I decided to try canning for the first time in my life. I helped my mom can some peaches when I was in Utah for Lisa's wedding, and it didn't look too hard. Back in Arizona I bought a case of peaches. The plan was to can them with my friend Kori while our boys played together. However, David got sick, and so I canned them alone during the boys' nap time. After getting frustrated with a huge, slow-boiling 9-quart water bath, two broken jars, reprocessing the whole batch, and heating up the entire house (it's already too hot in AZ), I finally finished my first batch. I wasn't sure if they looked normal, and so I emailed my mom a photo. She thinks they look great--although I don't think I would win any ribbons at the state fair. I'm very proud of myself. Luckily Kori let me borrow her steam canner so I could finish a second batch.
Then of course, being crazy, I purchased a case of pears the following week. Steve was soooo nice to help me peel pears before leaving for work one morning. Things went a lot smoother this time. I took a photo of my pears too.
Then, I decided buying a canner would be a good investment. I told my sister Andrea about my plans, and she read some reviews on Amazon. Come to find out, steam canning is not approved by the US Dept. of Agriculture and the USU Extension Services. Great. I guess steam canners aren't as safe as water boilers. Oh brother. I bought a steam canner anyway. I told Steve this can be my Christmas gift. So, were going to live a little dangerously and continue canning and eating our steam-canned peaches and pears. We'll just make sure we pray first.
Then of course, being crazy, I purchased a case of pears the following week. Steve was soooo nice to help me peel pears before leaving for work one morning. Things went a lot smoother this time. I took a photo of my pears too.
Then, I decided buying a canner would be a good investment. I told my sister Andrea about my plans, and she read some reviews on Amazon. Come to find out, steam canning is not approved by the US Dept. of Agriculture and the USU Extension Services. Great. I guess steam canners aren't as safe as water boilers. Oh brother. I bought a steam canner anyway. I told Steve this can be my Christmas gift. So, were going to live a little dangerously and continue canning and eating our steam-canned peaches and pears. We'll just make sure we pray first.
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