Ongoing research

Blog by Michelle SchlegelLast night, I wanted to make Chicken Scallopini and needed fresh sage. In the back garden are my culinary sage plants. I had noticed a few Leafhoppers last year, but didn’t treat the plant. I was hoping a cold winter would kill them. Well, that didn’t happen. This spring is its usual…

     

Reduce fruit float when canning fruitFruit Float is the term used when produce separates and floats to the top of the jars.There are a few things that can be done to avoid or reduce fruit float when canning fruit:Use Firm Ripe Fruit. Firm fruit has less air trapped in it than ripe fruit. It also absorbs less…

The USDA recommends preserving enough for one year. We should all have an annual habit of checking our inventory of preserved foods. The USDA recommends we preserve enough food for one year. Why is one year recommended? Here are a few reasons: In one year, another crop will be available for…

Keep perishable food safe by observing the room temp time limits. One of the basic maxims of food safety is keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold.  Not keeping perishable food hot enough (at or above 140°F) or cold enough (at or below 40°F) allows bacteria to multiply quickly, causing the food to…

Make your altitude adjustments. Did you know that at altitudes over 1,000 feet above sea level, you need to make adjustments to your canning procedures? When boiling water or steam canning, processing times need to be lengthened. When pressure canning, pressure needs to be increased. Why? Because as…

There are 31 reasons to follow safe food handling procedures. Bacteria and other microorganisms (such as parasites and viruses) are everywhere.  They’re in the soil and water, they float through the air, they’re on plants and are in and around animals, and they’re even on people. The good, the…

Baking potatoes in foil is a safety concernBaking potatoes in aluminum foil is a common way of preparing this root vegetable.  Doing so makes the skin soft, and some say that it makes the potatoes cook faster.  The foil can also keep the potatoes hot longer once they come out of the oven – and this…

Cake and quick bread should never be "canned."Pretty pictures and recipes for quick breads and cakes canned or baked in canning jars (aka mason jars) often circulate on the Internet, especially around the holidays.  Despite what some well-intentioned bloggers may say, the practice of canning breads and…

Distinguish between bubble types to determine safety.It’s not uncommon to see tiny bubbles in glass canning jars; these are generally not a concern. But large bubbles in the glass are manufacturing defects. They indicate weak points in the walls of the jars which could spell trouble during the canning…