Holiday Gifts from the Kitchen - Cranberry Port Wine Jelly and Merlot Wine Jelly

Two more easy jellies to make for holiday gifts. These ones are even easier than the Cranberry Hot Pepper Jelly because there is no food processing step. Wine jellies are fabulous with cream cheese and pate. They are also good over lamb and game meats.

Recipes from 'The Complete Book of Small Batch Preserving'.

Cranberry Port Wine Jelly

1 cup port wine
1 cup 100% cranberry juice (NOT cocktail and NOT concentrate)
3 1/2 cups white sugar
1 pouch liquid pectin

1. See here for instructions on how to prepare jars for canning and here for how to prepare your boiling-water canner.

2. Place wine, cranberry juice and sugar in a large stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly to dissolve sugar. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in pectin. Skim off any foam.

3. Ladle mixture into hot 125ml canning jars. Cover with a hot snap lid and secure with a ring. Process jars in a boiling-water canner for 10 minutes (15 minutes if you are above 1000ft elevation). Turn off the heat. Wait 5 minutes before removing jars from water (to stabilize pressure inside jars). Remove jars from water and place them on a towel. Let jars sit, undisturbed, to cool at room temperature overnight. Remove rings, label jars with contents and date, and store jars in a cool, dark place. (If you are giving as gifts, leave rings on, or replace rings just before gifting.)

Yields 4 1/2 cups

Merlot Wine Jelly

You can substitute ANY wine in place of the Merlot.

2 cups Merlot wine
1/4 cup fresh, strained lemon juice (2-3 lemons), or 1/4 cup bottled lemon juice
3 1/2 cups white sugar
1 pouch liquid pectin

1. See here for instructions on how to prepare jars for canning and here for how to prepare your boiling-water canner.

2. Place wine, lemon juice and sugar in a large stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly to dissolve sugar. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in pectin. Skim off any foam.

3. Ladle mixture into hot 125ml canning jars. Cover with a hot snap lid and secure with a ring. Process jars in a boiling-water canner for 10 minutes (15 minutes if you are above 1000ft elevation). Turn off the heat. Wait 5 minutes before removing jars from water (to stabilize pressure inside jars). Remove jars from water and place them on a towel. Let jars sit, undisturbed, to cool at room temperature overnight. Remove rings and store jars in a cool, dark place. (If you are giving as gifts, leave rings on, or replace rings just before gifting.)

Yields 4 1/2 cups

Holiday Gifts from the Kitchen - Cranberry Hot Pepper Jelly

Making homemade jellies is a lot easier than I expected. With the right supplies and a little patience, you too can create some gourmet jellies for holiday gifts. Cranberry Hot Pepper Jelly makes a great appetizer, served with crackers and cheese, especially cream cheese. It's also great as a spread on a turkey sandwich.

The best part about making your own jelly is that it is CHEAP! Assuming you already own the required canning equipment, the cost per 125ml jar of Cranberry Hot Pepper Jelly works out to less than $2 per jar! My batch of eight jars actually cost $1.73 per jar. That cost includes the jar, sugar, pectin, red pepper, jalapeño and cranberry juice AND the jar top labels. (The vinegar is not included in the cost analysis because I already had a large jug on hand, but even with the amount of vinegar used in the recipe added in, the total per jar would still be under $2.) Homemade jellies are personal, affordable, easy and delicious.

The green jalapeño peppers used in this recipe are quite mild and taste peppery rather than spicy. If you'd like a spicier mix, try using Serrano peppers or red jalapeño peppers. You could also add a teaspoon or two of dried red chili flakes to the saucepan during step one.

Recipe from 'The Complete Book of Small Batch Preserving'.


1 large sweet red pepper
2 green jalapeño peppers, seeded
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup 100% pure cranberry juice (NOT cocktail)
3 cups white sugar
1 pouch liquid fruit pectin
8 125ml canning jars, snap lids and rings
1 jelly bag or cheesecloth

1. See here for instructions on how to prepare jars for canning and here for how to prepare your boiling-water canner.

2. Finely chop red pepper and jalapeño peppers in a food processor. Place mixture in a small stainless steel saucepan* with water and vinegar. Bring mixture to a boil, cover, reduce heat and boil gently for 10 minutes. Strain mixture through a course sieve, pressing with the back of spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the solids. Pour liquid through a jelly bag or through a couple layers of cheesecloth to remove any remaining sediment.

3. Place strained liquid, cranberry concentrate and sugar in a medium stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a full boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pectin, return to a full boil and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam.

4. Ladle mixture into hot 125ml canning jars. Cover with a hot snap lid and secure with a ring. Process jars in a boiling-water canner for 10 minutes (15 minutes if you are above 1000ft elevation). Turn off the heat. Wait 5 minutes before removing jars from water (to stabilize pressure inside jars). Remove jars from water and place them on a towel. Let jars sit, undisturbed, to cool at room temperature overnight. Remove rings, label jars with contents and date, and store jars in a cool, dark place. (If you are giving as gifts, leave rings on, or replace rings just before gifting.)


Labels are Avery #8293 - High Visibility Inkjet Round Labels.

Yields 8 - 125ml jars

Holiday Gifts from the Kitchen - Spicy Dill Beans

It's that time of year again! Time to start thinking about Christmas gifts and holiday menus! Last year I made several tasty creations in my kitchen and gave them out to friends and family. More great gifts from the kitchen will be coming over the next couple months!


At the request of my mother, I spent an afternoon canning Spicy Dill Beans. I use a recipe that Vancity Rock Girl posted over two years ago. I first canned beans using this recipe before Christmas in 2008. I had labels and little cards with the Mott's Caesar recipe, printed through Vistaprint. I wrapped the jars up all pretty and gave them out to extended family and friends. They were a HUGE hit! I continued to get requests for these tasty beans throughout 2009. Now the supplies are running short and people are in need of more beans! You can't drink a Caesar without a Spicy Dill Bean to garnish! They are also great for munching as a snack. This recipe also works for carrots and asparagus... especially asparagus!

Vancity Rock Girl's Spicy Dill Beans:

Yields 4 pints

2 lbs green beans, trimmed to about 3 1/2 inches
4 red jalapeño peppers, cut in half lengthwise
8 sprigs of fresh dill
8 cloves of garlic, peeled
4 tbsp mustard seeds
2 1/2 cups water
2 1/2 cups white vinegar
2 tbsp picking salt

1. See here for instructions on how to prepare jars for canning and here for how to prepare your boiling-water canner.

2. In a large saucepan, mix water, vinegar and salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes. Keep warm on the stove top while you finish the next step.

3. To each jar, add 2 garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of mustard seeds, two halves of hot peppers and two sprigs of fresh dill. Tightly pack the beans into each jar.

4. Pour the hot vinegar mixture into each jar and fill, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace at the top. Cover with a hot snap lid and secure with a ring. (You want air & water to be able to circulate during the water bath, so don't tighten the ring too much.)

5. Place jars into boiling water bath canner. Ensure water comes up 1 inch above the top of the jars. Bring to a boil again and process the jars for 10 minutes (15 minutes if above 1000ft elevation). Turn off the heat. Wait 5 minutes before removing jars from water (to stabilize pressure inside jars). Remove jars from water and place them on a towel. Let jars sit, undisturbed, to cool at room temperature overnight. Remove rings, label jars with contents and date, and store jars in a cool, dark place. (If you are giving as gifts, leave rings on, or replace rings just before gifting.) Let sit at least 2 weeks before using.


Check Vistaprint for cheap custom labels and business cards. They have daily deals where you get the printing on several items free and just pay shipping. I have custom printed stationary, envelopes, pens, post-it's, note cards and note pads. It can be quite addictive at first and the products make great gifts!

Putting Up

Home canning is also referred to "putting up" - putting up food for use later in the year. Canning is making a huge come back, for economical reasons and because of the eat local movement. Home preserving is an essential part of local eating because it encourages you to shop and eat seasonally. With canning and dehydrating, you can preserve seasonal foods for use later in the year, out of season. The other day I had a canning marathon. It was quite an ordeal but, with the help of Food in Jars, I managed to put up:

3 pints (500ml jars) Homemade Spiced Applesauce. Total of 6lbs of Okanagan apples put up.


5 quarts (1L jars) Tomatoes Packed in Water, using 8lbs of Okanagan tomatoes. (I loosely followed my Grandma's method, but adhered to the USDA guidelines to ensure they are in a safe pH range).


3 pints (500ml jars) Peaches in Honey Syrup, using 5 lbs of Okanagan peaches. (I followed the directions on the Food in Jars website, but instead of 100% sugar, I used 50% honey/50% sugar. One jar also received a piece of Star Anise, a cinnamon stick and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.)


Add all this to the things I put up during the Preserve the Bounty challenge, and this summer I preserved about 25 quarts of fruit and vegetables for use this winter!

Still on the agenda for this week is Spicy Dill Beans, at the request of my mother. She loves them as a garnish in Caesars.

Oysters on the Half Shell with Pickled Shallot Vinegar

It's week four of my online cooking class, Surf & Turf at Cheeseslave. This week, Ann Marie taught us how to pick fresh seafood and we learned several recipes for uncooked seafood dishes, like ceviche and sashimi. She also showed us a great way to shuck raw oysters.


Oysters are extremely good for our health and are listed in The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth. According to author Johnny Bowden, a 1 cup serving of oysters supplies more than 100 percent of the recommended daily value of Zinc. Zinc is important to healthy immune function and fertility, among other things. Oysters are also a mood elevator as they are rich in the amino acid tyrosine, which the brain converts to dopamine. Before dealing with raw oysters at home, make sure you read up about how to buy and store fresh shellfish. Raw oysters are safe to eat, if handled properly.


A few weeks ago, I ordered an oyster knife online from Golda's Kitchen, in anticipation of this lesson. Yesterday I picked up 8 small fresh oysters from the market and today I got down to business! I was pretty apprehensive about the process. Not sure if any of you have seen Bob Blumer's Glutton For Punishment? He participated in an "Oyster Shuck Off" in one episode. Let's just say there was a lot of blood. As it turns out, oyster shucking is not that hard, or that dangerous! Actually, it's incredibly easy. I made it through my eight in under 10 minutes, and had only minor difficulties with two of them. But... this post isn't about how to shuck oysters. I am certainly no expert. There are loads of videos on YouTube that can help you out. All I can tell you is to make sure you have a proper oyster knife, a sturdy wooden cutting board, a clean dish towel and a steady hand! And DON'T STRESS! And if someone tells you a butter knife will work just fine to shuck an oyster, DO NOT BELIEVE IT. You need an oyster knife. You can pick one up at most any kitchen supply or speciality shop for about $10.

OXO Good Grips Oyster Knife
I love topping my raw oysters with a squeeze of fresh lemon, a dash of Tabasco, a little bit of grated fresh horseradish or pickled shallot vinegar - but not all together! I made the Pickled Shallots during week three of the Preserve the Bounty Challenge. French Food at Home does a pickled shallot on fresh oysters. My favourite seafood restaurant, Rodney's Oyster House also serves their fresh oysters on the half shell with a pickled shallot vinegar. It's delicious! Pickled shallots are also a great condiment for many other things, like salads, sandwiches, antipasti platters, meat and poultry!



Pickled Shallot Vinegar

2 large shallots
1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 sprig fresh thyme

1. Peel shallots and slice thinly.

2. In a medium saucepan, mix together vinegar, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring often to dissolve sugar. Add shallots and stir.

3. Bring to a simmer and cook for one minute. Add thyme sprig. Remove from heat and let cool at room temperature.

4. Transfer mixture to a glass canning jar. Cover and refrigerate for at least one week before using. Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two months.

Alternatively - if you want to heat process your canned shallots for shelf stable storage, complete the directions up to step 3, but do not let the mixture cool. Pack shallots into cleaned and sanitized jars with a small sprig of thyme. Fill with hot vinegar mixture to 1/2 inch below the rim. Cap your jars and process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.

Canning with Grandma

Last week I joined my cousin and my Grandmother for a lesson on beet canning. My Grandma is an expert in home canning. Every year she cans beets, tomatoes, peaches salmon, jams, pickles... you name it! The Pickles in a Bucket recipe came from her. She also makes THE best canned tomatoes. They are perfect for a quick, homemade tomato sauce and even better for tomato soup. Pictures from tomato canning will come at a later time, along with Gram's recipe. Right now, it's all about BEET PICKLES!



Grandma's recipe book


Beet Pickles (Click to enlarge to see her brine recipe).


Grandma doesn't believe in using rubber gloves. I think she even rolled her eyes at me when I asked where here gloves were.


Cousin Tobe learning from the best.


Grandma hasn't bought new canning jars in years!


Canned beet pickles!


Fresh out of the water bath canner.


Cousin Tobe with her finished product!

After letting the jars rest overnight, then removing the rings, the beets are shelved for at least a month before enjoying. Tobe says she eats the pickled beets as a snack, right out of the jar or chopped up on salads. You can add them to a veggie or antipasti platter for a delicious party treat! The finished Beet Pickles are so delicious - not too sour and not too sweet. They are the perfect mix.

This post is part of Twister Tuesdays at GNOWFGLINS.

Preserve the Bounty - Week 4 Wrap Up

Week four of the Preserve the Bounty Challenge is my favourite so far, and the easiest. Preserving in alcohol! Who doesn't love a little drunken fruit?

My goals for this challenge:

- use fresh, local fruit from the Farmer's Market
- use alcohol I already have in my liquor cabinet (to save $)
- not use vodka (that's too easy!)


For my first creation, I improvised Jenny's recipe for Vanilla Rum Plums. I used a mix of small local black plums from Osoyoos and larger black plums from California. A bit of a cheat but they were in my fridge for some reason, so I figured I would use them up. I used a 1 litre canning jar. I had to cut the larger Californian plums into quarters (around the pit) to fit into the jar. The local plums I just pricked with a fork and popped them into the jar whole. Then I added 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 teaspoon clear vanilla and enough Vanilla flavoured rum to cover all the fruit and fill the jar. As luck would have it, I had EXACTLY enough rum left in the bottle to fill the jar, right down to the last drop!


Next I preserved fresh, local blueberries in Peach Schanpps! This time I used a 500ml canning jar. I rinsed the blueberries and picked through them to remove stems, leaves and any unripe ones. I filled the jar with blueberries (just under 2 cups), added 1/4 cup of sugar and topped it all off with enough Peach Schnapps to cover the fruit and fill the jar.


My last creation, as posted the other day, cherries in Brandy! I couldn't decide if I should leave the stems/pitts intact and use the cherries for garnish or pitt and de-stem them for use in desserts and baking. I decided to do both. I made one 500ml jar of de-stemmed and pitted cherries and one 500ml with stems and pitts. The latter will be used in drinks and on top of desserts. The former will be used inside tarts, pies and other baking/cooking applications. I followed the same process as above. Cherries, 1/4 cup sugar per jar, alcohol to fill. For all my creations I chose not to simmer the alcohol with the sugar. I didn't want to jeopardize the alcohol content by heating it. Instead I used the good old "shake" method - put the fruit, sugar and liquid in a jar, secure tightly and shake your ass off! I continued to shake the jars every couple hours, just to ensure all the sugar was dissolved, then I stored my jars in the bottom of a cupboard. Every couple days I go and shake them up again.

Now I have to wait at least a month before I test my creations. I'm looking forward to Vanilla Rum Plums over ice cream. And Blueberry Peach Schanpps Martinis. I'm also thinking of trying out some Cherry Brandy Tarts. Oh the fun I will have this fall!

Cherries in Brandy

Week four of Preserve the Bounty and Jenny challenged us to preserve using alcohol. Fruit and booze. How can you go wrong with that? Along with making a jar of Jenny's Vanilla Rum Plums, I also put together a jar of cherries preserved in brandy, with cherries from the farmer's market.

You will need:

Fresh cherries*
Brandy (can substitute vodka)
1/3 cup sugar
1 L canning jar, snap lid and ring

*You can either pit and de-stem the cherries or leave them intact. I chose to make a jar of each. The ones with stems on will be perfect as garnish for drinks and on dessert. The ones with no stems and pits will be perfect for baking.

1. Add cherries to a clean, sterilized 1 litre canning jar. Add 1/3 cup sugar.

2. Fill jar with Brandy to the bottom of the neck, leaving at least a half inch of head space at the top. Secure lid tightly.

3. Shake jar well to dissolve sugar. Leave jar on the counter for a few minutes for the remaining sugar to settle, then shake again until all the sugar is dissolved.

4. Store jar in a dark, cool place. Turn and shake lightly 3-4 times a week. Wait at least 4 weeks before eating.

Eat cherries on their own, in pies or on top of desserts. When the cherries are done you will have about 3/4 of a litre of delicious cherry brandy! The longer the cherries and brandy sit and mingle, the better the results!

Now... what to do with your cherry flavoured brandy? Mix up a drink!

Cherry Cola:
4 oz cherry brandy
8 oz Coca Cola
1 preserved cherry for granish

1. Pour brandy over ice in a tall glass. Add Coke. Garnish with a cherry!

Cherry Champagne Cocktail:
1 oz cherry brandy
3 oz champagne or sparkling white wine
2 preserved cherries

1. Drop two cherries in a champagne glass. Add cherry brandy. Top with champagne or sparkling wine.

Check here for more recipes using Cherry Brandy. It's from the BOLS website, makers of commercial Cherry Brandy. But be happy because you saved $20.99 (BC Liquor Store price) by making you own!


This post is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesday at Simply Sugar & Gluten Free

Preserve the Bounty - Week 3 Wrap Up

Retro poster from Google Images.

I started the Preserve the Bounty Challenge in week three so I had a bit of catching up to do.

I skipped the week one challenge as I wasn't sure about fermenting and I'm still not. Sauerkraut and Kimchi? No thanks. I'm thinking about trying preserved lemons, but as of right now I don't see the point in doing it for this particular challenge, since lemons aren't local to my region. (The idea is to preserve your local produce for use in winter months when it won't be available. Since lemons aren't local - I have to buy them no matter what time of year it is.)

Week two's challenge involved preserving things in oil or fat. I caught up on this one by making four Compound Butters using my garden herbs - 2 1/2 cups of butter total. I also canned roasted red peppers in a mixture of oil and vinegar. I can tell you, I won't be canning roasted red peppers any time soon. Very time consuming for very little reward. I got one 500ml jar for my troubles.


With that out of the way I set to work on the challenge for week three - preserving in vinegar. My first attempt was Pickled Ginger. I ended up with two 500ml jars. I followed that up with Grandma's Pickles in a Bucket and was rewarded with two 1L jars. I later made two more 500ml jars. After a visit to the farmer's market, things really got out of control. Using 500ml jars, I ended up with two jars of dill pickles, one jar of pickled dill carrots, one jar of pickled dills AND carrots, one jar of pickled sweet peppers and one jar of sweet pickled carrots. I also go one 1L jar of pickled shallot vinegar! I should admit that I did cheat on this challenge and used the water bath canning method to boil many of the pickled products, just to make them shelf stable. I don't have room in my fridge for this many refrigerator pickle products! The Pickled Garlic and Grandma's Pickles in a Bucket were made without heat processing and are stored in the fridge.

Unrelated to this weeks challenge, I also canned fresh tomatoes, similar to what my Grandma makes. There is nothing better than tomatoes canned in water for making fresh tomato sauce in the winter. I used this recipe. It was incredibly easy. I got two one litre jars out of my tomato bounty (about 12-14 large tomatoes). I might make more next week after I pick up more tomatoes at the farmer's market. Again, I cannot express how awesome fresh canned tomatoes are in homemade tomato sauce. I even have a recipe using them!

Back to pickling... after making Ricardo's Beet Cakes, I popped the left over beets into a jar and pickled them too! One 500ml jar of sweet pickled beets. I can't wait to eat those! The only thing I didn't pickle this week were my farmer's market blueberries and cherries, but don't think I didn't consider it! Instead of pickling cherries, I canned some in a light sugar syrup (I followed this method). Another little canning bonus to go along with the tomatoes!










Preserved for Week 3:
- Pickled Garlic 2x500ml = 1 litre (not pictured)
- Pickles in a Bucked 2x1L and 2x500ml = 3 litres
- Dill Pickles 2x500ml = 1 litre
- Dill Carrots 2x500ml = 1 litre
- Pickled Sweet Peppers = 500ml
- Pickled Sweet Carrots = 500ml
- Pickled Shallots = 1L
- Pickled Sweet Beets = 500ml
Total Preserved: 8.5 litres
Bonus: 2 litres Canned Tomatoes and 1.5 litres canned cherries!

Grandma's Pickles in a Bucket

More pickling for week 3 of the Preserve the Bounty Challenge!

This recipe comes from my Grandma. My Grandmother is the Queen of Canning. Her canned tomatoes and pickled beets are stuff of legends (seriously)! I've always said if there is a natural disaster or the Armageddon, I'm going to Grandma's house. There is enough canned food there to feed an army, or my large family! While over for lunch one day she put a dish of the sweetest, most delicious pickles on the table. I ate the entire bowl full myself - and I didn't feel bad about it either because Grandma just went to the fridge and filled the bowl right up again. I might have eaten those ones too!

These are no cook, refrigerator pickles. Grandma keeps her pickles in a giant plastic ice cream pail. I don't have a pail quite that large, nor the space to store it, so I made my pickles in batches and packed them into 1 litre canning jars. Grandma's original recipe also calls for TWICE as much sugar as vinegar. I reduced the sugar slightly in my own brine, but for the recipe post I have left it as is.

2 cups white vinegar
4 cups sugar
2 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp celery seed (or celery salt)
1 tsp mustard seed
2 long English cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
2 1L canning jars, sanitized per manufacturers directions

1. Add sugar, vinegar, salt, turmeric, celery seed and mustard seed to a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and stir until it becomes a syrupy consistency and sugar is completely dissolved.

2. Pack sliced veggies into sanitized 1L canning jars. Fill jars with syrup to just below the neck, leaving at least 1/2 inch of head space.

3. Leave in the fridge for at least 48 hours before eating. Shake jars a few times a day.

4. Keep refrigerated. Will keep in the fridge for up to one year.

Pickled Garlic

For week three of Preserve the Bounty Jenny challenged us to preserve something in vinegar. I love this challenge. The pickling possibilities are endless! My first creation - pickled garlic. I made one jar with thyme and chilies and one jar with thyme, oregano, mustard seed and chilies. The basic recipe is below. Adjust as you see fit - use any dried herb or seasoning blend that suits your fancy!



6-8 heads of garlic
2 cups white vinegar
3/4 cup dry white wine (substitute water)
3 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp mustard seed
4 whole dried Thai chilies

1. Peel and separate garlic into cloves. Place into a bowl and set aside.

2. Sterilize two 500ml canning jars according to manufactures directions (I run mine through the dishwasher. The heat cycle does a great job at sanitizing).

3. In a large saucepan, bring vinegar, wine, salt, sugar, thyme and mustard seed to a boil. Stir to ensure salt and sugar is dissolved. Add garlic cloves to the mixture and bring to a boil. Immediately remove from heat. Remove garlic from vinegar mixture using a slotted spoon.

4. Fill each jar with garlic and two chili peppers. Ladle hot vinegar mixture into jars. Fill up jar to just below the neck, leaving 1/2 inch head space at the top. Seal with heated snap lid and band.

5. Let cool to room temperature then place in the refrigerator. Leave at least 2-3 weeks before eating. The longer they sit, the better. After opening, keep refrigerated. Will last in fridge indefinitely, as long as garlic is immersed in vinegar solution.

Note: What does it mean if your pickled garlic turns blue?! Apparently it's normal. A few of my pieces had a blue tinge to them, near the root ends. Garlic contains sulfate which reacts with copper, creating a compound that will trun the garlic blue. It is still safe to eat and should not affect the taste. To prevent the reaction, the garlic needs to be heated through to de-activate the sulfer (this is why you add the cloves to the boiled vinegar mixture before canning). Another way to avoid the blue is to use purified water if you rinse your garlic cloves as standard tap water may contain trace amounts of copper, and avoid using copper pots.

Preserved Roasted Red Peppers

Still on week two of the Preserve the Bounty Challenge. I preserved herbs and citrus in butterfat but I still wanted to try preserving something in oil. I searched Google high and low for a recipe for food preserved in olive oil. My requirements were that the recipe had to be something I would actually use and it had to be SAFE (home preserving non-acidic produce in oil is not recommended by the US FDA).

I came across a recipe at Honest-Food.net. The site is titled "Hunter Angler Gardener Cook" and is full of information about finding, cooking and preserving food.

In this recipe, the peppers are roasted in the oven, dredged through a vinegar solution, packed into jars, covered in more vinegar and then topped with olive oil. It`s pickling and oil packing in one. The added acidity from the vinegar is sure to eliminate any bacteria growth concerns. These roasted red peppers can be eaten as is, added to a sandwich or used in sauces or soups.

I followed the recipe to a tee. It`s lengthy so I am not going to re-post here. Just go on over to Honest-Food.net and check it out.

Preserving roasted red peppers is a long and involved process. I didn't enjoy it and I won't be doing it again any time soon! All that work and I only got one 500ml jar out of it! Then again, I only processed three large peppers... any more and I would still be at it! I'm confident that when the time comes to use the peppers, I efforts will have been worth it!