Now, although it's not food-preserving season yet, it's not a bad time to dust off your canning jars, take stock, and make a plan to start gathering what you'll need for the bountiful harvest you're sure to bring in this year. Garage sales can be a great place to stock up on canning jars for reuse - just make sure you always use fresh lids, and that the mouths of the jars are chip-free.
If you haven't ever canned before but want to try it this year, now is also a good time to read up on canning basics. And consider alternatives to canning like freezing and dehydrating. I just finished a review of the Excalibur 3000 series dehydrators - I have a 9-tray model with a programmable timer and I really love it. I take it out during the off-season to make kale chips, fruit leathers with fruit purchased from the grocery store, and venison jerky during hunting season.
So even though it's February, go take an inventory of your canning supplies, or make a plan for food preservation for this coming season. Having this set up now before the growing season hits will make a big difference come August! Promise!
Comments
Freezing raspberries from July/August until December/January breaks down the fibre so that it is possible to make no-cook jelly without the strength of a wrestler. The recipe is no longer in the Certo booklet but i was able to obtain it by contacting them.