Grow It, Preserve It, Serve It: I CanCan, You CanCan Too!

You've got the jars. You have your water bathe canner (or pressure canner to use for water bathes). You have the produce. You have a recipe. Now what?

We can.

Just a quick reminder, this is the water bathe procedures. We will cover pressure canning next.

Some foods that can be safely canned in a water bathe include:

jams, jellies, apples, applesauce, pears, peaches, pickles, tomatoes

The first step of canning, is to round up your supplies. But, I'm going to teach you how to cheat a little. I like to fill my water bathe (or pressure if using for the water bathe), with water. I fill it to the marked fill line, or about 2-3" inches from the top on the pot. Unless it's the pressure canner, then I fill it half full. Add 1/4 to 1/2 a cup vinegar to prevent water stains on your jars and canner. Place on (preferably a rear) burner, and turner burner on high. Place lit on canner, and leave it alone to get good and hot & boiling. Now you aren't waiting as long to sanitize your jars & can.

Now we round up supplies. Select the jar size you need, and collect the number you need. If the jars are new, wash them in hot soapy water and rinse well. If you've already washed your jars, then just set them on a counter near your work space.

Collect the produce you are canning. Clean the food with warm water, usually a good rinse will do. Chop, dice, or squash food as the recipe directs.

Collect the preservative you plan on using. In most water bathe cases, this is sugar. Pickles usually have a liquid mixture that includes sugar or salt, & vinegar. Fruits canned (not jellies or jams) are canned in a sugar syrup that you make. Fruits for jellies and jams are cooked with their sugar, until the natural pectin activates (unless you're using boxed pectin, then follow your recipe).

Follow your recipe's directions to prepare your food for canning. Be mindful to keep a close eye on things, or you might end up with scorched jams or over boiled peaches.

Right about now, you should have boiling water in your canner. Add enough jars to fill the basket or bottom of the canner, being careful not to burn yourself. Please, for the love of Pete, DO NOT STICK YOUR BARE HAND IN THE BOILING WATER. Use a tool, if you need to adjust a jar. Please. I would be so sad if heard you had burnt your hand in the hot water. If you're laughing & think you won't do this, then I can almost guarantee that you'll be the one with a bandage.

I usually ladle some of that boiling water into my coffee pot, add my lids, and set it on it's little coffee pot burner. When putting the lids in, place them in in a pattern, like: right-side-up, up-side-down, right-side-up, up-side-down, etc. This way they don't stick together and the entire lid is safely sterilized.

You jars are now sanitized. Carefully remove them, using a jar lifter, and pour the water inside of them back into the canner. Set them on a towel that you don't mind if it's stained, that is layed flat on the counter.

Using a funnel, follow the recipe directions to pack your jar, leaving approximately 1" space at the top of the jar. An easy way to measure one inch, is to fill to the bottom of the ring line.

Use a clean, wet cloth, clean off the openings of the jars, making sure no food particles can prevent a perfect seal. Top the jars with the freshly sanitized lids, using a magnet lid lifting tool. Place rings on and tighten with your hand. I use an old hot pad to hold onto the jar while I do this.

Place your filled & lidded jars into the canner, according to the canner's directions. Most water bathes have a basket that is self-explanatory. Gently lower the basket and jars into the boiling water. If your canner is too full (this is okay), then set the loaded basket on the towel, and CAREFULLY ladle out the excess water into another pan (this water can be used to refill the canner between batches). When the basket is lowered, the water should be at least 1" over the tops. I like at least 2", because boiling water evaporates. Return to a boil, and boil the goods according the recipe's directions.

When the timer goes off, use a pair of tongs to lift the basket's handles up, and raise the basket out of the water. Use a jar lifter for really awesome oven mitts to lift the jars to a dry towel, folded double on your counter, or to a heatproof surface, away from drafts. Allow to cool completely, usually overnight to 24 hours, then remove the rings, check to make sure they are all sealed (the "button" on top should be down and not poppable with your fingertip (if you press a button down and it stays, you should be fine. It just isn't supposed to pop back up), and then wash with warm, not hot, soapy water. Label and store.

Congratulations, you're canning!