Farm Seconds

Here I am again talking about canning. With El Nino making an appearance in the Pacific we are having some crop failures in the basics across the United States and there is some concern about parts of Central and South America. That means that all corn, wheat and barely are expected to rise in price. Since we are pretty dependent on corn in this country, this is something that should be taken into consideration. That of course, brings us back to my canning adventures.

I realize that this blog tries to stay away from the rally cry of "stock up while on sale", but sometimes it is a terrific idea if at all possible. Hopefully these ideas will help make it a little more possible. Since the point to canning is to save money, buying things that are expensive makes no sense generally. I did splurge on some freshly squeezed lemon juice for a batch of Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate, although if you take into account the cost of lemons it wasn't really too out of reach if I would have made it anyway. Let me tell you, it is delicious and will be a lovely thing come winter when strawberries are imported and, let's face it, tasteless and pricey.

For this recipe I came across some farm stand seconds inside of the store. I picked up two quarts of local berries for two dollars less a quart than sold normally. You may be wondering about the quality of the goods. Normally seconds are simply those things that are not "fit to sell".  That means that they may have surface anomalies or possible a little more ripe than is usually sold.  These berries were a little ripe, but no where near overripe.

This is what was left after making the Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate. I didn't think to take a picture before, partially because I wanted to use them before my appointment yesterday. As you can see, they are really pretty, and this is from yesterday. They are much sweeter than you will find in a regular grocery store and are perfect for jam, if I had enough. Since the season for strawberries is definitely over, there won't be more this year, but next year I will be armed. I am going to call up the farm, Wilson Farm, and see if they offer other things than the berries and tomatoes.

Today I am making peach jam, as local peaches and sugar were on sale at the regular grocery market. Zucchini from the farm was .99 cents a pound, which is a little high for this time of year, but still .50 cents a pound cheaper for the very marred up squash at the grocery store. With those I will be making bread and butter pickles as well as zucchini bread for the freezer.

Keep an eye out for sales on staples and stock up the best you can when they are on sale. To avoid weevils, put things in the freezer in a sealed container or freezer bags. I found sugar on sale, but it wasn't the best sale so I just got two bags this time. Usually these things go on super sale over the holidays. I am not certain that this will happen this year due to drought, but if you can, do it. You do have a chest freezer, right?

A decent chest freezer can be found for free on Craig's List or Freecycle for your area. If not, try the items for sale as you can often get a good price. Just be careful as the older models use so much electricity it may not be worth it, so decide based on that.

I am also planning salsa today. I was hoping to get tomatillos yesterday, but alas, they had very little stock left.  Today I simply have to pick up ice, jalapenos and possible a dried chili pepper or two. Since we tend to eat a lot of salsa, and the jars are quite pricey for what they are, this is a very good investment. Here is a picture of the plum tomato seconds that I got for over a dollar less a pound:

Pretty huh? 

So, the lesson is to buy seconds from your local farmer if possible and can things that you use a lot or that you know you would use a lot if you could afford it. It is not hard, and if you are canning acidic foods (tomatoes need a little extra to be canned this way), all it takes is a large, deep pot with a cake rake on the bottom and some canning jars. Below is the recipe for the Lemonade I made. 

Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate (From the Ball Book of Preserving)

2 cups cleaned, hulled and mashed (this is a quart of fresh strawberries and maybe a little more for a full six quarts)

6 cups sugar

4 cups lemonade, fresh (if you can't find fresh or lemons are too expensive don't bother it won't taste very good due to there being very little, if any, actual lemons in the other stuff)

Put everything in a deep, stainless steel pot and cook over medium high heat until sugar is dissolved and the temperature is 190 degrees F. (88 degrees Celsius). Do NOT boil. Really.

Ladle hot mixture into prepared jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. I will post how to prepare jars below. Slide a none metallic spatula (or a long bamboo chops stick) around the edges to remove air bubbles. If necessary, add more mixture to top off. Wipe the edges of the jars, this is very important and easy to forget. Top with heated lids and screw bands on. Just twist until you feel it take hold and then just a little more. Finger tip tight.

Place in canner (the water should already be very hot/boiling). Bring back to a boil and time for 15 minutes for pint jars. Quart jars should go for 15 minutes also, although some sources say 20. I used the National Center for Home Food Preservation guidelines. I had to use general citrus guidelines (I used Grapefruit) because this is a pretty acidic product. 

Remove from canner with a jar lifter. This will save you much pain, buy this piece of equipment. You will thank me. Place on a baking rack that is covered with a kitchen towel. If the counter is slippery, put a towel or something grippy under the rack, like that rubbery shelf liner.

To prepare jars for canning: There are a couple schools of thought on this. Some people feel that you should boil the jars for 10 minutes before using to fully sterilize them. There are others who feel that they should just simmer and the wait in the water to be used is fine. I go with the boiling for safety sake. Leave the jars in the hot water on a simmer until ready to be filled, regardless.

Simmer the brand new lids. Do not reuse. The bands don't require anything but being clean and in good repair. Do not boil the lids as it will mess with the seal. While not necessary, a lid wand is of great use. The one I use is a magnet on one end for lifting the lids and a flat end for removing air bubbles.