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Can You Can?

Today’s lunch was a press event by Ball jars, glass jar experts since 1884! Cool things do to happen in Charlotte, NC 🙂

The event was on how to conquer fears of canning. I have to say, it’s one aspect of cooking that I’ve found way too intimidating to attempt.

"Advanced canner" Keith Snow of Harvest Eating was our host. He was a wealth of canning knowledge (has canned thousands of foods in his quest for local + seasoning eating) and demonstrated making a salsa. It was actually quite an easy process:

Chop, cook, prep jars, pour food into jars, cook jars, cool

[Hope I didn’t miss a step!]

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Ball just released a new simple starter canning kit you can get for $12. These new starter kits come with everything you need (sans veggies and a stove!). I brought one home and will definitely give it a try in the coming weeks to test the waters. What I think will be most beneficial is things you might normally freeze – soups, sauces and the like – can be canned and then you will not get the dreaded freezer burn. [I’ve tried all methods of freezing things and STILL have trouble with freezer burn. I also have a very keen palate for detecting it…] I’m excited to see how soups work with canning. And I can’t wait to try out pickles! Be forewarned: don’t tamper with recipes because pH has a lot to do with the preservation and if you don’t use the right combination of ingredients that have been pre-tested by canning experts, you might end up with a bad batch.

And if you’d like to win a canning kit of your own, email [email protected] to enter.

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I was accompanied by these lovely ladies for lunch –

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And was VERY excited to see the fun Kelsey there as well!!

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Lunch was at Mimosa Grill and was very impressive. Not just in choices, but in flavor. Everything was bursting with summer.

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Fried Green Tomato Sliders made with Ball’s Zucchini Relish recipe –

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The slider was paired with South Carolina Shrimp Salad, sweet corn relish, local tomatoes, fennel, and citrus basil vinaigrette.

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Best thing I tasted!! So very fresh.

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The main course was another pair – er, trio – of choices.

Roasted Springer Mountain Chicken Breast stuffed with goat cheese and lomo embuchado herb lime nage (<– don’t ask because I don’t know!)

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A summerific stack of Heirlooms with mozzarella, tiny basil and aged balsamic.

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And to think I used to detest tomatoes!

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And a tomato risotto…

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I ate about 1/3 of everything presented today. Except all of the tomatoes 🙂

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I loved how the courses were split so we got to taste a lot. Two halves make a whole!!

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Half a Carolina Mountain Cherry Cheesecake with caramelized raw sugar and cherry preserves. LOVED the liquor spiked creme!

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Half a Georgia Peach Tart with raspberry peach melba and vanilla gelato

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I ate about half of each half dessert!

After lunch we walked back to our car, stopping at a lovely farmer’s market!

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I had "buy okra" on my todo list today so this was super convenient. Local, convenient and cheap!

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Can’t wait to eat it for dinner. I’ve been waiting for 9 months to make okra fries again!!

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Emily and I have been playing and we’re heading out on a run now. See ya!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  9. Loving the heirloom stack! And those jars bring back such memories of my mom’s cranberry sauce… she made it every year and we gave it to teachers, friends, etc.

    Reply

  13. Looks like a good time! I love Mimosa 🙂 It’s right near where I work in uptown, so I do lunch there every once in a while. Good food and ambiance!

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  15. Looks delicious! I’ll have to remember that stacked tomato dish … I have lovely red and yellow ones on the way from my garden!

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  19. I love canning! Last fall my husband and I made a TON of small homemade apple butters to use as favors at our wedding. We had so much fun and by batch #5 we were pros!

    It was definitely intimidating at first but well worth it in the end.

    Reply

  21. The lunch looks wonderful!

    I love to can. Last weekend, my husband and I made Wild Plum Jam from the wild plums growing around our house. In the fall, I love to make lots and lots of home-canned salsa. (Around here, the farmers have fields of tomatoes ripen in the fall.)

    There’s something so satisfying about looking at a row of colorfully filled jars and thinking, “I did that!”

    Reply

  23. I’m so jealous. I can and find it so interesting. I can’t wait for the summer produce to really take off so I can can lots of local (from my back yard!) goodies for the winter!

    Reply

  24. Looks absolutely delicous and love the Okra. We can’t get fresh Okra at the Farmers Market in Michigan. So sad. I miss it. I used to pick it off the side of the road where someone grew it in Texas.

    On to some Windows talk! Love that you love Windows Live! If you download the new Windows Live Beta Essentials there is a new Movie Maker (which you can use for making photo movies) with some great effects and the best part…. in the Photo Gallery there is Photo Fuse. Say you have two pics, someone smiling in one and not in the other… just Fuse them together!

    http://explore.live.com/windows-live-essentials-beta

    Going to make your Eggplant Parm tonight. I’ve never had Kale so this will be interesting!

    Reply

    • Cool!! I think I have that movie maker. I don’t think it’s as good as Windows Movie Maker. Lacking a lot of features?

      Will check out the photo fuse!

      Reply

  25. That chicken looks delicious! I saw the risotto on Caitlin’s page and didn’t think the chicken could top it. I was definitely wrong. lol

    Farmers Market looks fun! I LOVE those things. You never know what great food fine you’ll encounter 😀

    Reply

  29. Canning sure intimidates me! My mom canned an enormous batch of plum preserves way back in the day and it was such an event that I’ve avoided canning altogether. Maybe I should face my fears!

    I currently don’t have a taste for raw tomatoes. I don’t hate them, but I prefer them not be on my plate/salad/sandwich. In fact, I often take them off. Maybe one day…

    Reply

  30. i can can!

    most vegetables need to be pressure canned though (unless you are pickling or making salsa). i’m not sure about soup… i feel like you’d probably need a pressure canner for that.

    Reply

    • You’re right you do. Water bath canning (like this kit) is for acidic things, such as jams, jellies, pickles (which have vinegar — acidic), fruits, and tomatoes if you add some vinegar or lemon juice. Things like vegetables and soups and stews need to be pressure canned to be safe.

      Reply

  32. So great meeting you and the girls today at the event. Can’t wait to use my canner and also Chef Snow’s tips for baby food, I’ll let you know how it goes, you may need the advice for your girls in the future 😉

    Reply

  33. Random question, hopefully blog appropriate…

    I was wondering if you, as an RD or in your experience of living an active lifestyle are familiar with irregular periods associated with female athletes, especially runners. And if so, do you have any advice for people who might have this problem?

    Reply

    • I don’t have any experience but we did learn about it. Generally it’s a lack of fuel – too much exercise, too little food or both. I’d recommend backing down on the exercise and eating a little bit more. It’s a sign your body doesn’t have enough to do it’s general function. But I’d also recommend talking to your OBGYN!

      Reply

      • Thanks for your response to that (even though it wasnt my question!). Sometimes, it can be quite confusing in the blog world because numerous bloggers admit to not having a regular period but brush it off as OK. I always sort of had a hard time thinking that your body not acting in a normal way was a good thing……and its nice to hear that it probably isnt!

        Reply

  34. You were in my neck of the woods! Mimosa is really great! I’ve been there twice. My grandmother cans and so does my aunt. Brad thinks I should take it up but it seems pretty time-consuming.

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  37. That is one thing I’m glad I grew up doing. I never even knew that there was anything to be afraid of until I left home and read online about people’s fears of canning. It seems so simple to me! It just takes over the entire kitchen. 🙂

    Reply

  42. I used to detest tomatoes too–to the point that I wouldn’t eat anything that was remotely near them on a plate. Now I love just eating them straight up with a dash of salt:)
    Okra, glorious okra! Can’t wait to see what you make with it.

    Reply

  46. Not sure what’s different about your hair these days, but it is rockin! Love that new cut. It falls so nicely.

    Reply

  47. Oh yeah, canning excites me & scares me. I’m nervous to try it. cant wait to see how you go & to see if it’s easy enough.

    I love that you got small tastes of everything, it’s always better.

    Reply

  50. Everything looks so delicious! I have been canning for a few years now and find it so much easier once you get used to it. Now okra, there’s something that intimidates me.

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  52. Hi Kath! As someone who still currently detests tomatoes, just curious how you changed your palate to accept them! I feel like I am missing out on so much deliciousness that includes them but I just can’t get over myself yet…haha

    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Oh gosh, I have no idea! I just started eating them in restaurants (how I learned to like most veggies!) Big chunks in pastas, on pizzas, etc. I would force myself to take bites of sandwiches with them (and then pick them off). Bite by bite (heh heh) I just learned to recognize, accept and then like the taste. Now I LOVE them!

      Reply

      • Tomatoes today… Onions tomorrow??? Start with something mild. Maybe 3 thin slices off of a scallion on a garden salad. Then maybe a paper thin slice from a Vidalia (your dad’s suggestion). Do it at home at first, until you develop your palate for them. That way, you can brush your teeth right after and mouthwash if it helps. They are actually very healthy too. You are missing out.

        Reply

  53. Canning is really very easy once you get over the intimidation factor – my parents used to can tomatoes every summer when I was a kid so I’ve been doing it forever with them. This past spring I made and canned strawberry jam on my own for the first time and it turned out great. Start out with water bath canning something and see how it goes. I’ve never tried pressure canning because it’s more complicated and requires special equipment but jams, pickles and tomatoes can all be water bath canned.
    If you want a step by step with photos, go to the Pioneer Woman’s web page and search for strawberry jam. I used that as a memory reference since I hadn’t done it in so long and it was great to have pictures!

    Reply

  55. So good to see that photo of Kelsey! You two used to hang out all the time and it was fun to read about your shenanigans together. Fun!

    Reply

  57. I love Farmer’s Markets! Wow, you have amazing self-control, I would’ve eaten the whole dessert! So, are you going to be a dietician now or are you going to be a bakery owner?

    Reply

  58. i LOVE Mimosa Grill! if you ever get a chance, get the Grand Marnier 😉 looks like a wonderful menu, Ms. Kath!

    Reply

  59. I’m a recent convert to home canning. As a NYC girl (born and bred), living in Appalachia and playing homesteader has introduced me to many a lost art. I still prefer fermentation – kombucha! kimchi! – to canning, though.
    Love the heirloom tomato stack! And I agree with you about okra. It’s one of my favorite veggies and soup/stew additions, even if it does have somewhat of a temperamental texture.

    Reply

  60. What a lovely looking dinner! Almost seems fancy 😉 I love seeing Caitlin on your blog so often! 😀

    Wei-Wei

    PS: I don’t know anything about canning. You BOIL the jars?! To sterilise?

    Reply

  61. Yes, I can can 😉 So far, my experience is limited to pasta sauce and pear preserves, not counting canning green beans in the scary pressure canner with my parents. We risked canning without a canning rack last year (and only lost one jar), but I want to get one before doing any more canning. I’ll look forward to seeing what you come up with, especially soups!

    Reply

  62. I just sent you an email with some questions about this event! I think I was invited to the same thing in Cincinnati in a few weeks.

    Reply

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