All’s Well That Jams Well

Or, 4 Different Jams You Can Make From Your Garden

This week we’re talking about 4 different canning recipes. The harvest from our gardens are starting to come in, so it’s time to put them to use. Given how strange the weather was this year, it’s probably a good idea to store up as much as we can. 

First off, why canning? Why not freeze drying or dehydrating? 

Canning is a long used method of preserving harvests so that you can have fruits, vegetables, even full meals safe all through winter. 

Freeze drying and dehydrating are both expensive and more complicated than canning is, and can only be applied to certain foods. 

Canning means your harvest doesn’t have to be composted if you get more than you can eat before it spoils. 

You save money by canning your own foods, especially if you opt to trade some of what you’ve grown with neighbors or friends who raised different plants. 

So what is canning? 

Canning, whether you use the water bath method or a pressure canner*, is a way to preserve foods in sealed jars.  You place the foods into sterilized jars and heat them to a temperature that kills microorganisms. This is for two reasons. 

1. To keep the food from spoiling. 

2. It drives the air out, which causes a vacuum seal as it cools. 

*A pressure canner is not the same as a pressure cooker. 

The Two Methods

- Boiling Water Bath 

Just like it sounds. In this one you cover the jars of food with water and bring it to a boil ( 212* at sea level) and cook it for a set amount of time. 

- Pressure Canning

Jars of food are placed in a  special pressure cooker in 2-3 inches of water. The lid is locked on and the temperature is raised to 240*F. 

The two different methods are used for different foods, based on their acidity. 

The boiling water bath is great for fruits, jams, jellies and tomatoes because they have a higher acidity. 

Pressure canning on the other hand is for use with low acidity foods like meats, vegetables, seafood and poultry. The pressure canner method not only kills bacteria but it kills the spores of botulinum that loves meats and vegetables. While the organism can’t live past 212*F, the spores that they produce can. The pressure canner is the only way to get the food hot enough to kill them off before they can grow inside the low acidity foods. 

Fortunately for us, all four of our recipes this week are foods that can be canned using the water bath method. 

Spiced Pear Jam

8 cups peeled, finely chopped pear,  (should be 5 ½ pounds)

4 cups sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon 

¼ tsp ground cloves

Bring all ingredients to a boil in a dutch oven, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, simmer, stirring occasionally 2 hours or until thickened. Skim off foam with a metal spoon. 

Pour  immediately  into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace; wipe jar rims. Cover at once with metal lids, and screw on bands. 

Process in a boiling water bath 10 minutes 

Store in a refrigerator up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator when ready to use. 

Should yield 5 half pints. 

Fruity Preserves

1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple in juice, undrained

4 granny smith apples, peeled and chopped

2 Tbsps grated orange rind

3 oranges, peeled, seeded and chopped

3 lemonds, peeled and chopped

4 cups of sugar

Bring all ingredients to ao boil in a dutch oven, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally 1 ½ to 2 hours or until thickened. Remove from heat and skim off foam with a metal spoon. 

Pour immediately into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch head space; wipe jar rims. Cover at once with metal lids and screw on bands. 

Process in a boiling water bath, 10 minutes. 

Store in a refrigerator up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator when ready to use. 

Yields 6 half pints 

Tri-Berry Lemon Jam 

1 cup crushed strawberries about 1 pint

1 cup crushed blueberries about 1 pound

1 cup crushed raspberries about ¾ pint

1 Tbsp grated lemon rind

2 ¼ cups sugar, divided 

1 (1 ¾ ounce) package powdered pectin 

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a  large bowl. Combine ¼ cup sugar and pectin in a small bowl. Gradually add pectin mixture to fruit mixture, stirring vigorously. Let stand 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. 

Stir in remaining 2 cups sugar gradually until no longer grainy. 

Pour into containers, leaving ½ inch headspace. Cover with lids; chill 24 hours. Store in a refrigerator up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator when ready to use. 

Yields 4 half pints 

Tomato Preserves

3 pounds of tomatoes, peeled and diced

4 cups sugar

¼ cup lemon juice

1 (6 ounce) package strawberry gelatin

Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil  in a Dutch oven, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring occasionally, 0 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in gelatin until dissolved. 

Pour into containers, leaving ¼ inch head space and cover with lids; cool 1 hour. Chill 24 hours. Store in refrigerator for 3 weeks or freeze for up to a year.  Thaw in refrigerator when ready to use. 

Should yield 5 half pints

Remember, even if your garden wilted (like our blogger’s) you can pick all of this up at your local grocery store or farmers market. 

We hope you liked this week’s post, be sure to let us know in the comments or over on Facebook. Do you already know how to can foods? Do you have a favored recipe? 

And if you’re living in the Allen area and your appliances are acting up, you can always call or use our website to set up an appointment. We want to help. 

Creole Bread Pudding Souffle

This week we needed something sweet to round out the month. Let’s face it, June has been a long month. Creole Bread Pudding Souffle was just what the doctor ordered.  You can make it for an event or you can save it all for yourself. We certainly did. 

Ingredients 

½ cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

5 large eggs

2 cups whipping or heavy cream

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

⅛ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ cup raisins (optional) 

12 slices French bread (1-inch thick) 

1 Tbsp butter

1 ½ tsp sugar

6 large eggs, separated

½ cup sugar

½ cup powdered sugar, sifted 

Whiskey Sauce 

The night before, slice your bread and lay it out on a baking sheet in your oven. Don't turn the oven on, don't cover the bread. You want to give the bread time to become a little stale so that it absorbs the mixture without disintegrating into it. 

Using an electric mixer, beat your 1/2 cup of butter at medium speed. Slowly add 1 cup of sugar beating well. The sugar should be fully incorporated before you begin to add the eggs one at a time. Once the eggs are fully beaten in, add cream, vanilla, cinnamon, and raisins (if desired.) Lightly grease a 13 by 9 by 2 pan, preferably a clear casserole dish. 

Remove your bread from the oven, and transfer the slices to mixture, laying them flat; let them stand for 10 minutes. Flip the slices over and let them sit for another 10 minutes.  During this time, set your oven to 350*F to preheat. 

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and place into a larger shallow pan. Pour hot water into the larger pan to a depth of 1 inch. Transfer the entire thing to the oven and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Place 2 1/2 cups of the baked bread mixture into a large bowl and set to the side. Reserve the remainder for something else. (We think it's an easy breakfast if you reheat it, or  a quick  dessert if you throw on any remaining whiskey sauce.) 

Grease a 1 1/2 quart souffle dish with 1 Tbsp butter; coat the sides and bottom with 1 1/2 Tbsp sugar and set it to the side. 

Combine egg yolks with  1/2 cup sugar in the top of a double boiler; place over simmering water and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 4 minutes or until the mixture thickens. (You can do this section by hand if you want to, but your wrists will hurt after.) Add the yolk mixture to the bread that you reserved and beat at medium speed until smooth.  Set aside, and take the time to preheat your oven up to 375*F. 

Beat your egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Slowly add powdered sugar, beating until stiff peaks form; fold the egg whites into a bread mixture. Pour this into your prepared souffle dish. Bake the entire thing for 40 minutes at 375*F. 

Serve warm with whiskey sauce. 

Whiskey Sauce

1 cup sugar

1 cup whipping cream or heavy cream

⅛ tsp ground  cinnamon

1 Tbsp butter

1 ½ cornstarch 

¼ cup water

1 Tbsp bourbon 

Combine sugar, whipping cream, cinnamon, and butter into a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, stirring often. In a separate dish, combine the cornstarch and water, then pour into the cream mixture and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Keep it at a boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the bourbon. Serve warm. 

Be careful while making the whiskey sauce as melted sugar is ridiculously hot and burns like mad if you manage to get it on you.

NOTES 

When talking about egg whites, 'foaminess'  and 'stiff peaks' what are we talking about?  Foamy egg whites should be slightly opaque, mostly made of liquid but with some bubbles. Stiff peaks on the other hand are when you can pull your whisk out of the mixture and have it form a little mountain top, that doesn't fall over once you fully remove the whisk.  Still confused? Check out this page from The Spruce. 

Bourbon can be bought in small bottles from your local liquor store if you don't want to buy a large bottle just for one recipe. 

Let us know what you thought of the recipe over on our Facebook page, we would love to hear from you.  Or show us pictures, that would be awesome too! You can also leave a comment if you have any questions about the recipe, ideas for future recipes or questions that you have about your appliances at home. 

On that note, if you are having issues with your appliances, and Youtube hasn't been helpful (let's face it, they're not often) you can call us at (). Or you can set up an appointment and we'll have one of our technicians come out to help you. 

Credit for this photo goes to Louisiana Cookin’