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Farm Kitchen:  Have a Memory of Canning or Freezing Produce?  |
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Prairie Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
208 Posts
Linda
Sterling
Ks.
USA
208 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 13 2009 : 2:08:29 PM
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If you have a special story with your family putting up produce please leave your story. I love hearing your memories and so will everyone else that will visit.
I had one of the most special days with our special family friends. I was so overwhelmed with 450-500 ears of corn. Come over and see what a wonderful day we had. It is better to freeze or can your produce with friends!!!!
Blessings, Linda
www.prairieflowerfarm.blogspot.com
www. peacecreekcollectionsstore.blogspot.com
Enter and leave with a happy heart! |
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SuzieQ
True Blue Farmgirl
175 Posts
Suzie
Texas
USA
175 Posts |
Posted - Oct 13 2009 : 6:16:32 PM
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| I remembered my Mom canning when I was a little girl. Her garden rows were crooked and her canned goods were great. My sister and I talked the other day about when Mom would can something and we would "aquire" a jar and sit on the porch and eat them and usually had red/purple fingers/lips/mouth. The jingle of the pressure cooker during the fall was great. |
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Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 12:26:46 AM
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The night before my daughter was born (my first) I helped a friend pit about 50lbs of cherries. We finished about midnight in the kerosene lamp light - they were just building and didn't have electricity yet. We made it home and fell into bed and I went into labor in the wee hours. We were living in a tiny, one room log cabin while we were building our house and the only way to get hot water was to burn a fire in the wood cookstove all day to heat the hot water tank. It was July and too hot for that so no hot water. We headed for the hospital and of course I never gave the cherries another thought. After my daughter was born and they laid her on my tummy, it was then that I realized that my hands were a wonderful shade of purple as I stroked her head. Only four weeks later, she sat in the stroller, and I rocked it back and forth with my foot while I stood at the sink and cored pears with a melon ball maker to can. Now she lives in NYC and works on Wall Street. What does she do on the side??? She makes gourmet jam and sells it to her co-workers for a ridiculous amount of money ----Just goes to show, you can take the girl out of the country but......
Blessings, Sheri
"Work is Love made visible" -Kahlil Gibran |
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gr8tfulmom
True Blue Farmgirl
143 Posts
Sarah
South Haven
MI
143 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 03:31:07 AM
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Cute story Sheri and what a wonderful day for you Linda - all those hands making light work!
When I was 14 my aunt was expecting my (now 21y/o) cousin and we had a ton of grapes to get done. It was the last canning season for my grampa who had been a cook in the navy and one of 14 farmkids from mid-Indiana and boy did he do it up. Grape jelly, grape filling and grape juice filled up that week and we ended up with over 100 quarts of grape goodness. The next time my aunt went to the dr. he noticed a very purple belly (cause that's what was sticking out!) when she needed to be measured and like your hands Sherri, she was purple for weeks, lol!
http://symbioticstitches.blogspot.com/ |
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Prairie Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
208 Posts
Linda
Sterling
Ks.
USA
208 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 06:29:44 AM
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Oh my, ladies you have filled my brain with your precious memories. It truly gives me great joy to hear of others wonderful stories that have probably been tucked to the back of your minds until today.
Suzie to remember your mommas crooked rows what a picture in my mind. My husbands dad was a farmer like we are. He would always get on our sons when they were younger and planting or working the ground. I can here him say "boys! find a tree and keep the rows straight." Farmer's have a lot of pride in their fields. It speaks of them. We have a Mennonite Church down south and they would drive down by the farm On Wed. nights and Sunday. He knew the other farmers would be talking! They are the worse than women! I too like the jingle of the pressure cooker.
Sheri, What a fun memory. I laughed at your pink hands. How funny! Wow, NYC and making jam for sale. Very nice.
Sarah, MMMMMmmmmm grapes! I have never heard of grape filling. I wonder what it tastes like.
Thank you again! I am reading these all to my husband and daughters. It is truly making my day!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to comment.
Blessings, Linda
Enter and leave with a happy heart! |
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knittingmomma
True Blue Farmgirl
106 Posts
Tonya
Vermont
106 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 07:12:28 AM
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Growing up I didn't know anyone that canned or even froze their produce.
As our family moved to a more simple lifestyle and started learning about homesteading and old fashioned skills, canning was one of the new "old ways" I was determined to learn and make part of our yearly rhythms.
For me the best part of canning is seeing the row of jars all filled with bountiful harvest from our garden.
This is really fun to read about other's stories.
Warm wishes,
Tonya
http://plainandjoyfulliving.blogspot.com |
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LakeOntarioFarmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
933 Posts
Brenda
North Rose
NY
USA
933 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 07:18:20 AM
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I like that: "You can take the girl out of the country but..." !!! :) So true!
One of my earliest memories is that of my mom, aunt, and Nana canning pickled peppers. A simple recipe but a tradition every fall! That one time, I can remember me and my golden retriever, under the drapes that covered the sliding glass doors, the vinegar smell was so strong we couldn't stand it! I do love pickled peppers though. This was my dad's Italian side of the family. My mom's mother canned all sorts of things every year, but I was never usually around for that, as they lived 200 hundred miles away.
Years later, when my older children were teens, I started canning for myself. Yes, it took me that long, but I did a lot of canning for years. Strawberry and blackberry jam, peaches, pears, grape jelly, grape juice(hundreds of jars every fall), and of course, pickled peppers!
After my girls grew up I gave away all my canning jars, and swore I would never do it again.
Guess what?!! This year I canned strawberry jam, 2 different kinds of pickled peppers and zucchini relish. I am now looking for more jars so I can make the corn relish that I remember my gramma making.
You never really lose the love! ;)
All your stories are so fun to read! Keep them coming!
Brenda
FarmGirl # 711
http://theviewfromhere-brenda.blogspot.com/ |
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1badmamawolf
True Blue Farmgirl
2199 Posts
Teresa
"Bent Fence Farms"
Ca
USA
2199 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 09:06:49 AM
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I remember when I was 3 or 4 yrs old, and being at my grammys. I kept telling her that there was a rainbow in the pantry, and she kept looking and assumeing she'd see a reflection from the sun thru a jar, then I pointed again and she realized I was talking about all the differant colors of veggys and fruit that was already canned and sitting on the shelves, and that yes, it was a rainbow in there.
"Treat the earth well, it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children" |
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Autumn Leaves
True Blue Farmgirl
463 Posts
Jennifer
Northern
California
USA
463 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2009 : 4:36:45 PM
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From the time I was very young I helped my Grandma with everything in the kitchen. My mother was always into "don't let her get her school clothes dirty" (yeah right). I remember my grandma made me an apron to wear over my clothes that the top half was a heart and a strap went over my neck and it tied off the skirt part in the back. I wore it all the time. A few years ago she said she still had it and would put it away for me, now that she is gone hopefully one day we'll find it in one of her dressers. She taught me all kinds of preserving but, my absolute favorite was applesauce, I loved using the ricer with the wooden mallot and watching it run down the cone into the bowl.
Warm Wishes
Jennifer
Never let yesterday use up too much of today - Will Rogers
http://jenscountrylife.blogspot.com |
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Mamarude
True Blue Farmgirl
107 Posts
Anna
Durango
Colorado
USA
107 Posts |
Posted - Oct 15 2009 : 6:42:11 PM
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I grew up gardening and canning with my Grandma, and I'm lucky enough to still be doing it! We moved "home" 4 years ago, and live about 3 miles from their 40 acre farm. She's 84 years old, my Grandfather is 85 and I'll be at their house pressing cider tomorrow! I treasure every second I have with them now a days, and love to relive the happiest parts of my childhood, and share them with my children.
Cherian
Durango farmgirl
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Celticheart
True Blue Farmgirl
811 Posts
Marcia
WA
USA
811 Posts |
Posted - Oct 16 2009 : 09:03:47 AM
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[quote]Originally posted by Prairie Flower
Suzie to remember your mommas crooked rows what a picture in my mind./quote]
Know what my grandma said about crooked rows?? You can fit more plants or seeds in a crooked row AND it confuses the birds! At least that's what she told my grandpa.
It's not about being perfect, but enjoying what you do. Set aside time to be creative.
Robyn Pandolph
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levisgrammy
True Blue Farmgirl
9349 Posts
Denise
Beavercreek
Ohio
USA
9349 Posts |
Posted - Oct 17 2009 : 6:25:17 PM
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I remember making grape jam with my mom when I was about 13 yrs.old. She would drive up the old back roads and we would stop and pick the grapes where ever we saw them growing. We would take paper bags to put the grapes in. We had a station wagon and we would fill the back of that up with as much as we could get. The grapes were wild and oh my were they good! I ate as many as we cut off I think. She would have me do the climbing because I was smaller and could go higher. Those vines were growing all over everywhere. It surprised me that no one else would go and get them. We made so much jelly and jam with those grapes.
A couple of years ago one of my daughters planted a grape vine near an arbor that my son had built. This was the first year there were any grapes, but not enough to do anything with. Hoping next year will be better!
God is good....all the time.
Denise
www.torisgram.etsy.com |
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asnedecor
True Blue Farmgirl
1054 Posts
Anne
Portland
Or
USA
1054 Posts |
Posted - Oct 18 2009 : 10:10:14 AM
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We had an old apple tree on the farm my parents bought from my grandparents. I am not sure what type of apples they were but in the spring the tree was gorgeous with blooms. Come late summer we would have tons of apples. My mom would set my sister and I up behind the house in the shade with these 5 gallon buckets filled with apples - our job was to peel, core and slice the apples for her and my grandma to make applesauce with. This would be an all day event - us prepping the apples and mom and grandma in the kitchen cooking and canning. To this day I am pretty handy with a pairing knife on a piece of fruit since I had all that practice :)
Anne in Portland, OR
"Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them" Eyeore from Winnie the Pooh
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Prairie Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
208 Posts
Linda
Sterling
Ks.
USA
208 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2009 : 06:06:49 AM
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Sweet ladies, you have filled my mind with pleasant memories!! How fun to think back on days gone by. It is nice to take time out of our busy schedules and re-minis back, don't you think? I still have a lot of canning and freezing still to do. Wish all of you could come and sit around my table and I could hear more of your precious stories.
Happy canning! Linda
I am sure there are still some more wonderful memories!!!
Enter and leave with a happy heart! |
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Bevb
True Blue Farmgirl
81 Posts
Bev
Moscow
ID
USA
81 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2009 : 06:21:08 AM
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I grew up very poor. I remember Mom packing a picnic lunch, and all of us tredging off to the wood in our old Plymouth Fury to pick wild plums. We'd come home with the trunk full, and we'd spend a couple of days washing and pitting plums, and canning them. Sometimes Mom would hear of a farmer who had extra cherries - and one time it was peaches! What a treat.
I canned with my kids - their favorite part was standing on a stool, looking at the jars, and counting how many sealed. We'd cheer when it was 100%!.
They are all in the twenties now, and actually asked if I'd be canning this year - they miss the pickles! |
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cdmcan
Farmgirl in Training
21 Posts
Diane
Homer City
PA
USA
21 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2009 : 07:35:43 AM
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Well, I'm one of those who still cans. We can tomatoes, chowchow, beets, applesauce, jelly to name a few. And we also can meat, mostly venison. Hubby's best friend works away all week in West Virginia. He eats most of what we can during the year. Pint jars of our fare are just the right size for a hungry man. I'm 53 and have been married for 35 years. I remember canning with my grandmother and have been doing it for 2 reasons. One to save money but more importantly, there are no preservatives and "junk". It's all natural food.
I love the smell of the house as the pickling spices are being boiled, or the smell of fresh tomatoes are being cut. MMMM and don't forget the smell of apples cooking. It's been that time of year here at Streamview for a couple of months now. Looking forward to doing applesauce and spiced apples this weekend. And it's only a few weeks till hunting season, and the jars will be boiling away canning venison once again.
Lover of Siamese Cats |
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Prairie Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
208 Posts
Linda
Sterling
Ks.
USA
208 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2009 : 11:30:31 PM
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Dear Bev, What a special memory. I can just see a family going off into the woods picking wild plums. OUr family also picks what we call sandhill plums and we make the best jelly in the whole world.
That is precious about your children canning with you.
You must have some pretty good pickles.
Thank you for writing your memory. I loved it.
Blessings, Linda
quote:
Originally posted by Bevb
I grew up very poor. I remember Mom packing a picnic lunch, and all of us tredging off to the wood in our old Plymouth Fury to pick wild plums. We'd come home with the trunk full, and we'd spend a couple of days washing and pitting plums, and canning them. Sometimes Mom would hear of a farmer who had extra cherries - and one time it was peaches! What a treat.
I canned with my kids - their favorite part was standing on a stool, looking at the jars, and counting how many sealed. We'd cheer when it was 100%!.
They are all in the twenties now, and actually asked if I'd be canning this year - they miss the pickles!
Enter and leave with a happy heart! |
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Prairie Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
208 Posts
Linda
Sterling
Ks.
USA
208 Posts |
Posted - Oct 21 2009 : 05:19:10 AM
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Dear Bev, What a special memory. I can just see a family going off into the woods picking wild plums. OUr family also picks what we call sandhill plums and we make the best jelly in the whole world.
That is precious about your children canning with you.
You must have some pretty good pickles.
Thank you for writing your memory. I loved it.
Blessings, Linda
quote:
Originally posted by Bevb
I grew up very poor. I remember Mom packing a picnic lunch, and all of us tredging off to the wood in our old Plymouth Fury to pick wild plums. We'd come home with the trunk full, and we'd spend a couple of days washing and pitting plums, and canning them. Sometimes Mom would hear of a farmer who had extra cherries - and one time it was peaches! What a treat.
I canned with my kids - their favorite part was standing on a stool, looking at the jars, and counting how many sealed. We'd cheer when it was 100%!.
They are all in the twenties now, and actually asked if I'd be canning this year - they miss the pickles!
Enter and leave with a happy heart! |
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kofarmgirl
Farmgirl in Training
19 Posts
Kandra
Hedley
Texas
USA
19 Posts |
Posted - Oct 21 2009 : 8:23:01 PM
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| I am loving reading all of your stories. My grandma used to can alot, but that was before i came along. I have spent some time making jams with her. Right now I am learning how to can. My children and I went to a friends house and packed a picnic and picked pears and came home and made jam. This year we made pickles and jam. I recently prayed for a pressure canner and sure enough God delivered! A lady at our church gave us one so I cant wait to learn how to use it. This year we put up all of our garden veggies in the freezer. I hope these are pleasant memories for my kids as it was for all of you. Thank you for sharing. |
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levisgrammy
True Blue Farmgirl
9349 Posts
Denise
Beavercreek
Ohio
USA
9349 Posts |
Posted - Oct 22 2009 : 10:19:33 AM
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I know this is a memory thread of canning but I just had to tell you girls. Dh got a 7 point buck last night! I so wanted to can it but because of our work schedules not coinciding we had to take it to get it processed. usually we like to do it ourselves. I have not done with in a while. My mom taught years ago how to use the pressure cooker but its been so long I don't know think I need a refresher course..lol. Anyway this is just the start of the season so maybe I'll get to do up the next one.
God is good....all the time.
Denise
www.torisgram.etsy.com |
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Sarahpauline
True Blue Farmgirl
672 Posts
sarah
Ringgold
GA
USA
672 Posts |
Posted - Oct 22 2009 : 1:21:29 PM
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I have a memory of picking wild blueberries (which are microscopic) enough for my great grandomther to can an even 100 QUARTS! Not pints...I HATED BLUEBERRIES FOR YEARS. But now I would love a jar of her "blueberry sauce"
Not all those who wander are lost...
www.SarahPauline.com
www.AbraxasBaroque.com |
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SuzieQ
True Blue Farmgirl
175 Posts
Suzie
Texas
USA
175 Posts |
Posted - Oct 25 2009 : 08:18:46 AM
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| I could not stand it and so i now have a pressure canner. I googled pressure canning and found a site on Youtube that had video's of step by step on how to can with the presure cooker. I am planning to make my own stews and soups and can them. I want to be able to take my own "sack lunches" to work. Good luck to all of the new canners and "may the pressure be with you." |
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Farm Kitchen: Have a Memory of Canning or Freezing Produce? |
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Have a Memory of Canning or Freezing Produce?
