Autumn Giles and I first met in 2010. It was at a canning party in Kate Payne’s Brooklyn apartment on a hot, August morning, where we chopped, trimmed, pitted, and canned our way through nearly 100 pounds of produce.
She was a beginning canner in those days, but as you can see from her new book, Beyond Canning: New Techniques, Ingredients, and Flavors to Preserve, Pickle, and Ferment Like Never Before, she has become an expert preserver in the intervening years!
The recipes in this book are divided up into three sections. You’ll find the Sweet Preserves first. That chapter includes appealing things like Tomato-Vanilla Jam, Hibiscus-Lime Jelly, Banana-Chocolate Butter, and Fig Jam with Toasted Fennel Seeds. I particularly like how Autumn makes good use of chiles and spices to add interest and flavor to familiar fruits.
Next comes the Pickles. This section positively vibrates with creativity and I want to make every single thing in it. Recipes that are particular stand-outs in my mind are the Broiled Pickled Onions (I love the idea of a little char in a pickle), the Maple Plum Mostarda (it’s made with mustard seeds rather than the oil, so that the ingredients are accessible for all makers), and the Green Chile Jam (I want to dollop some on eggs immediately).
The third section digs into various acts of Fermentation. You’ll find Dilly Beans (a long-time favorite), White Kimchi, Gochugaru Preserved Lemons, Chow-Chow Kraut, and so much more. If you’ve not yet dipped a toe into the fermentation pool, I promise, Autumn’s clear and confident instructions will help you get started without fear.
I have one more treat from this book for you. Autumn and her publisher have given me permission to reprint the Rose Wine Jelly recipe. I’ll confess, I’ve not had the chance to make it yet, but I LOVE the idea of it and plan on turning to her formula the next time I have a bit of wine leftover from the bottle.
“just a cup” rosé wine jelly
Ingredients
- 3/4 teaspoon Pomona’s Universal Pectin powder
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup rosé wine
- 1/2 teaspoon Pomona’s Universal Pectin calcium water prepared according to package instructions
- 1 tablespoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
- Because recipes made with Pomona’s Universal Pectin have such a short cook time, have your jars prepped and out of the water bath before you even start cooking the jelly. I like doing this in 2 quarter pints, since the batch size is so small. Because the batch is so small, you can also skip the water bath altogether and stash this in the fridge if you prefer.
- Stir together pectin and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.
- Combine the wine, calcium water, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat.
- As soon as the mixture comes to a boil, gradually add the pectin-sugar mixture, whisking continually to help it dissolve.
- Cook for 1 to 2 minutes more while whisking to dissolve the pectin. Remove from the heat and use a clean spoon to skim off any foam.
- Ladle into prepared quarter-pint jars, leaving 1/4 -inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and wipe rims. Place the lids on the jars and screw on the bands until they are fingertip tight.
- Process in a water-bath canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude as needed.
- After 24 hours, check the seals. Label, date, and store out of direct sunlight without the bands for up to a year.
I’m making pies for Pi Day! Thanks for the giveaway!
just got back from a trip to jamaica (first time there), and am wanting to try to recreate some of the dishes here. jerk anything, for starters, as well as some of the other savory dishes. i also loved the scones with guava jelly (we had tea one afternoon), so if i can get my hands on some guava, i’ll try making that.
Meyer lemons are currently inspiring me – I’m working on preserving some lemons for summer salad dressings now!
It’s time to renew our CSA share for 2016! My inspiration for clearing out some of the frozen fruit from last summer that I didn’t have time to turn into jam last summer.
I’ve been doing more freezer cooking, which is actually helping me be more creative because I need to have taste, freezeability, and variety. It’s a work in progress, but I think I’m doing well.
Hot and Sour Soup! Good for colds.
Right now? Brussels sprouts! I can’t get enough of them!
Oh I don’t have a single fermenting book. That is my latest passion. Milk kefir, kombucha and cultured veggies.
Really into Kimchee lately. I’m sure they have some variations in this book.
I’m getting into canning asparagus. It’s been in the stores for the last 2 weeks so I’m pickling it, freezing it, and enjoying it.
So many great ideas in blog land inspire me to try new things. I made sourdough bread for the first time.
Something that has been sparking my culinary creativity in recent days are all the perennials starting to grow back in my garden. The chives came up this week and we have started our lettuces & other herbs under a grow light indoors. Can’t wait to start eating all these fresh herbs & veggies.
Finally made a sourdough starter — so lots of sourdough pancakes, sourdough banana bread, sourdough apple muffins, and obviously sourdough bread.
Za’atar had been the discovery of the year for me! So delicious and versatile. This is a beautiful looking book!
I’ve been so enamored of some new-to-me herb and spice blends recently, and I can’t wait for grilling season again!
I’ve been slowly dipping my toes into fermentation courtesy of Ferment Your Vegetables. I’ve been thinking about trying fermented dairy next. I’m intrigued by the idea of making kefir.
We went meatless for Lent, so I’ve had to be pretty creative with dinners lately!
Summer squash (*waaaay* out of season, my bad!) and spinach “Lasagna Bianca,” with chicken broth subbing for half the milk in the béchamel, because we’re at that between-seasons time when you’ve had too many winter vegetables but it’s definitely not warm enough for a tossed-salad-dinner. Yummm. It will get variations, very soon, because I started way too many summer-squash seeds.
Meyer lemons!
Wow this book looks amazing. I have now spend about 2 hours just taking in the entire Food In Jars web page. I am super excited to start canning. I have all of my materials bought and I’m just waiting for the fruit farms to start opening! I love spring!
We’ve had an early warm spell here and it has encouraged me to look through my pantry & freezer inventories to clear some space for the produce that will be here in a few months. Still a bunch of frozen blueberries that need to be used up!
The only thing that’s been inspiring me to get in the kitchen these days is the Three Loaves project and bread baking in general. Three Loaves is a project by Jerry James Stone to help people who are in need. Each month you get a bread recipe and the idea is to bake three loaves of bread – one for yourself, one for a friend, and one for someone in need. There have been some really great recipes that I’ve added to my regular rotation and it’s been fun to pass along the extra loaves. While I’ve loved baking, I need inspiration to cook and can, and this book sounds like it would do the trick!
I am loving coconut oil. ..it’s an amazing food, health and beauty miracle worker….
Being creative using up what is stored here – citrus fruits, dates, pumpkin, lots of freezer odds and ends! Always up for trying something new!
I’m loving exploring roasted veg, and what they add to things like soups.
I can’t believe that spring is around the corner. I am looking forward to pulling out the BBQ and grilling some summer fruits along with the chicken and burgers. I want to learn how to cook with coals.
I rekindled my ginger bug and make ginger beer every week
Can’t wait for those first green sprouts to appear in between the last patches of snow on the ground. Already planning my canning for honeyed rhubarb and strawberry jams, spicy chili-flecked jellies, and looking for new ideas for flavoured syrups for canning fruits.
Been trying out different fermented sauerkraut ideas. Green cabbage, nettle leaves, caraway seeds and golden raisins is the latest. Very yummy. Curried green cabbage, mango and raisins also a hit.
This book sounds full of wonderful ideas.
My goal for this year is to continuously try new things. I’m trying to eat healthier so making my own jams, jellies, pickles, etc intrigues me. I hope my skill is up to the challenge!
I keep thinking if fermentation. I read somewhere that fermenting carrots was better than pickling. What!!??
STRAWBERRIES! They’re coming and must be preserved! Salad dressings, jams, ketchup, etc.!
Always up for a new adventure, exploring new ways to prepare all kinds of food. As a scientist I see no boundaries.
STRAWBERRIES!
Strawberries have gotten me on a jam making kick. Made orange/strawberry marmalade and strawberry blueberry jam today. Bring on the scones. I can hardly wait!!
My California drought-stricken backyard looks like Ireland right now! We’ve had a little much-cherished rain followed by warm, sunny days. The lawn has resurrected itself and the stone fruit trees are blooming – promising LOTS of happy jam making to come!
I volunteer with City Repair here in Portland and I’m on a kick to kill two birds with one stone – feed volunteers at meetings/work parties and preserve donated produce and other foods. My volunteer partner in crime, Kirk, is into fermenting, which I hope to learn, and I have been teaching him some canning. We’ve been been putting up or cooking his weekly produce donations of cauliflower, onions, potatoes, apples, pears, etc. and then we use it to make nutritious meals for the volunteers on almost no budget. It’s been a great challenge and I have fun finding new recipes and methods of preserving to see how far we can take it.
I’m going to add this book to my collection, one way or another (wink).
I have been on an India meal kick lately. My idea is to try to replicate the jar sauce
I am making homemade vanilla extract right at this moment…The book sounds just wonderful,Thanks
Going to Italy soon so looking forward to bringing home inspiration from there!
I am dreaming of rhubarb but sick kids and crazy busy at work have meant a lack of creativity at my house lately. I accidentally flipped my son’s grilled cheese into my pasta water a few weeks ago and he ate it anyway. It was sort of like French toast. I do not reccomend it.
Spring has arrived…I can’t wait to start picking peaches, strawberries & figs. This book would give me great new ideas about what to do with them!
We have been in a little bit of a slump here lately and have been discussing trying more new things. My husband is sort of a picky eater and I love that this book is already geared to “push your palate”! We are definitely in need of pushing our palates with all the fun and new things I have been planting in the garden this year!
I have been on a bread baking frenzy lately. The house is still cold and wintery feeling even though it’s warming up outside and I feel a need to start using up my jams from last year before I start making new ones.
Since the warmer weather has been sneaking up on us, I’ve been creating some grilling masterpieces. Lots of vegetables stewed in foil with a dash of meat in there for the meat-lover husband of mine. ~
Ahh! I’ve been behind on my blog reading (and consequently missing some giveaways!) but I am so glad I read this in time. This book sounds fantastic!
I don’t know if it counts as culinary creativity, but I’ve been attempting to clear out our freezers this month. Whatever is in there is what I am trying to make a dinner or snack out of!
Also, I am trying to find some new veggies that are easy enough to make for lunch that my 2 year old will eat. So far she likes cucumbers. No carrots, no celery. We even tried sweet potato fries and that was a no. Who doesn’t like sweet potato fries?
I cannot wait to try this book! I want to join a CSA and use the fresh ingredients towards some fancy preserves.
Dozens of kumquat. My goal is to not leave one on the tree in my yard this year! But to supply to friends and family with lots of marmalade & preserves.
Spring is coming, so in getting my spring veg recipes ready! Mmmm…spring peas, ramps, morels…
I’m with everyone else cleaning out the freezer and pantry – this week was tomato sauce with meatballs made of venison and ground pork as well as some local hot italian sausage. I had to buy the ground pork, but I had everything else on hand.