More than four years ago, when this blog was just a wee sprout, I helped my friend Sara Selepouchin Villari (she’s the owner and illustrator of Girls Can Tell) brainstorm the best way to capture the bits and pieces of a canning kit in diagram form. We met for coffee, I described how everything was used, and she went off to sketch and label. A few weeks later, a diagram was born.
Since that conversation back in early 2009, a lot has changed for both Sara and me. I wrote a book, became a full-time blogger and freelancer and wrote a second book. She added many dozens of diagrams to her line, greatly expanded the number of stockists who carry her stuff, and then earlier this year, opened her own gift shop on E. Passyunk Avenue.
Called Occasionette, this new shop carries both a goodly number of pieces from Girls Can Tell, as well as cards, gifts, dishes, and other lovely things that you never knew existed but will desperately want the moment you see them.
Right now, Occasionette is carrying a number of jar-based items, including the Mason Shaker and an array of Cuppows. I hear tell that she’s also planning on stocking the newly released BNTO, so keep your eyes peeled for that!
Occasionette a lovely addition to a commercial corridor that’s rapidly been coming back to life and vitality over the last few years. If you’re in the Philadelphia area, I urge you to hop down to 1825 E. Passyunk Avenue and check it out!
Of course, every new beginning comes with a handful of endings. Because Sara has so much on her plate and only so many hours in the day, she’s begun to retire some of the older diagrams in the Girls Can Tell line in order to make room for new, fresh ideas and projects. One of the diagrams that’s being tucked into the vault is the one that features the canning tools.
In order to give this lovely diagram the send-off that it deserves, Sara suggested I give a few of these towels away. And so that’s what I’m going to do! We’re giving away three of the unbleached towels and three of the white towels for a total of six winners. Here’s how to enter:
- Leave a comment on this post and share your favorite preserve of the summer. Whether it’s something you made, picked up at a farmers market or got from a friend, I want to hear about it.
- Comments will close at 11:59 pm east coast time on Friday, August 2, 2013. Winners will be chosen at random (using random.org) and will be posted to the blog on Sunday, August 4, 2013.
- Giveaway is open to US residents and Canadian residents.
- One comment per person, please. Entries must be left on the blog, I cannot accept submissions via email.
If you can’t bear to take your chances with the giveaway, you can also order one of the last towels directly from Sara’s shop by clicking here. She also has a few of these cute notecards bearing the diagram left as well.
Pickles, pickles, and more pickles! Although, I just found figs at the local farm and am ready to try out a new recipe.
My mother’s blackberry jam!
A jar of curried garlic scape pesto at the Ithaca farmers market after traveling there all the way from pittsburgh!!! A very satisfying treat after 6 hours in the car !
Hard to choose a favorite, but either Garett McCord’s Apricot Riesling Jam or sour cherry anything.
Also, those towels are gorgeous.
Garlic dill pickles! This is the first summer I’ve made them and I absolutely love them!
Strawberry Rhubarb is my new favorite along with Strawberry Jalapeno jam.
I absolutely love homemade Pickles. I just started canning and cannot get enough of homemade wonderfulness!
It’s a tough call, but I’m going to have to go with my tart apricot jam. I have reached the point that I can’t live without it! Second place by a hair is my sour cherry jam ~ so good!
And, your dilly beans are better than I hoped they would be… delicious.
I’m going to go with the Black Raspberry-Peach jam I made, good stuff!
Fig jam and fig preserves with anise and walnuts from my two prolific fig trees. I love flour sack dishtowels, that’s all I use.
Good grape jelly, traditional but my all time favorite.
I’m so looking forward to making several batches of your dilly beans this summer! Yum!
My favorite preserve of summer is your peach with cinnamon. It is great on toast and carries over great into the savory flavors of fall.
fresh berry anything!
after being an ex-pat for several years, I think my family missed the abundance of berries most!
I tried the Mrs. Wages Salsa mix (by your recommendation) and you were right, it’s so good! I’m excited to have this salsa when tomatos are out of season!
Strawberry Balsamic and black pepper jam from the farmer’s market! Mmm
Mrs Wages, YES! I can’t wait til our cucumbers come in so I can make pickles with Mrs Wages Bread and Butter mix!
I am loving a apricot ginger glaze from my friend and canning mentor!
I just started canning this summer and so far, my favorite thing was my first – blueberry jam off of this website. I love the unexpected spices and my daughter loves eating it in her oatmeal.
Pickled Cauliflower! Love it!
I have only made one batch of preserves yet, (though my kettle is on the stove, peach jam begins..), I have bought some, been gifted some. My fave thus far would have to be my own rhubarb jam. The recipe is actually from the Food In Jars book, the sugar, raw and organic, the rhubarb, a story. I grew it here in our yard in Vancouver BC. I’ve tucked it all over, as we can never get enough. I brought it with me from my Grandmothers house near Courtice, Ontario. She was in her 80’s, and had a large yard (about an acre). My father went out to cut her yard about every 12 days or so. Since I was visiting with my daughter from BC, I volunteered to do it. When I went out to this oasis of fruit trees from my childhood, now untended and gnarly and partially cut down by neighbours, I spied the rhubarb patch, in need of a weeding. I got to it, and cut a bunch to make some sauce. I was partway cooking it (for her), when she came into her kitchen and pronounced her dislike for rhubarb, and implored me to mow over the patch while I was at it. My gran grew up in a time and place where she needed to be ;tough’, I asked her if I could dig some out, to which she replied, “what’d you want to do that for?” I told her I would plant it in my yard in Vancouver, which I did. I tend it with care, though I’ve accidentally dug some of them up a few times, they always come back, they persevere, like my gran did. I love rhubarb for its almost unbearable tartness when raw, but when softened up a bit with heat and sugar, its both sweet and tart. I only have two jars left, we’ve had a couple, but most were gifts. I’ve got to expand my rhubarb patch. Miss you Gladys Comber, thanks for all the rhubarb
Last week I was at a conference in Ann Arbor and my coworkers noticed this cute little jam shop. My coworkers and I went in and looked around. I was intrigued by some of the flavored and almost bought a jar when I noticed they were asking $15 for a half pint. My coworkers and I were appalled but one of them pointed out that there aren’t any places in St. Louis to find cantaloupe jam.
I then mentioned my jamming addiction and that I had five jars of cantaloupe at home from this season. This Monday at work we had a toast and jam party and the cantaloupe was the star of the show. And it barely cost a dollar.
Peaches, peaches, peaches.
My favorite preserve of the summer: not technically a preserve, but it was a lime curd served on pancakes!
My favorite canning product in general is something new that I hadn’t tried before. Most recently that is pickles!! Our garden is giving us so many cukes that it was time… I used your recipe for garlic dill. They are amazing!!
Sadly, I’ve only made one preserve this summer: strawberry rhubarb. Thankfully, it was pretty tasty!
I love to can jam and applesauce 🙂
This past weekend I made blueberry-lime jam, it was AMAZING!!! It’s my new favorite!
A friend and I canned apricot with rose geranium jam yesterday. It tastes amazing…sweet, but with a delightfully fresh herb-y taste.
I love to can…it helps preserve my summer foods so I can enjoy them all year. Canning was passed down from both my maternal nana and my mom. They canned everything!! This year I canned salsa, peach preserves (with chunks of fruit), pickles (both sweet and bread and butter), corn and strawberries. Blueberries are next!!!
My favourite preserve so far this summer is rosemary rhubarb jam, a recipe I acquire from Food in Jars. I’ve made three batches of this wonderful tart, slightly sweet and savory jam that is incredibly versatile. Rhubarb is my new favourite spring and summer foods 🙂
homemade salsa and pepper jelly; freshly made with love in my kitchen!!!! thanks so much for this great opportunity. I have just found the garlic dill pickles recipe on your blog and will give it a whirl in the morning!
I love peach butter.
Blueberry Jam
I picked up a jar of “country candy” at a farm stand last week – sugared jalapeños!! Oh my, they are delicious: sweet followed by heat! Found a few recipes on line to tinker with and am looking forward to making some myself.
Concord grape jam made from grapes from my salvaged grape vines (now thriving in my back yard!)
Just opened my last jar of peach jam from last years bounty…time to make more!
pickled green beans! yumbo!
I made an amazing strawberry white wine syrup in June. It has been a favorite this summer 🙂
That sounds delicious…where did you get the recipe?
Sour cherry jam!
Strawberry Vanilla Jam
I made my own maraschino cherries with amaretto, and I can’t get enough of them!
Sliced peaches in syrup to eat with pancakes on Saturdays all winter long.
tomatoe jelly or homemade spaghetti sauce, mmmmm
I don’t have a favorite yet this year. Actually, the strawberry rhubarb rosewater that I think came from FIJ has been my favorite. Looking forward to a day in Philly next week (my first visit!), I hope I can check out Occasionette.
This year it’s a tie between dill pickles and pickled garlic scapes!
Blueberry Lemonade Jam. It’s pretty much the blueberry jam recipe from the Pomona’s insert but I added a bunch of lemon zest for the lemonade effect. It’s currently my husband’s favorite.
P.S. Next time you come to Boston….come to BOSTON! Hudson is an hour away, and well over an hour for anyone who lives on the north shore! Hope to catch you next time your in town. :o)
I just tried canning for the first time this summer. I’m a terrible gardener, but I try. And my family all eats like a picky four year old, so getting them to eat fresh foods is trying. With all that said, canning is a new hobby. So far it is fun, relaxing, and rewarding to see something I made… and it will last for months!!! I love the wild raspberries that I made into jam. It was wonderful!!!
Strawberry-fig jam I made based on your recipe. So delicious and I love the texture it has without any added pectin. Come do a class in Toronto – canning is back in style here too!
Its a toss up between my Blenheim Apricot jam and my spicy pickled carrots.
soooo cute!!
today i’m making pickled hot peppers that i’m super excited about, but my favorite would have to be lemon ginger marmalade!!!
Greetings, Currant is my favorite berry to make jelly …..currant ….
What an adorable diagram! It’s both aesthetically pleasing and informative, not to mention helpful if you’ve been up into the wee hours pickling and canning 😉
I made plum sauce this year with my girlfriend using an assortment of plums from the farmers market (along with some fresh chilies). Better then any I’ve ever had before.
Gramma’s Green Tomato Mincemeat
I make so many jams and jellies it’s hard to choose. Lately my favorite is Pear peelings with lavender. Tastes like spring! It’s just a great way to use all the peelings when you are canning pears.
My favorite preserve is the Raspberry Rhubarb jam I make from fruit from our garden .
strawberry jam!!
My MIL made an awesome raspberry jam! We are planning on meeting you at Wyebrook in August. That’s how I found out about your book and blog. I’ve never canned before and am excited to learn!
strawberry rhubarb jam, hands down!
my favorite preserve of this summer season is Blueberry Jam which I made using blueberries I picked at Jones’ Tree Farm, Shelton, CT
I have already made two batches of my grandma’s zucchini relish, it is absolutely the best relish!! 🙂
my favorite preserve so far has been a mixed berry jam. equal parts fresh-picked raspberry, blueberry, and strawberry, with lemon juice tossed in and sugar according to pomona pectin’s low-sugar jam recipe. amazing, expecially on fresh bread with good butter!
I love blackberry jam, made on vacation.
Everyone seems to love the white chocolate raspberry spread I made this month!
My favorite jam of the summer (and every summer) is black raspberry jam from the two wild bushes that grow in our yard. Every morning and evening my husband, daughter and I sneak out separately to the bushes to see if any raspberries are ready to pick. We painstakingly gather them 2 or 3 at a time over a period of weeks. At the end of the summer there are enough to make one precious pint of jam. We all sit around and eat it with biscuits and butter at the end of August as we say goodbye to another summer together,
My first and only jam was your tomato jam and I love it.
It has to be sour cherry-apricot jam. We’ve oved and I no longer have a sour cherry or apricot tree in my yard. Too sad, but I’ll figure it out.
Purple Raspberry Jam!!
Plum butter!
Cantaloupe jam, from “Food in Jars” I love it. Sounds odd, but as the Marisa writes “Don’t miss this one”
Triple Berry Jam (strawberry, raspberry, blackberry) has been a big hit with my friends and family!
Straight up strawberry. When done right it’s the best in my book. I made 4 8oz jars this year and I’m not totally sure it’s gonna last too long. Definitely need to make more next year.
I call it SRM jam. Strawberry, raspberry and mulberry. The best jam ever!
Definitely raspberry jam – with seeds!
Orange strawberry jam is a perennial favorite in my house.
Recently I have been addicted to the Basil Jelly that you posted a link to the other day. I think it is going to be a go to for gifts this year.
what a fun giveaway! I always love trying new canning recipes (especially jams), but my favorite things to can have to be the simple ones with veggies fresh from my own garden- mainly pickles and diced tomatoes.
It’s simple but my favorite preserves this summer have been the blueberry preserves that I make. I go out with friends in the morning and pick the berries, and by the afternoon they are jam. Though the Thimbleberry jam my cousin has been bringing from Marquette is in close competition.
It’s a toss-up between rhubarb ginger and sour cherry, though if I were being really honest my answer would be “all of them”
My favourite jam that I’ve made so far this summer has got to be haskap berry…but I’m looking forward to picking some sour cherries next week to use in jam as well!
Fig jam, no wait, currant jelly, no wait, strawberry rhubarb jam, no wait…I can’t decide !
Her products are adorable!
My favorite preserving this summer has to be the mixed tomato salsa I made when my tomato plants were hit with a leaf spot disease. We got 15″ of rain in one week and the leaves were hit badly. I grabbed all of the green and red tomatoes, plus any red cherry and yellow pear tomatoes I could. Put them all together in a salsa that, while it’s not pretty, came out delicious. Who knew? 🙂
This year, I am delighted to have made my first jam – blueberry. So good! My whole family loved the ketchup I made last year and I just picked enough tomatoes from my garden to make more, so that is in the works for this weekend. I am so excited!
One if my favorite preserves is blueberry. So delicious.
Love the towels!!
Pickled green tomatoes are my favorite so far this summer! Pickled anything, really….
I made and preserved sauerkraut for the first time this year. Loved the whole process & people have been surprised by it!
What timing!
I had *just* finished up a batch of carrot and radish pickles (love your book, Marisa!) and was thinking I could use some new tea towels, then headed over to my reader… : ) Serendipity! That picture is SO cute.
This summer my fave is Apricot Vanilla Bean Jam- so good in yogurt.
My favorite preserve is the strawberry vanilla one from your book.
I just made a round of garlic dill pickles from my homegrown garden fresh cucumbers. They wewre delish!
Tomato Jam, Yummy!
Favorite preserve so far has to be red currant. Just the right balance of sweet and tart! Picked some up at the farmers market and they were in the jar the next day!
Zucchini pickles, with onions and hot peppers.
These are amazing! As New World Preserves grows, I am canning more and more for my business and less for myself. I miss canning just for me, and though I always love preserving in any way, funneling all my money into my business means I’m missing out on canning some amazing Pacific Northwest produce. Plus, that also means no fun spending on cool kitchen gadgets, etc. I would love anything from this wonderful shop!
I’ve been making (and selling) Apricot Saffron lately and it’s a really intricate, interesting preserve. But I made Peach Butter just for me the other day and it was so much more relaxing and lovely. I’m calling it Lazy Sunday Peach Butter.
Thanks! I’m a big fan!
Caitlin
New World Preserves
Seattle, WA
honeyed apricots…..oh my….
Definitely blueberry jam!!
I love making jam, all different flavours! A few of my favourites are Amy’s Tomato Jam from your book, Peach Earl Grey and Strawberry Basil.
I’m waiting to see how my pickled watermelon rind turns out. I’m hopeful.
My favorite preserve has to be tomato jam. I actually have to hide some of the jars because the kids have already gobbled up 2 jars!