Love To Can-Can

Canning season is always a fun time...I look forward to harvest all year.  A full pantry is a source of pride for me.  I have turned one of our seven (7) bedrooms into a walk-in pantry in addition to the vast amount of kitchen storage I have.  When the kids were little it made sense to my husband...now he thinks I may have a "problem"...and he may have a point.  I have completely cleaned out my walk-in/bedroom pantry and did an extensive inventory AND threw out anything over 3 years old (the chickens, turkeys and piggies had quite a party).  I also have an inventory of whole grains, sugar, beans and freeze-dried emergency foods in my pantry...this stuff has a shelf-life of 30 years.  I moved the emergency SHTF stuff down to the basement; that took all day, but freed up the huge closet in the bedroom.  I normally keep 5 years worth of canned goods...but I've decided to reduce that to a 2 year inventory..really hard for me to wrap my head around that since I've had a 5 year "cushion" for over 40 years!  My kids came to my rescue...all five of them keep a 2 year "cushion" and assured me I didn't need to stock up for them!  So I am only canning for one year.  I did take orders from the kids and I'm doing a few extra jars for them.

One of 6 Wire Racks in The Pantry

A Days Work

Pears Plain and Pears with Bay and Cinnamon

Asian Pear Sauce

Canned Dry Beans...A MUST Have

Pickled Beets

Corn and Green Beans...and Some Dehydrated Corn

Potatoes

Homemade Rotel

Cherry Pie Filling

Butternut

Pepper Jelly

Harvest 

I use tomato sauce at least 3 times a week:  52X3= 156 pint jars
         Rotel-type                                            52X3= 156 pint jars
         Diced                                                   52X3= 156 pint jars

I am/have canned corn, green beans, pickled beets, new potatoes, carrots, celery and asparagus in the same amounts.   Peaches, pears, apples, cherries, apricots and plums: 52 pints of each plus and an additional 5 quarts each as pie filling.  I usually can close to 100 quart jars of pickles...NOT this year, I'm only going to can 20 quarts and give my daughters and daughters-in-law my recipe and the pickling cucumbers...whew...one less thing on my "to do" list.

I can meat and dry beans, too.  I have plenty at the moment and won't worry about restocking until this Winter...canning meat and beans keeps the kitchen toasty when it's cold outside!

It looks like this season I'll be canning about 1500 jars...WOW...that seems like a bunch...it really isn't...I'd do just about anything to avoid going to town to shop.

Now I need to re-evaluate my freezer storage...