Preserving 101; veggies - Page 2

[melivon]

Originally Posted by Owen'nZoe

I love the wax paper idea!

I always use cherry tomatoes for drying. They have a nice, intense flavor, and their size makes them easy to use in recipes. Plus, I always seem to overplant cherries.

Hi, I'm new in here (but have been a Mothering subscriber for 5 years!) I have an abundance of cherry & grape tomatoes and have been wondering what to do with them. Is it possible to dry them without a dehydrator? Any recipes?

Thanks!

[melivon]

Question re canned tomatoes

How I wish I had found this before I canned my first batch of tomatoes! I canned 4 quarts of romas (first year in our Urban garden we've had enough to can) and I packed them in water because I couldn't find another recipe.

Here's what happened: when I took them out (boiling water processing) to cool, lots of liquid seeped out from the seal and the tomatoes all floated to the top half of the jar, with the bottom half all liquid. The top 1/2-1 inch of tomatoes at the top are not covered with liquid at all. Did I do something wrong? Do I need to reprocess them?

The directions said to gently pack the tomatoes in the jars, so I didn't squish them in there. Then I just added a bit of liquid to each to top them off along with the lemon juice.

Appreciate your input, since my grandma can't hear well enough for me to call and ask her about it!

Thanks!

[elanorh]

For those who don't have a Ball Blue Book, they have some of their recipes online as well:

http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages..._pages/215.php

(homecanning.com is the website home I think, but this is the link to the recipe page)

[JessicaS]

I am bumping some canning threads since things are starting to get ripe

[FarmerCathy]

Originally Posted by abimommy

I am bumping some canning threads since things are starting to get ripe

Great idea!

[KristyDi]

Originally Posted by geogal17

My question is how to can butternut squash, yes I know I can freeze it but freezer space is at a premium for storing meat and I have about 25 squashes ( at least) I'll need to do something with to take with me when I move and I cant just have huge pile of them in my new apartment LOL.

Oe of the books I was reading said something about never canning squash puree only cubes...but now I can't find the book so I have no idea what size the cubes need to be to how long to process or any of that. anyone know?

I agree w/ pp about storing them in an unheated area, but should you want or need to can anyway, you can follow the directions for canning pumpkin. My book lists them as "pumpkin and winter squash" (cut into 1 inch cubes, boil in water 2 min., pack cubes loosely in jar, cover with boiling water, 1 inch headspace. 10lbs pressure pints 55min quarts 90min)