it into prepared jars.  The jars should be cleaned, and come from a hot (almost boiling) pot of water.  Fill the jars, leaving at least 1/4 inch of space at the top.  Then, add a vacuum seal lid (that has also come from a warm water bath, never boiling), and screw on the lid holder until finger tight.  To process the jars, submerge in boiling water, making sure that the jars are completely covered with at least one inch of water above their lids.  Boil for 10 minutes, and then carefully remove the jars to cool and seal.  You'll hear the lids "pop" as they vacuum seal themselves.

This recipe makes five half-pint jars of apple butter or apple sauce.  Once properly sealed, you can keep the canned goods for up to one year.

Does it take a long time?  Sure, but they taste amazing, and it's totally worth it!  Just know that you're dedicating an afternoon or evening to make a product where you know where every ingredient is coming from!  Plus, it really impresses your house guests, and tastes amazing!  I'll post a few more recipes over the next couple of weeks to show you how easy this really is. 

Today's recipe:

Apple Butter

4 lbs of apples (about 16 medium)

4 cups of sugar

2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves

3/4 cup of apple cider

Wash, peel, core, and and quarter the apples.  Combine apples with 2 cups of water in a large pot, simmering until soft.  Puree with a food processor, careful not to liquefy.    At this point, you can add sugar/spices to make apple sauce, or add the listed sugar and spices to proceed with making apple butter.

Combine ingredients in a crock pot, cook on low for 8 hours, then high and uncovered for 3 more.  Then, move to the stove, use an immersion blender to make smooth, and bring to a boil.  Finally, jar and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.

Serve up and enjoy!