The Great Jam Collection

[browngirl]

So, I packed up my Jam Collection this Sunday. I have a jam collection because I like esoteric fruits, especially rose family fruits (I swear, in a past life in a pre-Christian age I lived in Europe somewhere. That's the only explanation for some of my tastes). So whenever I find rowanberry or rosehip or quince or elderberry jam I buy two jars, and eat one, and keep the other.

The problem with a jar of jam is that once one opens it that's it for the jar; one has to eat all the contents before they mold. So my jam sits and stares at me, wistfully. I wonder if I could divvy my jars up into smaller jars and learn to can, thus allowing me to have my jam and eat it too. Canning jam is supposed to be relatively easy (high-acid, high-sugar foods stand up well to canning), my household is about to be overrun by babyfood jars, and I bet there's somewhere where I can read about the basic process of canning and buy nice new lids for the jars.

And then I could can my own jam. Rose petals and lavender flowers and hibiscus blossoms...and I could send it to people...

Hrmn. *contemplates*

Comments

[alcinoe.livejournal.com]

When I was canning jelly I used the "jelly" sized jars. They really weren't big enough if my whole family was eating it, but I could see it's contents lasting long enough for a single person to eat it up. From what I have been told about canning it is inadvisable to use store type jars, like that of babyfood. You may find something that says differently, so don't completely take my word for it. I just remember it being mentioned somewhere. I think it is because you can't find new lids for those things.

[sparkymonster.livejournal.com]

Canning really is easy but you need to get proper canning jars (you can't re seal the lids on baby food jars). Luckily, canning jars are cheap.

One summer in a bitty sublet I made my own strawberry jam and canned it. It was fun and easy. DO IT OMG

Home canning is easy ...

[spiritdancer]

For jams and jellies, you don't even need a big canner; a boiling water bath works very well.

The only way you'd be able to reuse the baby food jars is for freezer jam, I'm afraid - and then it's in the freezer where you can't look at it.

There are LOTS of different size canning jars available out there, and there are both half-pint and 6 oz (or so) jars available. I've gotten mine at Big Lots or (when they have 'em) WalMart. In this area, at this time of year, all the grocery stores are carrying canning supplies as well.

And a good place to get recipes (to at least give you a starting point) would be the Ball Blue Book of Preserving. There also is a USDA pamphlet on home canning safety, which is available online in PDF format at http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/publications_usda.html

You can also find some basic recipes on/in packages of Sure-Jel at the store.

Hi!

[magid.livejournal.com]

I'll join in the chorus of don't reuse baby food jars for canning; the mini canning jars (a quarter of a pint or less; I don't remember exactly) are about the same size and designed for canning. It's the season, so most supermarkets stock them. I tend to get mine at Tag's, just because they keep canning supplies available year round, and I want to support that :-).

I go through phases of doing a lot of canning. I don't have a canning pot, etc, just a big soup pot and a vegetable steamer I put in it to put the jars on (never let them boil on the bottom of the pot directly). I did get a jar-puller, designed to be like tongs that wrap around the jar so I can pull them out of the boiling water more easily, and that's been extremely useful. I put them on a towel on the counter until they cool, listening to the chorus of pings as they seal. And that's it, except for putting labels (and dates!) on things.

Someone else has already put in the pointer to the Ball canning site, so I won't bother.

Feel free to ping me if you want...

[kathrynt.livejournal.com]

oooh, you should IM me about canning and jam and things.

[bercilakslady.livejournal.com]

So if I find really cool looking jams, I should get some for you? Good to know. :) If you want help with a canning project, let me know. I'll help for a few jars of jam.

[flabosib.livejournal.com]

You might try contacting someone in the Cooks' Guild of the SCA. I'm sure they know about that sort of stuff. (www.eastkingdom.com?--something like that--Google East Kingdom of SCA)

The baby food jars won't work--can't reseal them. Bummer! We wondered what to do with all the ones we generated. We ended up just recycling them--you can only put so many buttons in jars.

Good luck with your efforts.
M