Let's Talk: Healthful Eating, Recipes, New Products, Etc.
lynninnewmexico
10 years ago
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Comments (71)
anitamo
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agolynninnewmexico
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Let's talk pectin
Comments (56)I sell baked goods and preserves at my local farmers' market, and my bestseller is my special onion-garlic-hot pepper jelly. I can sell up to a case a week, so as you can imagine, I make a LOT of it! And yesterday, I also made the most delicious apricot pepper jelly for the first time. Both recipes call for liquid pectin, and as many have expressed, it's not always easy to get a good set. Over the years, with trial and error, I have figured out the secret. Certo tells you to boil the fruit, add the pectin, then bring it back to the boil "for exactly one minute." But one minute is just not enough to reach a good jelling stage on pepper jelly. After adding the pectin, I boil mine for about FIVE minutes, or until the bubbles look very thick as they boil and I start to meet a slight bit of resistance as I stir the jelly. Another thing to look for, I find, is that the jelly should start setting up a bit even before you get all of the jars filled, wiped down, and the lids put on. If it's completely liquid even after it starts to cool down, you might be in trouble. However, if the occasional batch of pepper jelly doesn't set up, there is a pretty simple fix. Just open the jars, dump the jelly back into the pot and boil it hard again for 3-5 minutes before jarring it back up. You'll lose a jar in the process (due to evaporation), but it's better than remaking the jelly with extra vinegar and sugar, which yields a product that is way too cloyingly sweet to me and wastes an additional packet of pectin to boot. Trust me...I do this all the time, and it works like a charm! Happy high canning season, everyone! --Gina (lindseysluscious.blogspot.com) Here is a link that might be useful: Lindsey's Luscious...See MoreLet's Talk About Food Dehydrating...
Comments (32)Mrs TLC - I have to tell you that my Excalibur doesn't dry foods as evenly as advertized. Food and trays still need to be moved around while drying. My old American Harvester, now called Nesco, worked quite well for me. I consider it a good buy for the money. L_in_FL - I did buy a jerky gun but I haven't use it yet. I wish that I watched the jerky videos more carefully before buying the gun because I didn't realize that the ground meat has to be mixed with chemicals so it can turn into a paste. That didn't appeal to me. I need to do more research on that. If anyone has experience with a jerky gun, I would like to know also. You don't need a jerky gun to make jerky. It's only for ground meat. I want to learn how to make ground turkey jerky because it is healthier than beef. Years ago when I made beef jerky I would ask the butcher at Publix to slice the meat for me. That is really important so you get the slices the right thickness. I have seen some videos on making jerky with sliced chicken breasts. I want to give that a try. Christine...See MoreSpeaking of food - lets talk gardens - canning, etc.
Comments (24)Amy - I live in CT too (you're in MA?), our tomato plants are growing like a jungle, lots of fruit but nothing ripening! Told DH I had a recipe for green tomato pickles but he didn't think that sounded good. We planted Sweet 100's and Early Girls. Plus a couple of butternut squash (hope those do well) and lots of lettuce hoping for a salad garden. The lettuce I started from seed at Mem Day is about an inch tall, the seedlings I got for free from nursery a month ago just got very tall and have started to flower, hardly any leaves so I haven't picked - we've been eating grocery store salad all summer! We have wild blueberries and blackberries, about 2 cups of each all summer long (blueberry bushes are growing well since we've cleared around them, but hardly any fruit - not enough sun). We're going to try transplanting some of the ones that are far back in the woods to sunnier spots along edge of lawn, maybe we'll get more next year. I'm making blueberry buckle (my grandma's recipe) for reunion this weekend, probably make a blackberry crumble tonight. I'd love to get recipe for raspberry chocolate jam so when the rest ripen I can try that. My dad gave me a couple huge (as long as my forearm) zucchini, I made 2 batches of bread/muffins on Friday, threw another 3-4 cups of shredded zuch in the freezer for later - might make more this w/e while I have the oven going for buckle. Made stuffed peppers last night, but with grocery store peppers. We had some of my dad's green beans too. Kids don't eat them, so we won't plant them. It's been a bad year up here - haven't checked farmer's markets (usually more $$, at least in the 2 affluent towns near us - I'll have to check more modest town on Friday). But grocery stores haven't even had very good prices. Corn just now getting knee high (a month late!), and *some* people have started 2nd cutting of hay, but not us (we just did 1st cutting 4th of July, other people were even later). Too much rain, no sun for all of June....See MoreLet’s talk stocking stuffers
Comments (45)My three are all full fledge adults. Doesn't change what they get. #1 an ornament--DH makes them now. #2 a crafty thing we can all do as we eat brunch before opening gifts, lego kits are most common. #3 candy- #4 something something; this year an assortment of spatulas DH's company made and the customer pulled out and left a palate. #5 whatever I collect over the year that I find they might find fun, different for each. It's a lot less stress to have a formula/tradition I have found. Happy St. Nicholas Day btw--many of what used to get put in their shoes now shows up in the Christmas stockings....See Moreiheartgiantschnauzer
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10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoAnnie Deighnaugh
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10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoAnnie Deighnaugh
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