I’m really excited to share this new life skill I just added to my résumé this summer: canning! So far (this month), I’ve canned blackberry jam, blueberry jam, saskatoon berry jam, strawberry rhubarb compote, applesauce, pickled sugar snap peas, peach butter, peach pie filling, peach slices and I’m looking forward to canning pickled beets, pickled cucumbers, and salsa in the near future – aka, when I’m ready to harvest my garden 🙂

I can’t believe how easy hot water bath canning is! Moreover, I love that I no longer have to try to squeeze food in my freezer. This food preserving method doesn’t require electricity! And you know exactly what’s in your food. No preservatives. Well, sugar and lemon juice are preservatives but you know what I mean.

I’m a little bit of a rebel when it comes to following recipes. However, canning is not the time to joke around because there’s a chance you could get sick if you mess with the chemical magic of the process. I had to test if it was necessary to wipe the rim of the jar before adding the lid. Turns out it’s a necessary step! The only consequence my experiment had was that I ended up having to put a blackberry jam jar in my fridge and eat it. So sad 😉 Talking about blackberry jam, I’ve learn that you might find little white worms in freshly picked blackberries. All you need to do is soaking them in salted water, like for broccoli, and the worms come right out! I also learned that blanching peaches for 1 min makes peeling efficient according to many. I prefer to call it fun.

I bought my canning kit online (using ebates.ca to get cashback) and realized afterwards that there could be an issue since I own a glass/ceramic stove top. The stove used to belong to my mom so I called her to get her two cents and she said to try it out. I did and I have had no issues so far. Next step (probably next year): I want to invest in a pressure canner to safely can low acid fruits and vegetables like carrots, beans, potatoes, and meat products like broth and stews.