Is there something in particular?

I have lots of old books...

Nancy

Well, just the unusual recipes. I've got more than my share of jams, jellies, pickles,chutneys and sauces.

I've got a recipe for sandwich spread (cooked egg and pickle relish), canning milk, canning lard and nut meats.

I need more squash recipes, anything Italian or German and some rabbit recipes. I'm raising rabbits. I understand that you can use chicken recipes for rabbits but I'm game to try something new (no pun intended).

I've also got an apple tree that is going to bear pretty good this year. I canned sliced apples last year for pies and they were yummy, although I overprocessed them a tad.

I was thinking maybe something for apples.

I even found a recipe for cantelope jam, LOL! Wish I had planted those this year.

But I am going to have lots of different summer squashes this year and I froze them last year and they freezer burn too quickly. I thought maybe some kind of combo might be nice.

Really just anything you might consider a tad different than what was in the Kerr Canning books. That's all I have. I had a really great one my grandmother let me borrow when I first got married. When she died my mother sold all of her stuff that she didn't want so I lost all of her recipe books.

Steph

Call your county extention office and see what they have to offer.

I know that most of the fruits and vegetables today aren't as acidic as they once were, and you will have to adjust for that. Mass production and faster growing times to get food to the market, and the hybrid seeds and all that really have changed the foods you're going to can/preserve.

I had to adjust my home canned tomatoes, peaches, plums, pears, and some of my preserves and jams. My pickles are alright as long as I use the right strength vinegar.. not all vinegars are the same level acid anymore either.

I have the old Ball Blue Book and swear by it. And, some of the pre WWII cookbooks all have canning recipes. But, make sure you swing the recipes by the home extention office in your area to get adjustments for acidity and your elevation's boiling points.

Almost all my recipes have had to be "doctored" to make sure they were up to the acidity level required for home canning! (Ascorbic acid, which is vitamin C, is tasteless and has been very helpful for many of my recipes. But, you'll need to know how much to add or not add, so call the home extention office.)

Check out the Harvest Forum. This is the canning & preserving forum here on Gardenweb. Tons of great recipes as well as tips and guidance from several master preservers.

Here is a link that might be useful: Harvest Forum

Potpie, I appreciate your input but the county extension office isn't going to give me water bath canning recipes for meat, LOL!

And there isn't a hybrid seed in my garden. Won't allow them.

Vitamin C is tasteless? Hmm...never have added it and I've been canning since I was 6 yrs. old off and on. I thought heat destroyed vitamins?

Well anyway, I've got an old 1918 canning book ( almost forgot I had it till just now...don't want it to fall apart with use) but some of the recipes are intermitent method. Gee am I glad I didn't have to can back then, LOL!

I haven't had trouble with the strength of the vinegar. I use it all the time for baking and if it doesn't make my dough bubble it isn't right. But thanks for the warning just the same.

Steph

Low acid foods in a water bath is a risk takers delight!

I guess I am more the boring type that likes safety as my best friend, consistency as a cousin, and security as my guardian angel!

Lot's of people used to get very sick frpm home canned foods. That's one of the reasons that the newer methods are the only acceptable way to do things now. I can't understand why anyone would ignor the reasons for the current guidelines and put themselves and an anyone else that came in contact with their food in harms way.

Low acid foods have never been safe to can in a water bath. Not then and not now. Just might be the reason you can't find recipes. A pressure canner is a very small investment to make to insure food safety. You can't can summer squash safely in a water bath canner unless it's part of a pickle type of recipe and rabbit is a meat...no way!

Study ways to prevent freezer burn if that is a concern... check into a vacuum sealer.

There are reasons for our lifestyle changes and there has been much progress in fighting sickness in the past 100 years....just think about the reasons. Knowing what we do now has saved many lives...have I made my point?
You posed your question over the internet, which is one of the newest resources there is for comunication and learning.

Nancy

Ah well gee, I don't remember soliciting insults or the canning police. I requested recipes.

Lot's of people get burnt by drinking hot coffee going through the drive through at McDonalds too and that is why they are required to put a warning on the lable for people who don't have any common sense.

People get sick because they are sloppy and don't follow instructions. I've seen web sites promoting home canned foods as "fast food" just open and eat!

Now if that isn't promoting stupidity I don't know what is.

Even as far back as the 1800's they advised people to use common sense and boil your food before tasting.

In every canning book I've ever had the pleasure of using, it said plainly, bring to a rolling boil and boil for a minimum of ten minutes or some equivalent to that.

Even the Center for disease control stated that the reason people ended up with botulism poisoning is because they didn't properly reheat food before tasting.

U. S. Food and Drug Administration
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
MMWR 44(11):1995 Mar 24
Foodborne Botulism--Oklahoma, 1994
On July 2, 1994, the Arkansas Department of Health and the Oklahoma State Department of Health were notified about a possible case of foodborne botulism. This report summarizes the investigation, which implicated consumption of improperly stored beef stew.
On June 30, 1994, a 47-year-old resident of Oklahoma was admitted to an Arkansas hospital with subacute onset of progressive dizziness, blurred vision, slurred speech, difficulty swallowing, and nausea. Findings on examination included ptosis, extraocular palsies, facial paralysis, palatal weakness, and impaired gag reflex. The patient also had partially healed superficial knee wounds incurred while laying cement. He developed respiratory compromise and required mechanical ventilation.
Differential diagnoses included wound and foodborne botulism, and botulism antitoxin was administered intravenously. Electromyography demonstrated an incremental response to rapid repetitive stimulation consistent with botulism. Anaerobic culture of the wounds were negative for Clostridium. However, analysis of a stool sample obtained on July 5 detected type A toxin, and culture of stool yielded C. botulinum. The patient was hospitalized for 49 days, including 42 days on mechanical ventilation, before being discharged.
The patient had reported that, during the 24 hours before onset of symptoms, he had eaten home-canned green beans and a stew containing roast beef and potatoes.
Although analysis of the leftover green beans was negative for botulism toxin, type A toxin was detected in the stew. The stew had been cooked, covered with a heavy lid, and left on the stove for 3 days before being eaten without reheating. No other persons had eaten the stew.
Reported by: W Knubley, MD, Cooper Clinic, Fort Smith; TC McChesney, DVM, State Epidemiologist, Arkansas Dept of Health. J Mallonee, MPH, Acting State Epidemiologist, Oklahoma State Dept of Health. Foodborne and Diarrheal Diseases Br, Div of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases; Div of Field Epidemiology, Epidemiology Program Office, CDC.
Editorial Note: Botulism is a paralytic illness resulting from a potent toxin produced under anaerobic conditions by C. botulinum. Although foodborne botulism is rare in the United States (34 cases reported in 1994 [CDC, unpublished data, 1995]), manifestations can be severe and can progress rapidly. Because of the potential severity of disease and the possibility for exposure of many persons to contaminated products, foodborne botulism is a public health emergency requiring rapid investigation.
When botulism is suggested by clinical manifestations, (e.g., descending neuroparalysis, ptosis, and extraocular palsies), physicians should obtain a thorough food history to assist in the diagnosis and in identifying and obtaining potentially contaminated leftover food. In the case described in this report, heat-resistant C. botulinum spores either survived the initial cooking or were introduced afterwards; the spores subsequently germinated and produced toxin. The lid of the pot or the gravy of the stew most likely provided the anaerobic environment necessary for toxin production. Previous cases with similar features have resulted from consumption of commercial pot pies (1) and onions sautd in margarine (2), both of which were left at room temperature for hours after cooking.
Most outbreaks of foodborne botulism in the United States result from eating improperly preserved home-canned foods (3); vegetables (especially asparagus, green beans, and peppers) account for most outbreaks caused by home-canning (CDC, unpublished data, 1995). A pressure cooker must be used to home-can vegetables safely because it can reach temperatures necessary to kill botulism spores (substantially more than 212F [more than 100C] for 10 minutes); however, specific times and pressures needed vary for different foods (4). Jams and jellies can be safely home-canned without a pressure cooker because their high sugar content will not support the growth of C. botulinum. Instructions for home-canning are available from county extension offices. Cooked foods should not be held at temperatures 40 F-140 F (4 C 60 C) for hours (5). Boiling food for 10 minutes before eating destroys any toxin present.
CDC provides epidemiologic consultation and laboratory diagnostic services for suspected botulism cases and authorizes release of botulism antitoxin to state health departments and physicians in the United States. These services are available 24 hours a day from CDC through state health departments.
References

CDC. Botulism and commercial pot pie--California. MMWR 1983;32:390,45. MacDonald KL, Spengler RF, Hatheway CL, Hargrett NT, Cohen ML. Type botulism from sautéed onions: clinical and epidemiologic observations. JAMA 1985;253:1275-8.
St. Louis ME. Botulism. In: Evans AS, Brachman P, eds. Bacterial infections of humans: epidemiology and control. 2nd ed. New York: Plenum Publishing, 1991:115-31.
Extension Service, US Department of Agriculture. Complete guide to home canning. Washington, DC: US Department of Agriculture, Extension Service, September 1994. (Agriculture information bulletin no. 539).
Food and Drug Administration. Food code, 1993. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Food and Drug Administration, 1993.

Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report 44(11):200,1995 Mar 24 This document has been converted to HTML for the convenience of the reader. The original document is available in PDF format from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Hypertext last edited: 1997-NOV-03 mow@cfsan.fda.gov

Further protection for the stupid:

http://missourifamilies.org/quick/foodsafetyqa/qafs151.htm

"Quick Answers

I canned green beans in a water bath canner. Won't any toxin be destroyed if I boil them for 10 minutes before serving?

We cannot recommend that improperly canned food of any type be eaten. There are many reasons why improperly canned food should be destroyed. What if:

- these foods get mixed in with others and do not get boiled a full 10-20 minutes before eating?

- a child cooks dinner or opens a jar of this food for a snack?

- this food is given away as a gift, or to a church bazaar or a church supper?

These are just a few reasons why improperly canned foods should not be kept on the shelf.

Barbara Willenberg, Nutritional Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia. "

Now isn't it wonderful that they can't recommend it but they offer the solution in the answer to the problem??

And in the following document, once again I think it is plain to anyone that you MUST boil your food!

http://missourifamilies.org/quick/foodsafetyqa/qafs24.htm

"Quick Answers

I canned food last summer (1988) using the old University Extension guidesheets. I've heard that there are new canning guidelines this year (1989). Is my food canned last summer safe to eat?

If you carefully followed our guidesheets and your equipment was in good working order, including having canner pressure gauge checked, then you can go ahead and use the food. As a precaution, boil all low-acid foods canned in a pressure canner (like meat, fish, poultry, vegetables and tomatoes) before tasting them. Follow this procedure: Bring to a rolling boil, cover and continue to boil for ten minutes. If food looks spoiled, foams or has an "off" odor during heating, destroy it. Note: If you live above 1000 feet altitude, boil food 11 minutes.

Now, anybody including forest gump should be able to understand that.

It hasn't changed as long as I've been alive. It hasn't changed as long as my grandmother and great grandmother were alive.

Only idiots would open a can of vegetables or meat without completely reheating and cooking it.

Barbara Willenberg, Nutritional Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia.
"

Oh, and one other thing, not that it is any of your business. I don't share my canned goods with people ignorant of that rule and nobody in this house cooks in my kitchen unless they understand and follow that rule.

And those that I do trade canned goods with or share stuff with all follow the rule because their mothers and grandmothers taught them good canning procedures.

Boil before you taste any low-acid food.

And perhaps you are old enough to remember all the media talking about how their mothers used to cook foods for such a prolonged time that it cooked too many vitamins out???

They incouraged people not to cook their foods for so long and to start eating more raw foods?

Do you remember that?

The reason they used to cook them for so long was to prevent botulism poisoning. They were trained from the moment they learned how to cook that you boiled that food before eating it.

I thought my sharing of information would be appreciated, not fuel for your unpleasantness.

I answered you in an honest and caring fashion. That wasn't good enough for you and you became condesending and demeaning.

Maybe what you really need to stick in a hot water bath is your attitude!

Potpie,

Are you referring to this post?

"Potpie, I appreciate your input but the county extension office isn't going to give me water bath canning recipes for meat, LOL!
And there isn't a hybrid seed in my garden. Won't allow them.

Vitamin C is tasteless? Hmm...never have added it and I've been canning since I was 6 yrs. old off and on. I thought heat destroyed vitamins?

Well anyway, I've got an old 1918 canning book ( almost forgot I had it till just now...don't want it to fall apart with use) but some of the recipes are intermitent method. Gee am I glad I didn't have to can back then, LOL!

I haven't had trouble with the strength of the vinegar. I use it all the time for baking and if it doesn't make my dough bubble it isn't right. But thanks for the warning just the same.

Steph
"

IF that post offended you or seemed to be condesending and demeaning I suggest you go get a prescription for one of those little purple pills.

Either that, or you have such a high opinion of your own importance that you think everything is about you.

"I" started this thread requesting recipes for water bath canning. I also stated that I didn't want to be bombarded by those that consider it unsafe. IF I had wanted to be insulted I would have posted my request in the Harvest forum.

As it is, you and all of the online canning police are the ones who are insulting. I just made a simple request.

If the truth insults your sensibilities go stick your head in the sand and pressure can to your hearts content. You have every right to do that.

And contrary to online disinformation, the majority of those who still can use a water bath canner for everything, they just either aren't online because they have better things to do, or they figure arguing with a bunch of people who think they are smarter than their parents is useless.

Did you offer a recipe? NO You came in here to insult me as stated in your second post, although you said it in such a nice way.

But I hate to dissapoint you and point out that the other posts I made were not addressed to you. I had already dismissed you.

Steph

You're sick.

(((((shiver)))))

Steph,

I think the concern is that water bath canning is unsafe. Has been proven so and you are risking the lives of friends and family when doing so. Just post this over at the Harvest forum and see what they think.

Stacie
formerly gardeningwithbaby

Wow, I sure would be interested in that catalope jam recipe. I do have them planted this year - the second time I have tried. The first time, I got just 2 puny melons, but it was a very hot, very dry summer. I am hoping for better this year. If I had a bumper crop, I would have no idea now to preserve any of it. This is an excellent idea. Carmellia

Carmellia, I don't know about jam. But I have a recipe for preserving canteloup balls that is out of this world. You're welcome to it if you want.

If you are interested in getting recipes out of old canning books, you could try ebay. I did a search and came up with scads of entries, including some lots. I have a bunch of old books that were given to me by a lady from freecycle who was giving me some other canning equipment and jars. I can't help you though since they are currently in storage.

Here is a link that might be useful: ebay canning book search

I would like that recipe for preserving cantalope.

Here ya go, Trixie:

Spiced Cantaloupe Preserve

Cut the pulp of a large ripe cantaloupe into 1-inch dice, or halve the melon and scoop out the balls with a mellon-ball cutter. Put the melon in a heavy kettle with 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, a 3-inch piece of cinnamon stick, 2 whole cloves, 1 1/2 tsp candied ginger, chopped, and either 1/4 lemon cut in paper thin slices or 1 tbls lemon juice.

Bring the mixture to a boil over moderate heat, lower the heat and simmer until melon is tender. Remove the melon with a slotted spoon and pack it into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Simmer the vinegar mixture 5 minutes more and pour it over the melon. Seal the jar and process pints or quarts 15 minutes.

One large melon makes about 2 quarts of raw balls, which will process down to half that amount.

Thank you, I appreciate the recipe and will give it a try!

Go for it, Trixie.

I've tried it both ways, and it seems to work better with balls than diced. I've no idea why, other than maybe the melon is more consistent?

Anyway, if you've got a baller, that's the route I'd go.

This recipe is sweet rather than hot. Its good on hamburgers but is best on a sandwich of warm, thinly sliced ham on a hard roll.

PENNSYLVANIA PEPPER RELISH

12 large red peppers
3 Tbs. salt
6 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 large onions, chopped (about 2 cups)
3 cups sugar
1 cup cider vinegar
2 Tbs. mixed pickling spices

Have, seed, and chop peppers. (You should have 9 cups.) Layer with salt in a large glass bowl. Allow to stand at room temperature, stirring several times, 3 hours. Drain peppers well to remove all liquid.

Combine drained peppers, tomatoes and onions in a large kettle not aluminum.; stir in sugar and vinegar. Tie spices in cheesecloth and crack with a hammer. Add bag to kettle.

Bring to boiling, stirring often. Lower heat; simmer, stirring frequently near the end of cooking time to prevent scorching, 30 minutes, or until mixture thickens. Remove spice bag. Ladle into sterilized jars and process in hot water bath for 10 minutes. Makes 8 (8 oz. jars).

Thanks guy/gals!

That pepper relish and the cantaloup sounds yummy!

Here's what I have, now mind these are OLD recipes so they aren't written in cookbook format:

Yellow cantaloupes or musk- Sugar melonsWater

Select the large yellow variety of cantaloupe or the old-fashioned muskmelons when they are beginning to turn a little yellow in ripening. Peel the thin outer rind, and cut a very thin slice next the seeds; cut the sections in pieces one inch thick, and put them into a preserving pan with six pounds of sugar to ten pounds of fruit. Add one-half gallon of water, cover and boil until the melon becomes clear and transparent.

Remove the cover and boil until the syrup is thick.

Seal in jars.
======================================

Spiced Fruits:

To eight pounds of fruit allow four pounds of sugar,
one pint of good vinegar,
one table-spoonful of ground cinnamon,
one tablespoonful of ground allspice,
one tablespoonful of ground ginger, one teaspoonful of ground mace,
one teaspoonful of ground cloves,
one tablespoonful of grated nutmeg and
six crushed bay leaves;

mix the spices, put them in four muslin bags and tie them loosely. Boil the sugar and the vinegar for five minutes, add the spices and the fruit and cook until the fruit is tender. Soft fruit must not remain long on the fire. Remove from the fire and cool.

Next morning lift the fruit with a skimmer and put it into glass or stone jars. Boil the syrup, pour it over the fruit and let cool; do this for nine mornings. This recipe will answer for pears, peaches, apples, currants, apricots, watermelon rind, citron melon and cantaloupes.

Rather than doing it for nine mornings, I would process it hot in the waterbath for whatever time your cookbook says to do the particular fruits, LOL!

======================================

Here's one that sounds more modern!

CANTALOUPE OR MUSKMELON PRESERVES The melons should be ripe but firm. The rind is removed and the firm pulp is cut into pieces of desired size and shape. The prepared material is weighed and ~ pound of sugar is allowed for each pound of melon. The melon and sugar are packed in alternate layers and allowed to stand for 24 hours. At the end of this period the juice from one small lemon per pound of melon is added and the materials are set over a slow fire. Slow boiling is maintained until the syrup sheets or flakes from the stirring spoon. The hot preserve is filled into clean jars and is processed in the water bath for 2 or 3 minutes.

Steph

CORN RELISH

A good corn relish may be made from the following materials: 18 large ears of corn or 3 pounds of cut corn, 4 medium size onions, 1 sweet pepper and a 2- or 3-pound cabbage. The corn is blanched 3 to 5 minutes in boiling water, cooled and cut from the cob in medium thick slices. The cabbage is cut fine with chop- ping knifemay be run through food chopper together with the peeled onions, using the medium coarse cutter. The chopped vegetables are placed in a pickle solution consisting of 1 quart of good cider vinegar, 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoonful of salt and 1 tablespoonful ground mus- tard. The relish is heated to boiling and boiled slowly for 20 to 30 minutes. The hot materials are filled into clean, dry containers. The jars are partially sealed and processed in the water bath, pints 5 minutes, quarts 8 minutes.