Posts: 4,663
12/4/08 7:21 A

Hi Charlotte, Welcome. Hope you enjoy our team. I do most everything is a pressure cooker/canner, with the exception of fruits and tomatoes that don't require a lot of time in the hot water baths. So if you have any questions, just give a shout out and I'll help if I can. Look forward to seeing your posts.

Lisa

Posts: 1,238
12/3/08 4:13 P

Hi everyone!

I am in Northern Texas (DFW area). I can in water baths and am just about to try the pressure cooker method with veggies.

My chest freezer is also saved for meats.

I dry my own herbs and mints for teas and spices etc. I dehydrate in a standard indoor dehydrator and out doors with screen and cloth, but just decided on the plans for a solar dehydrator, which is nothing more than screen in a frame and a metal lid (I am using scrap flashing)...we built a solar oven this summer out of scraps (cardboard, a picture frame, and some paint) and it is awesome. It has been too windy to do much with it yet, but we will work on more stable "wings" when we finish getting ready for winter.

Here are a couple great site for plans for stuff like that:
www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Cooking/cook
ing.htm

www.solarcooking.org/plans/

I look forward to browsing the team and learning from you all.

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11/21/08 2:42 P

Thanks I'm learning from the masters here in SC, they have been canning their whole lives, must give them all the credit. I'll be more than happy to share no need to steal :0 it's free of charge!:) Have a great weekend Peace, Darlene

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11/21/08 2:36 P

sorry I've been busy outside cutting up wood for fireplace past few wks haven't caught up on email, Yes, put them in sun and bring in at night (keep the moisture out as much as possible.) Mix aroound/Rotate fruit If really hot 1-2 days should be dry. Alot of folks here SC keep them on back of truck/trailers on sheet in sun, even put fruit in their car-gets real hot inside a car! My husband made cart w/wheels (flat/rear cargo/truck carrier)
we use that to bring it in & out. hope that helps explain it better. haev a great weekend1 Peace, Darlene

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Posts: 152
11/21/08 12:04 P

DJCBECK you ha a lot of useful ideas for storing food I hope you keeping sharing your ideas with the rest of us. I find them most helpful. When I find a apartment place that I have more light and space I would be stealing a lot of your ideas to use for myself.

Edited by: ATHENAMORALES at: 11/21/2008 (12:05)

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10/10/08 2:34 P

Darlene - that sounds great. How do you use a dryer like that? I've only used electric ones. Do you just put them in the sun? Do you bring them in at night?

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10/9/08 11:41 P

Borrowing is ok maybe consider making one if your handy or ask a neighbor, as we did.... made an "apple dryer" from wood & screen materials nails and staple gun. It was a pretty neat project and will last long time.
We even helped our neighbor pick/cut dry out the apples. it's great fun also did a good deed in the process! Ask around someone may help you!
Peace, Darlene

Edited by: DJCBECK at: 10/9/2008 (23:39)

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10/9/08 10:32 P

I freeze blackberries, spaghetti sauce (with meat)and some jams (my kids prefer frozen raspberry and strawberry jams to cooked varieties). I can tomatoes, spaghetti sauce (without meat), salsa, cherries, applesauce, green beans, jams (apricot pineapple is our favorite), grape juice, peaches, and apricot nectar. I try to can as much as possible and keep the freezer for meat, vegetables, and cheese that I've found on sale.

I was going to try to make raisins from our green grapes this year, but I pooped out. Maybe next year! I think I would need to borrow some other dryers. My trays seem to fill up so fast and it takes a few days to dry, so it takes forever to do with just one.

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10/9/08 7:39 P

We can most of our food and "dry out" fruit i.e.apples pears peaches in a "apple dryer" in sun then put them up in a ziplocks. Love canning mostly!Peace, Darlene

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Posts: 54
10/9/08 2:08 P

I can, freeze and dry food. I think canning is my favorite, mostly because of the variety of things you can make.

Posts: 4,663
9/22/08 11:49 A

I can most of our stuff. I do freeze our squash, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini and jams. But the freezers are saved for meat. We buy a pig and a cow every year and my husband is a deer hunter.

Lisa

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9/22/08 7:10 A

More canning than freezing but we do both!
Peace, Darlene

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9/21/08 5:50 P

We freeze lots of fruits, tomatoes, applesauce, and roasted red peppers. I can jams, pickles, and relishes. A lot of the jams and pickles are given away as presents during the year.

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9/21/08 5:48 P

Generally can so that I don't take up freezer space. Before we lost the house, we had a chest freezer in the basement for years where I would freeze stuff but much of the frozen stuff I did not use.

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9/21/08 5:26 P

I freeze and can both

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Posts: 152
9/21/08 4:35 P

I manly freeze my food to store it. What is everyone else favorite way to store food?:)