Canadian Living as a safe recipe source?

11 years ago

I see they just published a canning cookbook, and there are some interesting canning recipes on their website.

I'm really intrigued with this one since I've become a chutney fanatic, but I can't quite make up my mind about the safety of it because of the beets. What do you folks think?

Ruby Beet and Apple Chutney

By The Canadian Living Test Kitchen

Beets are a novel but beautiful ingredient in chutney. Their sweetness marries deliciously with apples and helps counter the acidic thrust of the vinegar.

This recipe makes 6 serving(s)

Ingredients

8 large beets, (2 lb/1 kg)

1 lemon

3 cups chopped peeled apples

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups chopped onions

2 cups cider vinegar

1-1/2 cup raisins

1/4 cup diced candied ginger

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

Preparation:

Trim beets, leaving tails intact and 1 inch (2.5 cm) of stems. In saucepan of boiling water, cook beets for 30 minutes or until skins can be slipped off easily; drain and let cool. Slip off skins; dice to make 4-1/2 cups (1.125 L).

Meanwhile, with zester, remove rind from lemon. (Or pare off thin outer rind and cut into thin strips.) Squeeze and strain juice into large heavy non-aluminum saucepan.

Stir in lemon rind, apples, sugar, onions, vinegar, raisins, ginger, mustard seeds, salt and pepper; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer, stirring often, for 30 minutes or until apples are tender. Stir in beets; cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until thickened.

Remove from heat. Pour into six 1-cup (250 mL) canning jars, leaving 1/2-inch (1 cm) headspace. Seal with prepared discs and bands. Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Let cool.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (8)

readinglady
11 years ago
I'm guessing this chutney is fine, but please keep in mind this is only a guess.

You have 2 cups of undiluted vinegar plus the juice of 1 lemon and with the long cooking the diced beets should be thoroughly acidified. In other words the acid is going to penetrate the low-acid vegetable.

It's predicated on the assumption you don't let the chutney get too dense for adequate heat penetration during processing.

For more specific information you'd need to contact Canadian Living for their canning recipe development practices. Generally reliable Canadian sources use the USDA guide for their benchmark.

Carol
malna
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks, Carol. Great idea to contact them and see what they say.

I think I'm going to spring for the book anyway. I really need more canning books, right? I just got my gently used copy of Fancy Pantry. It was my bedtime reading material last night, and I love it already!
Related Discussions
Canning eggplant salsa is it safe?
Q
Comments (4)
As with all recipes from unapproved sources that offer all these made-up recipes, it is a do-at-your-own-risk recipe. Is it safe? We can only speculate as it has never been tested. It has a fairly good amount of added acid in it and without the eggplant it would basically be a salsa recipe. But 5 cups of shredded eggplant (pH 6.0-6.5) is a great deal of added low-acid ingredients and there is no way to judge its density or know if the processing time is sufficient. Personally if I was to make it (which I wouldn't) I'd pressure can it. Mushy, true but with salsa that isn't a big issue. Dave
...See More
Your Greatest Hit Recipes for Leesa - The Condensed Version...
Q
Comments (37)
Newer version of Annie's Salsa - BWB only Annie's Salsa 8 cups tomatoes, peeled, chopped and drained 2 1/2 cups chopped onion 1 1/2 cups chopped green pepper 3 to 5 chopped jalapenos (for milder leave out seeds and ribs) 6 cloves minced garlic 2 tsp cumin (optional) 2 tsp pepper 1/8 cup canning salt 1/4 c fresh cilantro (optional) 1/3 c sugar (optional) 1 cup cider vinegar (see note on subbing lemon or lime juice option) 16 oz canned tomato sauce (to adjust density) 8-16 oz canned tomato paste (to adjust density) Mix all ingredients, bring to a boil, boil 10 minutes. Pour into hot jars, process pints for 15 minutes in BWB. Makes 6 pints. _________ A lot of changes have been made to this recipe over the years. Some people like lemon or lime juice in place of some or all of the vinegar, that's fine. (Note from Sheila - I like half lemon half lime.) Some people leave out the cilantro, that's fine too. Do not increase! Some people add more hot peppers or fewer onions, fine as long as you keep the same total measurements. (Note this is what NCHFP does in their new Choice Salsa recipe.) Some people leave out the sugar, that's fine. You can scoop out the goo in the middle of the tomatoes with your thumbs when I'm peeling and chopping for a less seedy version, so it's 8 cups of chopped tomatoes without the seeds and goo. Most who make it regularly as well as Annie recommend using a variety of different slicing tomatoes, not paste types, for best flavor and consistency. (Note: use the tomato sauce and paste to adjust the consistency of the final product to a "sloshy" consistency.) According to Annie "My salsa is not as thick as Heinz catsup but it's thicker than taco sauce. If you don't like it quite as thick or sweet, cut down the amount of paste. I would add some, then taste. Reducing that ingredient shouldn't affect the safety of the recipe. I use equal amounts of sauce and paste. You can pull it off the heat at any point and adjust for flavor. Before I cook it I check for salt, sugar, check the consistency. Add more pepper or cumin if I want. When I first started making this salsa, tomato sauce and paste came in 8 and 16 ounce cans. Like everything else, they've now been downsized, so now I have to use partial cans." Does anybody have good versions of the other recipes that have weird symbols in them for measurements?
...See More
Safe Canning Recipe Sources?
Q
Comments (7)
flutterby, The USDA is the US government organization that issues guidelines for canning. They are VERY stringent guidelines, probably the most stringent in the world---we know from some European posters here that they are stricter than British and European guidelines, for example. So a recipe from the USDA website, or the National Centre for Home Food Preservation site, or the most recent Ball Blue Book (makers of the jars and lids; their book follows those guidelines, presumably as they don't want to be sued!), is pretty much a 100% guarantee. The Ellie Topp book you mention is by Canadian authors; it came out of a Canadian cable show, Put a Lid on It! The authors have food science credentials, and their method for making flavoured oils, which they came up with themselves, they say they had approved by Health Canada. So that's a pretty high standard, too. So maybe the general answer to your question is to read the introduction of any canning book and see where it came from and what its authors' credentials are. This forum is also a great source of info---lots of dedicated canners here, with lots of experience. So you can get a lot of good info from asking about a book or recipe here. You shd remember, though, that this is a *discussion forum.* It's a public forum where anyone can post their thoughts, opinions, and information. So sometimes people on this forum disagreement on whether a recipe is "safe" because there IS no objective definition of "safe." Is it safe to eat food from the store? I'd like to think so, but then I see recalls of billions of eggs, and people getting sick from supermarket lettuce! And sometimes people here with opinions can be, well, opinionated. I hope you enjoy your canning, and the Ellie Topp book (my copy is getting all splattered and worn, the sign of a great kitchen book IMHO)!. Try the Roasted Vegetable Pasta sauce. I also love that she has some recipes that are from non-Western food cultures (LOVE the Indonesian Peanut Sauce, and the Thai Chili Sauce, and the Madras Pickled Eggplant!). Best wishes, and welcome here, Z
...See More
Canadian Hosta Resources
Q
Comments (18)
I also have talked with Pat Vinish, the Hostageek and yes, he does have an extensive list. He has a big sale on right now, with free shipping across Canada and charges no taxes. It is called the green sale and so he has highlighted many of the solid colored ones in his 35 pages of hostas and has them on for 50% off. For every one you order at 50% off you can order any other one in his listing for 25% off. When I compared prices last fall before I ordered from him, I found that his hosta were cheaper than any of the Ontario hosta growers and so, with the free shipping and no taxes, large plants and multiple eyes that they came with, it was a win win situation for me to order thru him. None of the Ontario hosta nurseries offered free shipping and all the places I compared prices of, charged GST. This makes a big difference to the cost of the hosta if the shipping and GST are not added on. Pat is very good at checking his emails and also accurate in his shipping. Pat also knows all about the virus and guarantees that the hosta that he has do not have the virus. I ordered over 100 different ones from him last fall and about 50 a few weeks ago. They have large root systems, come well packed and the ones I got from him last September all made it thru my Zone 2b winter here in Manitoba and are doing very well. If anyone wants the sale listing just email him as he was having problems with his website a few weeks ago...or email me and I can forward you his info and sale. His email address is hostageek@gmail.com Brenda
...See More
readinglady
11 years ago
Even if you don't can anything from it, Fancy Pantry is a keeper. Wonderful reading and amazing gifting ideas.

Carol
Canadian_Living
11 years ago
Hi All,

Daniela Payne, web food editor for Canadian Living here.

Canadian Living has always developed its preserving recipes using the safe-preserving guidelines outlined by Bernardin, the Canadian canning experts who produce home canning equipment. We always follow their guidelines to ensure our recipes have the correct pH (in other words, are high enough in acid) to make them safe to process in a boiling water canner.

We also follow Bernardin's guidelines on processing times, making sure our jars are boiled for enough time to ensure that any bacteria is killed. That's inevitably 10 minutes or more, but times vary depending on the density of the food in the jars and the size of the jars themselves - the denser the food or the larger the jar, the longer it should boil to ensure that the centre comes up to the proper temperature. The best insurance is to always process jars for the amount of time stated in the recipe - never reduce it.

For our new preserving book, The Canadian Living Test Kitchen updated and retested many of our classic recipes, so they are all safe to can at home. If you want to check the acidity of, say, a heritage family chutney you're unsure of, you can buy a pH meter from a reputable source and test your preserves BEFORE you put them into the jars. High-acid foods should have a pH of 4.6 or lower - these are the only foods safe to can in a boiling water canner. Anything with a pH greater than 4.6 is considered low-acid and can only be processed in a pressure canner.

Hope this helps!

Happy canning.
malna
Original Author
11 years ago
Daniela,
Thank you for popping in here to the Harvest Forum (I ordered the Complete Preserving Book yesterday and got it today. Gotta love amazon.com :-)

Great to know that your test kitchens are aware of pH issues in canning, etc. so that definitely adds to the comfort level of using your recipes. I'm frequently surprised at the number of well-respected magazines that publish...shall we say questionable?...canning recipes.

The book is gorgeous - coffee table worthy - kudos to the team who put it together. Many interesting recipes and twists on old familiar favorites that I can't wait to try when the garden cooperates. Beet chutney this weekend for certain.

Looking forward to using the cookbook. Thanks again.
James McNulty
11 years ago
Now if someone will just invent a ph meter that measures accurately and does not cost $100 or more and does not have to be calibrated with calibrating solutions (2 of them) that have a shelf life of only 1 year before throwing them out.
From what I have been able to find out, they are too sensitive and the tips too easily compromised and often too inaccurate for much value in the home kitchen. If the reading is off by 0.5 it is of not much value, especially close to the desired 4.6 reading.
If something new has been invented, please let me know. Yes, I know this subject has been beat to death but since it was mentioned by a Canadian canning magazine person, thought I had better ask in the event I missed a newer and easier to use ph meter.
Our "canning experts" tell us NOT to use a ph meter in the States for home canning. If Linda Lou is reading this, and absent any new inventions, I'm sure that is what she will say. Paper ph test strips cover too broad a range with colors that are too close to each other to accurately identify 4.6ph as its color will just be in the color range of just one color. The contents of the canning fluid will/may make errors more possible. Now if someone could just make a ph strip or stick that would change colors at 4.6 we would have a real canning checker (narrow range 3 to 6 testing). Enough said.
Jim in So Calif
malna
Original Author
11 years ago
Even though I don't intend to actually do it, I found this article about purchasing and using a pH meter for acidified canning from the University of Wisconsin Extension Service quite interesting.

The link in the PDF is no longer valid, so I linked the new page below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Small Scale Production of Acified Canned Food
readinglady
11 years ago
I just looked up this new book on Amazon. I can't tell you how impressed I am by Daniela Payne's thorough and insightful response.

If only other authors and editors of canning books were as forthcoming.

Carol

Canadian Living as a safe recipe source?

Comments (8)

readinglady

malna
Original Author

Related Discussions

readinglady

Canadian_Living

malna
Original Author

James McNulty

malna
Original Author

readinglady

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Canadian Living as a safe recipe source?

Comments (8)

readinglady

malnaOriginal Author

Related Discussions

readinglady

Canadian_Living

malnaOriginal Author

James McNulty

malnaOriginal Author

readinglady

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

malna
Original Author

malna
Original Author

malna
Original Author