On first glance, The Little Book of Home Preserving might not catch your eye. It’s a tiny book (truly, no bigger than the size of my hand) and could easily get lost in a larger display. However, missing this book would be a huge mistake. Written and photographed by Rebecca Gagnon (author of the blog CakeWalk), it is bursting with interesting, creative recipes.
For a little book, this volume packs a serious punch. It opens with the basics of preserving, including safety tips, the equipment you’ll need to get started canning, and even instructions on how to strain whey from yogurt in order to follow the lacto-fermentation recipes in the book. Rebecca also touches on the inherent art of making preserves, which is a section I particularly like and relate to.
Once you get into the meat of the book, you see that it’s organized by season. I’m hoping against hope that my CSA will still have a few ground cherries left next week so that I can make a batch of the Citrus Chai Ground Cherry Preserves. I’ve also got my sights set on the Grapefruit Jam with Vanilla and Poppy Seed (the picture of that one in preserve is so gorgeous).
Rebecca sent me an extra copy of her book to share with one of my readers, so we’re having a super special weekend long giveaway. One lucky person will win a copy. However, no matter whether you win or not, I highly suggest picking up a copy. It’s size makes it perfect for slipping into Christmas stockings and at $6.57 on Amazon
, it won’t break the bank.
Here’s how to enter:
- Leave a comment on this post and share what you’re preserving this weekend.
- Comments will close at 11:59 pm east coast time on Sunday, October 13, 2013. Winners will be chosen at random (using random.org) and will be posted on Monday, October 14, 2013.
- Giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents.
- One comment per person, please. Entries must be left on the blog, I cannot accept submissions via email.
It’s cranberry season. Time to make some cranberry pear conserve.
pomegranates!!! We have five trees that are covered with the lovely things. Juicing a lot and canning the juice.
If I can get the kitchen organized today, I’m hoping to do a batch of pickled garlic! Last weekend, I went to a friend’s house and we canned a triple batch of dilly beans, a triple batch of pickled lemony cauliflower and made a double batch of ketchup (and made marinara sauce for the freezer with the rest of the tomatoes).
Using up the following preserves – pork stock, tomato jam and lacto-fermented cauliflower.
Working on hot pepper tomato jam this weekend!
Still no hard frost in New England. Going to get some B grade tomatoes from the farmer’s market at Harvard and prossess them in quart jars.
While half a dozen acorn squash bake to scoop & freeze, I’m going to pick the last green tomatoes & make a batch of chutney. We’ve novice yogurt makers, so this book’s section on yogurt making sounds like it would be very helpful.
Pickled bell peppers with one Thai chili slipped in each jar for a bit of heat. Last year I made the jars very pretty by putting several colors in each jar (green, yellow, red, orange, etc). I realized that it’s more practical to mostly have each jar only one color.
Love spiced apple butter!
If I’m lucky, I’ll get to my sugar pumpkins and maybe can some honey vanilla pears.
Cranberry Ketchup
Wife is cooking down some tomato sauce… should be bwb canning 7 pints this evening.
Picked the last of our tomatoes (north-central PA)… some ripe, some nearly so, some with just a blush of pink that should ripen off the vine for more sauce by the end of the week.
Plums and strawberries are still in my market. So I’m still canning a few jams. Would love to try recipes from this book.
Plums, so many plums! In the process of doing pie filling and plum sage jam. Just stopped by to get the plum star anise jam recipe.
Apples- sauce, butter, and pie filling- and autumn olives- jam and leather.
We will be making pumpkin butter
Good ‘ol cranberry sauce for the upcoming holidays!
Apple jam!
Using honey crisp & jonamac apples.
apple sauce
Yesterday brought a batch of chocolate pear jam – thank you for that – and today began the grape jam, though it will have to wait until tomorrow for completion.
Quince! I have 8 1/2 pounds of beautifully ripe quince. I am starting with quince jelly, and then perhaps quince slices in a honey syrup. Yum!
We harvested a bunch of jalapenos and I didn’t want them to go to waste . . . so I canned some cranberry jalapeno jelly that can be used over cream cheese and served with crackers – yum – yum! I just finished a batch of jalapeno-pear chutney that can be used alongside meat, as a sandwich spread, chip dip or also over cream cheese! This is only my second year trying to can things and I love it! The book looks really cool!
I made applesauce in the crock pot and is in the refrigerator as we speak. I made some last weekend and then made applesauce donuts! they were a hit!
raspberry jam.
This weekend it’s Thanksgiving in Canada! Amidst the bird, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, parsnips, greens, and pumpkin pie most of the preserving will happen tonight – when leftover port cranberry jelly goes into the freezer…that’s all I can muster in the kitchen with all the good food, friends and wine 🙂 I am thankful for you Marisa and your beautiful book Food In Jars – it’s an inspiration everyday!
Going to try to make some sauerkraut!
This weekend I canned applesauce!
heading to the apple festival this week-about to start canning apple jelly, apple sauce and apple butter
Apple Pie Filling!
I’m canning pears and salsa this weekend! Yum.
Green tomato chutney, Yellow pear tomato jam, peach pie filling, Sun Sugar Salsa, preserved lemons, melon-lemon marmalade, pickled peppers, salsa, and cranberry conserve. Whew. My husband’s garden went crazy this year! Oh, let’s not forget Basil pesto and Tarragon pesto. Say, anybody wanna come out to San Jose and help?
Today I’m making the Tomato Jam recipe found on this site. It’s about the last of my ripe tomatoes. A sample haste from the bottom of the pot is very promising.
I want to make hot pepper butter, yummy on everything.
I wanted to make some more pear jam
Applesauce and plum jam. No. Not together…
Some fresh applesauce! Mmmmm
Apple Butter in the slow cooker, so easy!
i scored a pile of apples on the cheap this weekend. tomorrow they will become that fabulous apple lemon ginger jam you’ve been talking about. 🙂
Peach preserves
Canning anything and everything with green tomatoes from my Maryland garden. All were volunteers that got a late start.
I’m canning apple butter tonight, for the first time!
I made your caramelized red onion relish this weekend… yummy!
I made cinnamon applesauce and French applesauce. I’ve got some peaches to deal with tomorrow!
Applesauce and apple butter.
This week I am canning apples!! Sauce, pie filling, and here on your website to find other recipes!
Pears. Vanilla pear jam, and spiced pear jam.
I’m making your gingery pickled beets! 🙂 They’re my favorite!
I got 35 lbs of cranberries and a bunch of apples at the farmer’s market. Canning cranberry jelly, cranberry sauce, apple butter and applesauce.
Alas, no preserving this weekend! We did, however, finally break into a sampling jar of Rhubarb Strawberry jam we bought during our vacation in Canada!
I didn’t can anything this weekend as we were camping with our kids and grandkids. But we enjoyed my canned salsa and a jar of my canned jalapenos (you recipe). 🙂
Unfortunately, I haven’t been canning anything. Ahh! It’s a tragedy that I hope will be rectified soon. I want to face winter with lots of yummy things to look forward to.
I’m still hoping to can some chicken & rice soup tomorrow, so i’d better get busy chopping veg. And then it’ll be time for some mulled cider, i think…
This weekend I canned pickled guavas. I used the leftover brine on some slices of persimmon. Yum.
As a homesteader myself, I appreciate the simplicity and approachability of Rebecca’s book. The recipes are clear and concise, and the book is small enough to carry in my kitchen without being overwhelmed. It’s a great resource for beginners, but also has some unique recipes that even experienced canners can appreciate. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to get into home preserving.
And for those interested in exploring more superfoods, I recommend checking out the website http://www.superfoods.recensorium.com for some other great, but nowadays largely forgotten recipes.