The Beginner's Guide to Preserving Food at Home - Janet Chadwick [10]
Closet storage spaces. Closets are usually dark and cooler than the rest of the house, so they make good food storage spaces. Make use of the backs of closet doors. Inexpensive racks are avail able that will hold as many as 50 to 55 quart jars. Steel canning shelves that will fit in large closets will hold up to 220 quart jars.
Lazy Susan. To fill jam and jelly jars quickly and easily, set the jars on a lazy Susan next to your preserve kettle. Rotate the lazy Susan as you fill the jars.
Twenty Ways to Make Life Easier During the Harvest
IF GARDENING AND FOOD PRESERVATION are to be an important part of your life, take steps to fit them smoothly into your schedule. Many things can be done year-round to make the harvest season less frantic and tiring. These shortcuts can be incorporated into your regular work schedule, and you won’t even miss the few extra minutes that most of these tasks take.
Planning calendar. Start by obtaining a calendar with large empty squares. Plan your year-round activities dealing with food preservation, and mark the times for these activities on this calendar. Variations or cancellations will occur, but important projects won’t be forgotten and will be done on time.
FALL THROUGH LATE WINTER
Buying equipment. Shop for food preservation equipment in the fall to save time and money. This equipment usually goes on sale right after the harvest season.
Involve the whole family. Take the time to teach each member of the family how to do simple jobs: set the table, clear the dishes after meals, run the dishwasher, do the laundry, make beds, dust, vacuum, and so on. Teach others in the family to do the grocery shopping by taking them with you a few times to learn the layout of the store, understand unit pricing, and be ready to share shopping chores at the busiest harvest time.
Stock up on stock. Make soup stocks to store in the freezer for quick, fresh vegetable soups in the summer. This idea is especially good if you heat with wood or coal stoves; you can use the energy for cooking that you are already using to heat your home.
Plan crops for use. Plan the types of foods you want to preserve before you plant your garden. For instance, if you want to can or freeze large quantities of tomato juice, any good tomato will do. On the other hand, if you plan to make ketchup, spaghetti sauce, or chili sauce, Italian plum tomatoes are the type you should plant. Try a few plants of Burpee’s Longkeeper. These tomatoes can be harvested and left on a shelf to ripen well into the winter without spoiling.
Timed planting. Plan your vegetable garden, setting down approximate planting dates for various vegetables to stagger the harvest. This will prevent the problems that arise when everything is ready at the same time.
Research harvest recipes. Go through your recipe files and cookbooks to find your favorite summertime recipes as well as new ones you’d like to try, especially those using vegetables that you will be preserving. Aim for easy, quick-to-prepare dishes. Put these recipes in a special file.
Collect preserving recipes. Collect recipes for sauces, jams, jellies, preserves, pickles, and relishes (see recipe section for more). Put these recipes together in your special summertime file or create a new one for them.
Stock up on supplies. Once you have decided which recipes you would like to try, calculate how much sugar, pickling salt, spices, vinegar, and freezer bags you will need, and buy a little each time you shop. This will save extra shopping trips at your busiest time and spread the cost of the extras over a longer period of time.
Jar storage. Clear at least one large shelf in a clean, enclosed area (kitchen cupboard, nearby closet, or pantry) to store canning jars that can be washed ahead of time.
EARLY SPRING THROUGH EARLY SUMMER
Meals ahead. As winter slips into early spring, prepare extra meals to tuck away in