"Of Course I Can!"

Poster printed by the US Government Printing Office in 1944 as part of the war effort.

I don't can to be patriotic.  I grew up on home canned foods and ate meat that was raised by my family.  Until the death of my father we even drank raw milk and made homemade butter.  My mother's one book states that my aunt and her canned 176 pints of green beans in 1973.  So when it comes to canning I will quote Hank Williams Jr and say "I'm just carryin' on an old family tradition".

I joined a Yahoo Group dedicated to canning this year… LOTS of inspiration there! I learned a lot more about pressure canning and proceeded to can up more soup and products with meat. This allows for quick meals when we are busy. If the kids want soup in their lunch I can open a jar and not have to make a full pot. I would still like to can some split pea soup for #1 daughter to take home but that has to wait until I get ham.

In the garden the cucumbers weren’t much but provided enough to make pickles. I had to declare war on the cabbage worms and potato beetles. Zucchini which usually grows rampant gave a couple early then died. My Brussel Sprouts never got much bigger than a shooter marble and if they did they were open and not compact. But then there was the green beans that I had a friend come over and pick several times because the tomatoes were unbelievable. I still have some tomatoes sitting on the counter and green ones in the basement.

I was trying to keep track how much produce my seeds produced but when I got busy that was not a priority. I did however write down at the end of the night what I canned. The Blueberry’s were given to #2 daughter for helping pick for a friend. The Strawberry’s were either frozen from last year or bought at Wal-Mart for $1 per quart(?) container. A case of peaches, some grapes and a container of cherries followed me home from the farmers market. The pears and apples I get free from a friend and the pumpkins I bought from a Pumpkinfest. All the rest came from the farm or garden…

Product                             Quart    Pint    ½ Pint    ¼ Pint

Canned Turkey                   6
Vegetable Broth                              16
Currant Jam                                      3          1
Blackberry Jam                                 4          3
Blueberry Jam                                   1          4
Apple Blackberry Jelly                      8
Green Beans                                   43
Zucchini Relish                                13
Strawberry Jam                                2          4
Currant/Apple/Blkberry Jelly            3          4
Zucchini Lemon Crème                     6          7        1
Grape Juice                          7           6
Dill Pickle Slices                              13
Peach Jam                                         4        3
Peach Pit Jelly                                   3         1
Hot Pepper Butter (Mustard)          46         2
Cherry Almond Jam                          2         2
Salsa                                              47          3
Salsa Juice                             5        6
Tomatoes Crushed              21         8
BBQ Sauce                                   12          1
Elderberry Jelly                                6          2
Tomato Soup                                16
Roasted Garlic Pasta Sauce 8        16          1
Green Tomato Relish                     16
Chili Sauce                                    14
V8                                    16          4
Peaches                             11         3
Peach Pie Fill w/Almond      7
Bread & Butter Pickles                   7
Peach Pie Fill w/Cinnamon 5           2
Mary’s Dill Pickles                          7
Whole Dill Pickles            6
Low Sugar Peach Jelly                    2          1
Low Sugar Peach Jelly w/Cinn        2          1
Tomato Sauce                21           19
Vegetable Soup               3            16
Strawberry/Jalapeno Jelly                            9
Straw/Apple/Jalapeno Jelly                        10
Orange Rhubarb Butter                               9           1
Cabbage Soup                              11
Pepper Relish                                              4            3
Apple Butter                                 15          2
Onion Soup                                  11
Applesauce                                  10           3
Spaghetti Sauce            9
Orange Jelly                                                 3           5
Orange Rhubarb Jam                                   6
Bacon Jam                                     1
Apple/Quince Jelly                                        3          3
Rhubarb/Pineapple Jam                  1             4          4
Apple Pie Filling        10
Beef Stew 7
Strawberry Balsamic Blk pepper      3           2           2
Strawberry/Rhubarb Jam                 4            1           2
Pumpkin Butter                                5            5
Apple Cider             14                    7
Cowboy Candy (hot Peppers)          3
Corn Beef Hash                                3          12
Sloppy Joe                                       7
Sweet & Sour Chicken 3                  6
Amaretto Pears                                6
Pear Butter                                      5            4

Froze 50# Broccoli and 14 pints Corn, 8 pints peas, 7 bags Asparagus, 8 pints brussel sprouts and 6 pints kohlrabi

Dehydrated Pears, Peaches and Apples

Made Kahlua, Peach Schnapps, Strawberry liquor and Currant Liquor

Storing Potatoes, 5 Pumpkin, 2 LI Cheese Squash, 3 Cushaw Squash, 8 heads of cabbage and a bread tray of green tomatoes

Had butchered 42 Chickens, 3 Turkeys and 3 Pigs going in 2 weeks

Of course, I am always out of sync. On a week when the temperatures are to be above normal I am ready to sit by a woodstove and await the snow.  Guess I will go cut down those blackberry canes after all.