Ahh, thanks so much everyone! The seedlings always seem so fragile that I've never tried to bare root them. I will wait until they have 5-7 true leaves before trying I think... I have space under grow lights so I could grow the peppers as indoor/outdoor perennials... I just start one of these tiny tiny flat seeds in the gritty mix and then water from below so that it doesn't move around too much? If I start them in the gritty mix in little cell flats then will the medium all fall out of the root structure when I move them to larger pots? I understand I can start them in larger pots to begin with but I prefer to try to start more than I have room for and assume I will lose some or that some won't germinate. I guess you've just said to bare root them out of peat so even if it does fall out then it's just the same thing hmm... That thread looks great Josh I will read it carefully - is there a reason you switch from one to the other and then back again and don't just stick with the gritty? hmm hmm this new mix makes everything exciting aha

Linda, Yes I did leave chunks in the pepper spread, almost a 1/3 of the batch I chopped up, the rest I pureed. Duh, I didn't even think of that. I guess I'm just paranoid because I know I weighed 9 cubanel (sp?) red peppers at 3.3 lbs and then went to the store and bought more red peppers there. I can't remember if I weighed them or what the weight was, but I know I weighed the tomatoes. (smacks head) Sigh, and I know I won't be comfortable unless I know EXACTLY what I did. What a pain...I have 7 beautiful, sealed jars that I want to put on my shelf or give one or two to someone, but I won't take them out of the fridge because I can't remember what I did. Oh well, maybe I'll make some hummus and bring it into work. Lesson learned. It sucks getting old and forgetting things. :-(

Okey-dokey. Quite a few questions here: 1. Pickling Spice is a blend of whole spices. Generally the most prevalent spice is mustard seed with varying amounts of other whole spices like cloves, cinnamon, coriander, dried red peppers, etc. You can buy Pickling Spice bottled (expensive) in the spice section of any grocery store. Some stores also carry it in bulk. Bulk, even paying online for shipping, is much cheaper. I buy in bulk and keep the excess in the freezer, but vacuum-sealing would also work. Each company offers its own proprietary blend, so sometimes you'll find one blend you like better than another. For example, Penzeys uses lots of anise, which is a bit much for my taste. But I blend that with American Spice's pickling blend and am very happy with the results. You can also blend your own pickling spice from whole spices you may already have on the shelf. I think some old threads offer some posted recipes, but if not I could provide a typical one. 2. Any pepper of any color can be safely switched for another as long as the total volume or weight remains the same. Dried peppers can always be added to that for additional color and heat. One or two can really add perk up the appearance of a jar of pickles. 3. You can always safely reduce jar size (keeping the same processing time) but you can't size up unless the recipe says you can. Sometimes a pickle will specify pints or quarts with the same processing time. Sometimes a pickle will specify increased processing time for quarts. Just follow the instructions. It would be very unusual (I can't think of any off-hand.) for a recipe to specify quarts for a relish as the mixture would be quite dense with that volume. Canning in quarts would be a mistake, but if the relish was quite liquid and used, say, 100% vinegar, I probably wouldn't worry about it. I'd just use those jars first. But if it's quite a dry mixture (something to be avoided generally) I might just toss it, especially as we're in a new season. I think that covers everything. Carol Here is a link that might be useful: Spice House Pickling Spice

Well, three of the recipes are these that were posted on the greatest hits thread. I will have to look and see if I can find the others. Chunky Basil Pasta Sauce Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 8 cups (2 L) coarsely chopped peeled tomatoes -- (about 9-12 tomatoes or 4 lb/2 kg) 1 cup chopped onion -- (250 mL) 3 cloves garlic -- minced 2/3 cup red wine -- (150 mL) 1/3 cup red wine vinegar (5 % strength) -- (75 mL) 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil -- (125 mL) 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley -- (15 mL) 1 teaspoon pickling salt -- (5 mL) 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar -- (2 mL) 1 6-oz/156 mL) can tomato paste Combine tomatoes, onion, garlic, wine, vinegar, basil, parsley, salt, sugar and tomato paste in a very large non-reactive pan. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 40 minutes or until mixture reaches desired consistency, stirring frequently. Remove hot jars from canner and ladle sauce into jars to within 1/2 inch (1 cm) of rim (head space). Process 35 minutes for pin (500 mL) jars and 40 minutes for quart (1 L) jars in a BWB. Yield: "8 cups" Note: This sauce also makes an excellent base for a quick pizza. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - * Exported from MasterCook * Multi-Use Tomato Sauce Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 10 plum tomatoes -- (about 2 1/2 lbs./1 kg) 10 large tomatoes -- peeled and chopped (about 4 lbs./2 kg) 4 large garlic cloves -- minced 2 large stalks celery -- chopped 2 medium carrots -- chopped 1 large onion -- chopped 1 large zucchini -- chopped 1 large sweet green pepper -- chopped 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes -- (125 mL) 2/3 cup dry red wine -- (150 mL) 1/2 cup red wine vinegar (5% strength or more) -- (125 mL) 2 bay leaves 1 tablespoon pickling salt -- (15 mL) 2 teaspoons dried oregano -- (10 mL) 2 teaspoons dried basil -- (10 mL) 1 teaspoon granulated sugar -- (5 mL) (optional) 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon -- (2 mL) (optional) 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper -- (2 mL) 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley -- (50 mL) Combine tomatoes, celery, garlic, onion, zucchini and green pepper in a very large non-reactive pan. Add 1 cup (250 mL) water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat and boil gently, covered, for 25 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken, stirring occasionally. Soak sun-dried tomatoes in boiling water until softened. Drain and dice. Add to sauce with wine, vinegar, bay leaves, salt, oregano, basil, sugar, cinamon and pepper. Continue to boil gently until desired consistency, stirring frequently. Discard bay leaves and stir in parsley. Remove hot jars from canner and ladle sauce into jars to within 1/2 inch (1 cm) of rim (head space). Process in a BWB 35 minutes for pint (500 mL) jars and 40 minutes for quart (1 L) jars. Yield: "12 cups" Pear and Currant Chutney Makes 2 - 3 cups 1 cup dried currants 6 tbls pear brandy 4 pears, peeled, cored and cut into ½" pieces 2 ribs celery, cut into ¼" pieces ½ cup sugar 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 3  3 ½ inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated pinch cayenne Put currants and brandy into a medium saucepan and simmer over medium heat until currants are plump and have absorbed most of the liquor, about 7 minutes. Add pears, celery, sugar, lemon juice, ginger and cayenne and stir well. Return to simmer, reduce head to medium low and simmer until pears are very soft and translucent and juices are thick and syrupy, about 1 hour. Put chutney into a clean jar with a tight lid or hot water bath 10 minutes. If not processed, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Allow chutney to sit for a couple of weeks, the flavor improves with age. These are from my Ball Complete book of home preserving. I can post the recipes if needed but it is a lot of typing and I know that several of you have the book! :) Pear Port Compote pg 169 Cranberry Rum sauce pg 180 Blackberry Liqueur Syrup pg 198 Bruschetta in a Jar 223 Lemon-Sage Wine mustard pg 270 I know I have seen a couple more on here in threads but I will have to look for them. I figure I am pretty safe on the fruit ones since they are high in acid anyways but I wanted to make sure, and I know that Carol said that one of the recipes above was not safe without the wine. So I guess that the juice is not an acceptable substitute? Dave - Yes I understand that, but due to the fact that it is for religious reasons I will also not cook with it or even purchase it at all. So that's why I need the substitutions! :) Thanks! Carly