Putting Up More by Stephen Palmer Dowdney is an excellent canning cookbook for those who want to push the boat out and explore a world of preserving projects that are outside the typical array of recipes.
Stephen Palmer Dowdney’s first book, Putting Up
While walking by the Cookbook Stall at Reading Terminal Market about a week ago, I happened to spot Putting Up More
One of the things that makes Dowdney’s books stand out in the pack of canning volumes is the perspective from which he writes. He owned a commercial canning operation for more than 10 years and so isn’t as tethered to the home canning practices to which we all cleave. He sterilizes his jars in a bleach solution instead of a canning pot or dishwasher, utilizes the inversion method for sealing, skips a processing step for hot pack recipes and even gives you the intellectual tools necessary to check the pH levels of your goods.
Though he doesn’t specifically say it, his instructions on how to test acidity and how to adjust to bring your goods into a safe range is the information so many of us have been looking for. As long as you’re willing to follow his directions (to the letter), this technique will finally set you free from the confines of tested recipes. If this sounds appealing to you, I recommend that you get your hands on both Putting Up
He includes a section of canning notes in each recipe, which details whether the recipe is one that will need to have its acid levels tested, what the yield will be, his recommendation for jar size (a hugely helpful bit) and whether the recipe can be safely increased or decreased. Dowdney has also taken a great deal of time to offer up suggestions on how to use and serve each recipe. For those of you who make things and then question what the heck to do with them, this is fantastic.
Other high points of this book include the safe for canning soups (including butternut squash, which I imagine will make some USDA canners devotees freak out), an entire section devoted to products made from hot peppers and an eggplant chutney that sounds incredible. As soon as the eggplant, peppers and summer squash are in season, I’m making it.
Because I think they’re excellent books, I’m giving away the pair of Putting Up
In totally other news, I just started another year of a photo a day over on my other blog, Apartment 2024 (I used my birthday as the start). If you’re curious about what else happens in my life, feel free to take a peek. Recently, I drank a really tasty glass of iced coffee with condensed milk, voted in my local primary election and took a day trip to New Hope courtesy of Chevy.
i’m really excited about experimenting with anything that I can put up with the bushel of Vidalia onions that my father in law just brought home from the farm. That jam looks delish!
I’m new to the world of canning, but have used the freezer to perserve the summer’s bounty of tomatoes for many years. Hope to have success with cucumber pickles, and plan to try my hand at blackbery/raspberry preserves.
Fingers crossed I win! Lord knows I could use some help over here!
This is my first year growing blackberries and I can’t wait to make a blackberry sage jam. I also make tons of strawberry balsalmic basil jam. Yummy!
Do his books cover canning at high altitudes?
Wow! I need to make that onion jam, so having won the book would be a good first step.
I’m also looking forward to canning some more tomatoes, as I used the last of them last week.
I’m most looking forward to making strawberry jam and preserves! When I did that for the first time last year, it was the most heavenly my kitchen has ever smelled.
I’m looking forward to making a lot of things this year…. pickles and different jams top that list.
We’ve pretty much stayed with canning peaches and apple butter the last several years. Last year I made jam for the first time, with mixed results. If our preschooler doesn’t kill the plants we should have lots of tomatoes to put up this year. It would be great to have a reference other than the Ball Blue Book, especially w/recipes for ideas of what to do with the goods you’ve canned.
I’m going to try my hand at something other than jams this year. Of course there would be a revolt in my house if I didn’t make a few batches of my triple-berry jam! Whole tomatoes, chutney, fruit pickles are a few that I would like to try.
I can’t wait to put back stewed tomatoes!
I look forward to making lots of jellies and jams using my own fruit. This will be the first year I have blackberries, gooseberries, currents and strawberries. Yeah!!!!
I’ve been using the boiling canner method for foods the last few years. I just bought a pressure canner to expand my pantry for the winter–can’t wait!!
I am most looking forward to making apricot jam!
No more label reading in stores to find food with basic HEALTHY ingredients. I dug out my canning supplies from the basement all 5 dozen jars , canner and recipes. When my children lived at home, I canned , froze and dehydrated a lot of fresh food. I had “fallen ” away from canning food. Well no more. I have a HUGE garden, and have decided canning is the way to go. With the energy issues , preserving food in jars is a solution. I just finished strawberry vanilla jam , my daughter Sarah’s recipe.
can’t wait to try all the relishes and Jardinere, as well as canning my own soups and stews, just like my grandma used to do! I love this page and the folks who have discovered ( and rediscovered ) preserving your food can be a part of a healthy lifestyle .
I am returning to my roots from many years ago in the midwest where my grandmother and aunts canned everything and now I started “putting up” some veggies this year…My new one will be okra. I hate okra, but my husband loves it, so I plan to pickle some. I can tolerate it pickled, tho.
I fell in love with pumpkin marmalade and 14 day pickles last year. Those 2 things are on the top of my to can list for this year.
Most looking forward to making tomato butter!
I can’t wait for tomatoes! Salsa, stewed, sauce – Yum!
Those look like lovely books! Even if I don’t win I may have to pick them up. 🙂
I’m definately looking forward to blackberry jam. It’s so simple and so yummy and there are approximately 1 billion blackberry bushes around my neighbourhood. Plus, it’s what I’m giving away at my wedding. I’m really looking forward to the sticky fingers.
I am looking forward to trying a friend’s B&B pickle recipe this year. Also salsa and the pickled strawberry jam recipe I found recently.
I’ve already done some canning and plan to do a lot more before the end of summer. I made some jalapeno & garlic jelly today. I would like to make some relishes and pickled stuff this year.
I have not canned anything in years, and even then I only ventured into pickles! I am looking forward to getting into canning again and venturing into many things!
Raspberry Jam. I ran out a couple months ago and can’t wait to have more.
I’m making pie-themed baskets to give away at Christmas this year, so this spring and summer I’ll be canning fruit fillings! Strawberry rhubarb, apple, cherry, raspberry… mmm, can’t wait!
can’t wait to can some dilly beans. finally perfected my recipe last year, but not until the end of the season, so this season will be making up for lost time!
Looks like a interesting read.
I Love canning and I dont have these two books. They would be an awesome addition to my collection. I put in 14raised beds last yr. I am hoping this yr to be a canning queen if they produce enough. I live in Oregon so this might be harder than I think, I havent lived here very long.
I’ve never canned before, but after our great crop last year I am really looking forward to canning our homemade salsa! Yummy!
I saw the recipe for pickled brussel sprouts and that is something I want to do this year. I’ve canned for years, anything from meat, to veggies, to fruits, to jams, butters and jellies. I would love to add these two books to my canning cookbook shelf!
The thing I’m looking forward to the most is experimenting with Ball’s Pickle Crisp! I made lovely tasting pickles last summer… but they were mushy and I can’t do mushy. I’m hoping that this product fixes it.
We’re also going to try canning tomato soup, or at least putting it up in freezer jars.
And of course, peaches will be turned into jam and peaches for eating and baking.
And, my sister in law is going to teach me how to make dilly beans!!!
I’m hoping to can a lot more tomatoes than I was able to last year…last year was not a good year for tomatoes in the NW – and once you have home canned it’s hard to go back to store bought! Also, some savory tomato jams, relishes, etc. – they add something special to any meal!
I can’t wait to make some more basil tomato sauce this summer. I didn’t make nearly enough last year! The books really look lovely…
I always look forward to pickles….pickles of all kind….dill, sweet, bread & butter, sweet-hot. I love them all and look most forward to the whole pickle canning event every year!
cowboy candy!
The books look very interesting! I’m looking forward to making many more jars of pears & ginger in honey syrup later this summer!
EVERYTHING! I live in california and up until right now have not even been aware of the pleasures that canning can bring! Not only do you now what is in your food…how it came to be in your pantry…..but you control all the flavors that go into a receipe! It saves time…ultimately saves money and will ease my stress when it comes to making a meal every night! This is all very new to me…but already I have made friends….learned from all the individuals out there that are willing to share….learned from those who are “masters” at it….and I will keep learning! I am going to try canning literally anything that is worth the time and effort…..which seems to be an eternity of things! I cannot wait to have a pantry full of already cooked…ready to use products! My pressure canner is on the way and I already have made several jams and jellys that are sitting in my pantry….I cannot wait to get some peaches this weekend and see what else the farmers market has in store! YAY…for this site….I love it!
I think my favorite thing to can is my sour cherry rhubarb jam. I’m especially excited this year because we just planted our own sour cherry tree and it is going to fruit this year 🙂
All I can think about is strawberries right now. I’ll pick way too many to eat and then make some jam.
I can’t WAIT to start canning when I return home to the states this summer I hope to start with some simple pickles!
I’m new to canning, so will probably stick to something simple like a jam or tomatoes.
Green beans,I’m a new canner and green beans will be replacing jam this year, hopefully, as my most canned item!
Sounds like a wonder set of books!
I’m growing Thai hibiscus in my garden for the first time this year, and dearly hope to can some in syrup, and also use them in jams.
I’m most looking forward to canning salsa verde this summer. We had great success with our traditional salsa last year, so I’m eager to try something new.
I’m looking forward to putting up zucchini relish. I never make enough of it.
I can’t wait to make new and different jams this summer. I might even try to pickle some watermelon rind.
I just did Vanilla Rhubarb jam and Rosemary Rhubarb jam with a combination of farmer’s market and mom’s garden rhubarb. Yum! I’m looking forward to Cherries! A friend’s family has a recipe for Moonshine Cherries, made with moonshine they make themselves. They’re ah-ma-zing!
I’m looking forward to making some more fruit butters this summer!!
I just moved to the East Coast, so I’m looking forward to canning different produce than I’ve had in California!