Preserve Yourself

For some of us, it’s getting to be that time again when the leaves are falling, the air has turned crisp and sweaters are making a comeback. Perhaps the biggest change with the colder seasons is the decrease in fresh, local food. Berries and beautiful greens will soon be replaced with turnips and yams (not that there’s anything wrong with turnips and yams). But there are many easy and dare I say fun ways to extend the life of your favorite summer nosh and help the environment at the same time. This fall try your hand at preserving, canning, freezing, pickling and jamming. You can fill your fridge and freezer with local, organic goods rather than buying expensive pre packaged food shipped from far off lands. Feel free to ask your grocer which foods are from around the corner and, if you’ve got one, harvest your own garden or extend its life in pots indoors with a do-it-yourself greenhouse. From apples to zucchini’s, well prepared food will laugh in the face of old man winter. Ha ha.

Peaches are in season but not for long so get keen on making them last:

Farm Stand Peach Jam
10 medium ripe fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice,
1 ¾ ounce powdered fruit pectin
3 ½ cups sugar
1 tsp butter, melted

In an 8-quart kettle, combine the peaches and lemon juice. In a small bowl, combine the pectin and ¼ cup of the sugar and mix well. Stir into the peach mixture along with the butter. Over a medium-high heat, bring the peach mixture to a full boil, stirring constantly. Stir in the remaining 3 1/4 cups sugar, return the mixture to a full boil, and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, quickly skim off any foam, and ladle the jam at once into hot, sterilized Ball Mason jars (or reuse any mason jars you may already have), leaving a ¼ inch space at the top of each jar. Wipe the rims with a clean, damp cloth, fit them with hot lids, and tightly screw on the metal rings. Process in a bath of boiling water for 5 minutes (water should cover the jars by about 1 inch), cool on a wire rack, and store in a cool, dry place.

Wanna know more? Check out some of these reads:

Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning: Traditional Techniques Using Salt, Oil, Sugar, Alcohol, Vinegar, Drying, Cold Storage and Lactic Fermentation Deborah Madison and Eliot Coleman.

Canning and Preserving For Dummies by Karen Ward

The Big Book of Preserving The Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader