Chicken…er…Turkey broth

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Momzoo

I really enjoy canning. I love that I can take with my own two hands wonderfully nutritious foods and preserve them in a way that my family can enjoy it for months to come. It satisfies me to know that no matter what happens, there will be food on the table, and not just any food, but good foods without added preservatives and flavorings. When I am finished canning and I line those jars up on the shelves I feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. I am a Home Economist and I have ensured for a little while that the economy of my home will stand, with full belly’s!

For the last little while I have been trying to use all my food to the last little bit and not let anything go to waste. Sometimes I am really good at this, other times I slack off a bit! Sunday I made a big Turkey dinner and Monday morning I set that big old Turkey carcass in my biggest stock pot and let it boil all day. Usually when I make broth I freeze it, but Monday I decided that I was going to try something different. A couple of weeks ago I canned potatoes, it was my first attempt at using a pressure canner and since nothing blew up I figured I could give it another try. This is what I ended up with, and I am so proud!

12 pints of homemade turkey broth, ready to sit on my shelf and become dinner at some point.

As I mentioned before, I like canning because it give me the ability to control what is in my food without spending a fortune. I wanted to see what is in a store bought can of chicken broth, so I dug one up one lonely can and read the label.

It really as very few ingredients, there are some that I can’t pronounce and have no idea what they are. There is one big bad ingredient that I like to avoid completely and that would be Monosodium Glutamate, or also known as MSG. It isn’t good for our bodies, and a lot of people (including me) have sensitivities to it, there are some people who are very allergic to it. Cooking and preserving from scratch makes it possible for me to avoid all the unwanted ingredients. I know exactly what is in my broth: turkey; onions; garlic; salt; pepper; sage; thyme; and parsley.

Cooking and canning from scratch also gives me the flexibility to alter recipes to the tastes of my family. I know that the broth I made is going to be exactly how I like it with as much or as little salt as I want.

What kinds of things do you cook from scratch?

Cinnamon-Apple Syrup

Posted on October 2, 2008 by Momzoo

One of the things I like about apples is that you can use every part.

With a little work nothing goes to waste.

Remember this picture from Tuesday?

I took about half of my apple peals and cores and boiled them for a while, until everything was soft and all the color was gone from the peel.
I then poured everything into a colander lined with light weight fabric and let it drip for several hours into a big bowl.

I got about 3 gallons of juice

filled this jug and put it in the refrigerator until I was ready to use it.

I decided to make Apple-Cinnamon Syrup,
(you can also make jelly with the juice, it is a really pretty pink color)

I measured out the juice

and prepared the syrup

I actually had to boil the sugar and water until it reached a soft syrup.

I have never made candy, or used a candy thermometer.

It made me feel like a grown up.
(do you ever have those moments?)

Once the syrup was ready I added it to 6 cups juice, three cups corn syrup (I know, bad) and 1/4 cup lemon juice along with 4 cinnamon sticks and brought it all to a boil.

I let it boil hard for 5 minuets.

It came out a beautiful golden color.

The processed for 20 minutes.

Tomorrow we are going to have Apple Pancakes (which is my new favorite breakfast) drizzled with Apple-Cinnamon Syrup.

(if anyone would like a more detailed recipe please e-mail me at aimee@prosphotos.com, or you can find them in “Ball Complete Book of Preserving“

Apple Budda

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Momzoo

Budda

budda

Apple Budda!

Last year I made my first batch of Apple Butter,

and I was HOOKED!

so this year I knew I had to make some more.

First I cut up enough apple to fill my crock-pot

Then I dumped about 3 cups of sugar on top

and I sprinkled it with generous amounts of cinnamon and cloves
I would have use nutmeg too, but I was out

Then I stirred it all up and added a couple of cups of water.
I turned my crock-pot on low
and went to bed.

I had yummy cinnamon apple dreams…the house smelled wonderful!

In the morning this is what it looked like.

Brown and bubbly and cooked nice and soft.

At this point you could run it through a food mill

but I like it chunky, and I just bottle it like it is here.

Once I got my first batch processing I started on the second one.
I cut up enough apples to fill my big pot,
adding the same amount of sugar and spices.

I don’t follow a recipe when it comes to the sugar and spices,
I just do what tastes good to me
and I like my budda sweet!

I brought it to a boil and let it cook for about an hour
it cooks down quite a bit.

The apples need to be nice and soft and spreadable.

Now, that is where I ran into a problem with my second batch.
I am not patient enough.
I was wanting to get this done, so I took them off a little too soon and the apples didn’t get as soft as I really liked.

Oh well

It still tastes yummy, it is just a little chunkier.

I process them in a water bath for 20 minutes

(that time is adjusted for my altitude)

Here are the bottles from batch one and batch two.
It is easy to tell the difference.

YUMMY!

APPLE BUDDA!

Today (Wednesday) I made spiced apple syrup with the apple juice I made the day before…..stay tuned!

BTW
You should smell my house!

The Season

Posted on September 30, 2008 by Momzoo

Nothing says Autumn to me like fresh picked apples.

Dadzoo picked up 4 boxes for me to can. I have decided that I really, really like to can. When the economy collapses and Dadzoo loses his job and we camping out back on the mountain we are going to have apples! (and jam of coarse!) (oh, and about 400 pounds of wheat)

Yesterday I took two of the boxes and make apples in light syrup.

I spend hours and hours and hours peeling and coring and slicing those apples….

Oh fine, it took me about an hour to peel, core and slice two boxes of apples, and the reason it took that long was because I had helpers. One of the cores broke open and Punk #4 exclaimed “APPLE BEADS!” she then started to break open all the cores to collect the beads. I explained to her that they were seeds, and inside there will little baby apple trees. She wanted to know if I would let her tuck her beads into the dirt and grow apple trees! I love kids!

I put all the slices in a big fat bowls and stirred in a little lemon juice so they would keep their color better.

This is my big pile of cores and peels (at least half of it, I had another big pile on the counter top.)

I put the apples in a big pot and poured boiling sugar syrup over the top (I added a little cinnamon to the syrup). I brought the whole pot to a rolling boil and let it cook for about 5 minutes.

I then packed the apples into quart jars and poured the syrup over the top. I processed them for 40 minutes in a water bath.

Once I was done with the apple slices I put as many of the peelings and cores into my big stock pot as I could fit. I covered it all with water and brought it to a boil. I let it simmer on the stove for 2 hours, until everything was soft and all the color was boiled out of the peels.

I once used a jelly bag, and found it messy and awkward, so I came up with this little contraption to extract my juice.

I poured the juice and the cooked apples into the colander on top and let it sit for at least 2 hours, over night is even better, but I am not patient enough for that! Once it was finished dripping I poured the juice into a big picture and put it into the fridge, I am going to make spiced apple syrup on Wednesday. I threw the peels and cores in the compost pit.

Here are all my jars, done and pretty.

I got 18 quart from two boxes of apples and I am figuring I will get about 24 pints of apple syrup. Not too bad.

Today (Tuesday) I made two batches of apple butter…..stay tuned!

Apricot Jam

Posted on July 30, 2008 by Momzoo

I am insanely tired this morning. I have had too many late nights on top of late nights on top of vacations and colds….it is catching up! Last night I was up until 1:30 finishing my jam.

This is one of my favorite jam recipes. It is a little different, instead of pectin you use Jello as your thickening agent. As a result, the jam it a little thinner in the jars, but once it is open and refrigerated, it sets up really nicely.

Here is what you need for one batch of Apricot Jam

8 cups Apricots, pitted and chopped

(leave the skin on)

4 cups crushed pineapple, drained

(about 2 large cans)

10 cups sugar

(I know insane, but yummy)

1-3 ounce package of apricot Jello

(the store was out of apricot so I used peach instead)

1-6 ounce package of Orange Jello

Put the sugar, apricots and pineapple into a large pan

(I know, crazy amount of sugar)

Slowly bring in to a boil, stirring constantly
it is very easy for the sugar to burn on the bottom of the pan and that will ruin the whole batch.
Also, you don’t want the pot to boil over (more about that later)

Once you get it boiling find the right to keep it at a low boil, stirring occasionally at this point. Once the fruit and the sugar mix well, it won’t burn as easily.
You boil this for 30 minutes.

Once it has boiled for 30 minutes, you add your two packages of Jello.

Mix it in well and let it boil for a few minutes so the Jello completely dissolves.

Then you pour it into your sterile jars and process for 15 minutes.

I made 48 pints last night.

There is something so satisfying about preserving your own foods.

On my last batch I was about 2 cups short on my apricots, so I added two cups of frozen strawberries out of my freezer. It turned out really yummy, and that is why those jars in front are darker and redder.