Canning Dangers: Lessons Learned

This is only my second serious year of canning. The first year I realized not only how accessible preserving food is but that it also an activity with more dangers than may at first be obvious. Botchalism is a common fear - the result of a person not sanitizing and properly killing all the bacteria in the food they are canning. This is why high acid foods are generally safer to can.

 

This was my only fear first year, but now I have realized there are a number of other mistakes made by beginners. Or at least me. I have had two jars explode on my in my canning career because of temperature differences between the glass and either the contents or the external water. My latest mistake is below where this jar in fact exploded out of the canning pot and sliced the top of my foot open. I am fortunate that gravity took hold of the pieces so quickly.

 

Today too, I lost a jar that cracked in half while in its water bath. A more experienced canner friend of mine has said that these hazards may be more the result of using old jars, which I am using, instead of the temperature differences. I did not think the quality of a jar would degrade over time, but apparently the use can cause weaknesses which is a good bit of information so as not to lose my most valuable canned goods. Save the brand new jars and lids for the most important products.

 

Another curiosity is that a select type of wide mouth mason jars keep having the ring unscrew while I am doing the hot water bath. At first I thought that it was the result of possibly filling the jar too full, but as you can see from the picture below (the most recent occurrence), the apricots are securely at a level well below the lid. The liquid is to the top because when the lid came off the water filled in the air cavity. It is as if the lids threading isn't grabbing these jars properly, and then is pushed off with pressure during the hot water bath. In my two previous years this has never happened, but now it has happened three times in one month. Again this could be the result of using old jars, but who can resist the joy that comes with finding a stash of mason jars in your friend's grandparents belongings only to get a great deal on them from your friend's parents.

 

Great score! A variety of sixty four mason jars for $10.00. Can't wait to fill them.

Canning Blog Envy

There are a number of food blogs that are not only informative but visually stimulating. They are the kind that make me want to get up and do whatever it is I am reading about or seeing. One of these sites is Food in Jars. If you have even the slightest interest in canning, or if you are a well seasoned expert, there is something for you to enjoy on her site. I consider myself a novice canner, but I am eager to experiment and try many of the recipes shared on the Food in Jars website. So much so I find myself on the site more that I would like to admit. Here is the state of affairs in my own kitchen so far this year.

making brandied cherries for the first time

many emptied jars to be filled this year

what remains of last year's preserves

 

new preserves: raspberry jam, tayberry jam and raspberry infused with lavender jam

new preserves: pickled garlic scapes, canned cherries and brandied cherries

 

I buy sunflowers whenever they are available at the farmer's market with my vendor discount, and I was very happy I had these to brighten up the preserve photos!

Bringing the Farm into the City: Summer Produce and Canning

Now that I am doing my M. Sc. in Soil Science at the University of British Columbia, the hours I used to spend writing on the blog are dedicated to writing my thesis. Unfortunately, though I am able to write for many hours in the day, I am unable to express myself with the creativity and curious world outlook I could as a traveler. As a consequence, I tried to fulfill this need by starting a tumblr account which is a very unique way to express the world as one sees it - or from what I gather from the volume of reposts of images, from the way you see the world through a collection of online images.

I am back to the blog because it feels most natural to me to share the stories and adventures I have with friends and family, especially as they relate to food and agriculture. Throughout the winter months I worked at the Nat Bailey Stadium farmer's market, thought the winter rain was uninspiring to share much. But now that summer is here I have loads to share! What will follow this summer are a series of the photos and anecdotes about summer produce that makes its way to the city from rural or semi-rural parts of British Columbia and the many wonderful culinary adventures that can be had with said produce.

 

 

Unfortunately strawberry season came and went without my being able to preserve or freeze any of these delicious berries. Being away from the fields, it is hard to have a good sense about how many days or weeks are left in a season and to plan accordingly. It was a good reminder to me too that I would have to be busy preserving every week if I wanted to have a taste of summer to share with friends and family this winter.