Canning Homemade!

Sustainable Living - One Jar at a Time!

Canning information

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Other Recipes

For your need to create!
Pansy Butter
Cheese
Yogurt Cheese 
Cream Cheese
Mozzarella Cheese
Butter
Sour Cream
Ricotta Cheese
Fromage Blanc


Bread
Homemade 4 ingredient bread 
English Muffin Bread
Olive Garden Breadsticks
Mini Braided Pretzel Challah

Sausage
Roman-Style Chicken Sausage
Chorizo Patties
Basic Breakfast Sausage
Southwestern Pork Sausage

Sweets
Vegan chocolate truffles
Coeur a la Creme with Raspberry Sauce
Fig Newtons
Apple Tartlets
Fig Muffins
Chona's Chocolate Chip Scones

Extracts
Lemon Extract
Orange Extract
Vanilla Extract 
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Get your Dial Gauge Tested

Get your Dial Gauge Tested
SB Canning can test your dial gauge yearly for accuracy!

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Canning Supplies!

Cheese Making Supplies

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Educational Canning Information

  • How to get started canning!
  • Canning Meat and Chicken
  • Importance of Headspace
  • Flat Top & Glass Ranges - Is Canning ok?
  • What Food and ingredients Can't be safely canned?
  • Mailing Canning Jars for the Holidays
  • Receiving Homemade Gifts During the Holidays
  • Canning for Gift Giving
  • Canning Jars and Loss of Liquid - What's the solution?
  • Powdered vs. Liquid - Are they all the same?
  • Why is my canned fruit floating?
  • What is the best type of cucumber for making brined pickles?
  • Canning Chocolate - Yes we Can!
  • Doesn't the Natural Pectin in my fruit make it Gel?
  • Canning Tomatoes - Starting with the peel and a dice
  • Canning Pie Filling - An education in Clear Jel
  • Sugar Substitutes - Which are approved?
  • Rules for Canning Meats
  • What do I enter into the Fair? How do they judge?
  • Beans - How to Process and at What Cost?
  • Pressure Canners - Just the Facts!
  • Betty Crocker Apple Chart

Top 9 Canning Books - Reserving the right to add more as I review them!

Canning Ingredients

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Headspace

I want to emphasize that you should ALWAYS use the headspace that is prescribed in your safe recipes, but if it is omitted this is the basic rule of thumb:

1/4" headspace for Jams, Jellies, Marmalade, Chuntney, Spreads & Butters

1/2" headpace for Pickles, Tomatoes, Fruit

1" headspace for Vegetables (not pickled)

1" - 1 1/2" headspace for Meat, Poultry, and Fish

Pressure Canner - What to purchase!

I was asked to post some advice about which Pressure Canner to purchase for someone who isn't necessarily a beginner to canning but has never pressure canned before. I did some thinking about the options, Presto, Mirro, All American, and I felt that I can only give you my experience with mine and have true confidence in my advice.

The best canner is one that is the easiest to learn and the one with safety in mind. That is why I bought the Presto 23 Qt pressure canner. I did my research and asked a bunch of questions. I had fears about pressure canners. They were based on some idea of the pressure canner exploding. After I did my Master Food Preserver certification training I realized that those stories were about canners who left the kitchen while processing and allow the canner to overheat.

My final choice of the Presto was based on how easy it was to put on the lid, that it locks securely and you can feel it locking as you twist it on the canning pot. It has safety backups built into it like a lid lock and a pressure release button.

Because the Presto is a dial gauge canner it has to be tested each year, but there is something about having a "meter" of sorts that makes it easy for me to monitor. It's a visual rather than the weighted gauge that you have to listen for the makes me more focused on checking the gauge.

I have a gas stove but have testimony from tens of people who use this particular model or the Presto 16 qt version on a glass top stove. They have measured their burners and the base of the Presto canner and have contacted their manufacturers. Those that have researched have said that it must be a flat bottom canner and can not exceed the diameter of their largest burner by more than 1/2-1".

I am excited and pleased with the quality of the now 20 or so batches that I have done in my pressure canner. I bought a second rack so that I could double stack them for bigger loads and it was available at the Presto and Amazon website. For me it's a great canner and will be with me for a long time. The 16 quart canner is available with a weighted gauge, but again has the safety built in with the lid lock and pressure valve.

My last advice is to read the instructions about the pressure canner. Get to know the parts and each by name and site. Practice putting the lid on and off a couple of times before you even add water. As long as you are attentive to your canner you can always adjust the amount of steam it produces internally by adjustment the heat. If you stay focused the fears will go away after the first canning! I promise!

Water Bath Reminder

When you are water bathing your jars you want to put them into the canner when the water is hot but not at a boil. You want to bring the heat up and start timing when the water is at a full rolling boil.

Changes in Altitudes - Dial Gauge vs. Weighted Gauge for Pressure Canners -

In a Dial Gauge Pressure Canner
* At altitudes of 0 - 2000 feet, process at 11 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 2001 - 4000 feet, process at 12 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 4001 - 6000 feet, process at 13 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes of 6001 - 8000 feet, process at 14 pounds pressure.

In a Weighted Gauge Pressure Canner
* At altitudes of 0 - 1000 feet, process at 10 pounds pressure.
* At altitudes above 1000 feet, process at 15 pounds pressure.

Gel Point Methods

The gel point method is also noted in many cookbooks and is a process to test the gel of a jam, jelly or preserve. There are two methods of testing; the spoon and plate method.

SHEET TEST

Dip a cold metal spoon into the boiling
soft spread. Lift the spoon and hold it horizontally with edge down so that the syrup runs off the edge. As the mixture cooks, the drops will become heavier and will drop off the spoon separately but two at a time. When the two drops join together and “sheet” off the spoon, the gel stage has been reached.

FREEZER TEST

 (Note: To prevent overcooking or scorching, remove the soft spread from the heat before performing this test.)


Chill a small saucers in the freezer. Place a teaspoonful of soft spread on the chilled saucer and place in the freezer for 1 minute. Remove the saucer from the freezer and push the edge of the spread with your finger. A mixture that has reached the gel stage will be set, and the surface will wrinkle when the edge is pushed.

Old Ball Canning Jar Logos

Old Ball Canning Jar Logos
You can date your old jars from this poster!

Stock Tips!

Once you bring your stock to a boil the first time you will need to skim the scum off the top. You will turn the heat down so that it barely is at a simmer. You can do a decent chicken stock in two hours even this way. Three to four hours would be better if you have the time. There is no need to stir it while it cooks and do not add salt. When complete strain the stock and follow the pressure canning instructions

About Me

Canning Homemade!
I am a native Santa Barbaran and Certified Master Food Preserver. This year I have expanded my canning experiences to class teaching, developing a website of preserving information, and getting involved with the community to become more sustainable. I teach both water bath and pressure canning, dehydration, and freezing and work with the Master Food Preserver program each year to volunteer my time to give back to my community. I found that canning and preserving is a way to enjoy the seasonal produce and recipes I make all year long. My family, the need for sustainability, and urban farming is my focus and through teaching the art of canning I hope to influence a few lives!
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