Apricot Jam

I did the Apricot Jam the same way that I did the Strawberry Lime Jam - except without the lime juice. My older sister added some raspberries to hers, which sounds amazing.

5 C mashed apricots

8 Tbsp maxigel

2 C sugar

If you like a sweeter jam, you may want to add more sweetener. Mix ingredients in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Spoon hot jam mixture into hot jars and process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes. Don't forget to boil your lids before putting them on the jars.

FYI...when storing canned food - make sure to remove the rings and wash the outside of your jars before storing bottled food on the shelves.

Strawberry-Lime Jam

Whenever strawberries go on sale really cheap (50 cents a pound), I buy a bunch!!!  I often remove stems on a bunch of them, put them in small baggies, and freeze them for smoothies. With the rest, I normally make jam. When my older sister suggested I add lime juice to mine, like she did on hers, my mouth started watering. Delish!

Wash, stem, and mash all of your strawberries. I use one of those hand held mixer things to mash them. Here is a general recipe and you can adjust it to however much strawberries that you have.

5 C mashed strawberries

the juice and zest of 2 limes

8 Tbsp maxigel

2 C sugar - or whatever sweetener you'd like. If the strawberries are really sweet, use less sweetener

Mix all ingredients together in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Spoon hot jam mixture into hot jars and process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes.

Beef Stew

Yield: a LOT more than the recipe says. The recipe says it will make 7 quarts. Well, it did make 7 quarts PLUS enough for a family of 6 to eat for dinner and enough leftovers to feed 2 adults. So, I'm guessing maybe 10-11 quarts.

4-5 pounds beef stew meat

8 C sliced carrots

3 C chopped celery

3 C chopped onion

12 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 1/2 Tbsp salt

1 tsp. thyme

1/2 tsp. pepper

( I also added some Montreal Streak seasoning)

Cut meat into 1 1/2 inch cubes (or buy it that way) and brown in a small amount of oil or butter. Then I started layering everything in the jars. Once they are crammed almost full, fill with boiling water, leaving 1-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust caps. Process at 10 pounds pressure for 90 minutes. Yum!

Chili

Yield: about 4 quarts

5 lbs ground beef

2 C chopped onion 

1 clove garlic, minced

7 C canned tomatoes and juice

1/2 C chili powder

1 1/2 Tbsp salt

1 hot red pepper, finely chopped

1 tsp cumin seed

Brown meat in a large saucepot. Drain off excess fat. Add onions and garlic; cook slowly until onions are tender. Add remaining ingredients and simmer 20 minutes. Skim off excess fat, if necessary, before canning. Ladle hot chili into hot jars, leaving 1-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process for 90 minutes at 10 pounds in a pressure canner.

To serve: add cooked beans, whatever kind you like.

Salsa

Yield: about 11 pints (plus a little to snack on)

1 HUGE can of crushed tomatoes from Costco (approx. 12 C tomatoes)

2 cans of diced tomatoes with jalapenos

4 C chopped, seeded, peeled cucumbers

2 C sliced green onions

2 C finely chopped hot yellow pepper

1 C finely chopped hot red pepper

1 small can chopped jalapeno peppers

1/2 C finely minced fresh cilantro

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp minced fresh marjoram (I couldn't find this and left it out)

2 tsp salt

1 C cider vinegar

4 Tbsp lime juice

I've thought about adding jicama for some extra crunch, but haven't tried that yet. Sometimes I add some more garlic salt or Tony's Creole Seasoning or whatever else I feel like.

Combine all of the ingredients in a LARGE saucepot. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat, simmer 10 minutes. Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Boil lids. Adjust caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

Crescent Roll Recipe

I have the yummiest recipe ever and since it uses food storage items, I thought I would share it here:

1 1/2 c. scalded milk
1 cube butter (I use frozen butter if I have it)
2 pkg dry yeast
1/2 c. warm water
1 tsp sugar
1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp salt
4-6 c. of flour

In small saucepan, scald milk. You know it is scalded when it starts to get frothy around the edges, but is not yet boiling. Remove from heat. Add butter. Set aside. In mixer (kitchenaid or bosch) mix yeast, warm water and 1 tsp sugar. Set aside to proof. Once milk mixture is lukewarm, add remaining sugar and salt. Pour milk mixture into the yeast mixture. Add flour gradually while mixing. Once dough is pulling away from the sides of the mixer, cover with towel and set aside to rise. Once dough has doubled in size, punch it down. Divide it into halves. Roll each section into a circle, cut into triangles using a pizza cutter. Roll and place on greased cookie sheet. Cover and let rise again (half hour to hour). Bake @ 375 until lightly browned on top. Yummy!

water barrel rack instructions...

BJ created a .pdf file in CAD showing a 3D image of the rack along with a list of supplies needed to make it. Unfortunately, we can't figure out how to add .pdf files to blogger. So, if you were interested, add a comment with your e-mail address and I will send you the file.

BJ's words of advice: So I finally put together an illustration of the water barrel rack. In the version I originally built I used a total of 8 support columns and 18 cross beams but the design is basically the same. Make sure you pre-drill your holes with a pilot bit to avoid splitting the wood. I used 4 screws to anchor the support beams to the columns and 2 on each end of every cross beam.

The illustration file is a 3D .pdf document and you will need the latest version of adobe reader to view the file. Once opened click on the main document and you can view the illustration in 3D along with some basic notes.