Lancaster County
1383 Arcadia Road, Room 1, Lancaster, PA 17601
717-394-6851 • E-mail: LancasterExt@psu.edu

2002 Issue Number 3

What's inside . . .

August, 2002

Dear Food Preserver:

Beautiful jars of home canned produce filling our cupboards give a sense of satisfaction-those hours of hard work are worth it as we anticipate later enjoyment in using the food. After the tomatoes, corn, and green beans are "put away", I begin to look at what is left in the garden and figure creative ways to use it. I've always enjoyed making pickles and remember the summer we made seven different kinds. This year the green tomatoes might be combined with cabbage for a hot dog relish. Some cookbooks have a recipe similar to chow-chow that is called "End of the Garden Relish". The name is so appropriate with its little bit of this and little bit of that. I really like the combination of the mixed vegetables. We have included some pickling recipes in this newsletter that you might like to try.

It's a good idea to check your old recipes against newer tested recipes. Prior to the mid 70's, I remember using the open kettle method for pickles and relishes. Using the new recipes that process the foods, I know that the food is safer and the quality is just as good or better--no more jars with lids that release in storage and no more slippery pickles.
Happy canning!

Sincerely,
Nancy R. Wiker
Extension Agent--Family and Consumer Sciences

In consultation with:
Martha Zepp

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Feature Foods of the Month

In a Pickle

As the end of the canning season approaches, I like to use those leftover things in the garden to make various pickles and relishes. Besides their unique flavor, the vinegar used in pickling increases the acid content of the product allowing for processing in the boiling water bath. After surveying numerous cookbooks, I end up trying some new recipes. Try half a recipe if you're not sure how you will like the results. Work quickly to fill the jars with hot relish including adequate syrup. Having the water in the canner at the boiling point when you add the filled hot jars saves time and results in a better seal with no siphoning. Here is a corn relish that I found to be tasty and colorful. It can be made using fresh corn or frozen corn.

Pickled Corn Relish
10 cups fresh whole kernel corn (16 to 20 medium-size ears), or
six 10-ouncepackages of frozen corn
2 1/2 cups diced sweet red peppers
2 1/2 cups diced sweet green peppers
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
1 1/4 cups diced onions
1 3/4 cups sugar
5 cups vinegar (5%)
2 1/2 tablespoons canning salt
2 1/2 teaspoons celery seed
2 1/2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 1/4 teaspoons turmeric
Yield: About 9 pints

Procedure: Boil ears of corn 5 minutes. Dip in cold water. Cut whole kernels from cob or use six 10-ounce packages of frozen corn. Combine peppers, celery, onions, sugar, vinegar, salt, and celery seed in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mix mustard and turmeric in 1/2 cup of the simmered mixture. Add this mixture and corn to the hot mixture. Simmer another 5 minutes. If desired, thicken mixture with a flour paste made of 1/4 cup flour blended in 1/4 cup cold water and stir frequently. Fill jars with hot mixture, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process half-pints or pints for 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner (at altitudes under 1,000 feet).

Canning Success
Use enough liquid on pickles and relishes. Because the ingredients going into a pickle or relish are low acid foods, this is not a time to use the little bit of extra corn or onion that is left over. Measure accurately so that you do not reduce the acidity level of the finished product.

Beets
Plain beets require pressure canning and frozen beets have less than an optimal quality. Putting beets in a pickling solution reduces processing time considerably and results in a tasty treat. The pickling solution can even be used to flavor and color hard cooked eggs. This is definitely a regional food as I once served red beet eggs to friends in Illinois and was asked what they were.

Beet Pickles
3 quarts peeled, cooked beets
2 cups sugar
2 sticks cinnamon
1 tablespoon whole allspice or cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 cups vinegar
1 1/2 cups water
Combine all ingredients except beets in a large saucepot. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer 15 minutes. Remove spices. Pack hot beets into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Ladle hot liquid over beets, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process pints and quarts 30 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
Yield: about 6 pints or 3 quarts.

Procedure for preparing beets: Trim off beet tops, leaving 1 inch of stem and roots to prevent bleeding of color. Wash thoroughly. Sort for size. Cover similar sizes together with boiling water and cook until tender (about 25 to 30 minutes.) Drain and discard liquid. Cool beets. Trim off roots and stems and slip off skins. Remove any blemishes. Slice into 1/4 inch slices and proceed as above. Small whole beets may be used without slicing.

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Pectin--A Key Ingredient

Pectin in Jams and Jellies
Successful jams, jellies, and preserves require the proper balance of pectin, acid, and sugar. Some fruits such as tart apples and grapes have adequate pectin and acid for gelling. Peaches and pears are low in both and require another source of acid and pectin to gel. With commercially available pectin, you can use various fruits, berries, and other ingredients to make high quality spreads. Less cooking is needed when pectin is added resulting in a fresher taste.

Tips For Success - Follow Directions Exactly
Use pectin as directed and do not exchange one type of pectin for another. Each brand of pectin requires a different proportion of fruit, sugar and acid in order for the spread to jell.

Measure ingredients exactly. Too much sugar results in a soft product; too little sugar yields a tough product. Do not use sugar substitutes unless called for in the recipe. Too much acid will cause the jelly to weep, and too little acid results in a weak and runny product.

Prepare one batch at a time. Doubling a recipe may prevent proper gelling.

Purchase fresh pectin each year. Old pectin may result in poor gels. Some pectin products have a "use by" date stamped on the box.

Use firm ripe fruit. Over-ripe fruit makes a soft gel. Under-ripe fruit makes a firm set.

Use two-piece lids.

USDA recommends processing in the boiling water bath for 5 minutes if using sterilized jars-10 minutes if jars are just clean.

Use jar sizes listed in recipes. Filling jellies into larger jars may result in a soft product.

Confused about Types of Pectin?
Are you confused by the new pectin products on the grocery shelf? Regular and modified pectins are available commercially. Read both the ingredient label and the directions for clues about the product. Regular pectins will include either a liquid or powdered form of pectin and some form of acid to assist in gel formation. Common acids used include lactic, citric, and fumaric. Some have a preservative added to prevent microbial spoilage to the finished product.

Modified pectins are used to make lower calorie jams and jellies. One type of modified pectin forms a gel with 1/3 less sugar. Other modified pectin products may be used with artificial sweeteners or sugar. Products that can be used with artificial sweeteners usually have a preservative. The type using malto-dextrin, a starch type thickener may be cloudy or opaque rather than clear and is not suitable for a no-cook freezer jam or jelly. Low methoxyl pectin requires a calcium source in the product to form a gel. The no-sugar product may be more cloudy than the one made with sugar and weeping may occur. The low methoxyl pectin is not suitable for freezer jam. A fourth product contains locust bean gum and xanthin gum to help produce a thicker product and is suitable for either cooked or uncooked products.

Generic brands of pectin are available at a reasonable cost in some bulk food departments. Be sure to ask for a recipe folder with these products.

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Blue Ribbon Canning

The upcoming fair season becomes an exhilarating time for those entering home canned products. You probably expect your product to be judged on proper maturity, good color, uniformity of size, and freedom from signs of spoilage. Some of the most obvious things are overlooked by competitors.

Follow rules for each category exactly.

Check that the lid is sealed.

Use new two piece lids. One piece lids and zinc lids will automatically be disqualified. Lids with a date indicate an older lid because jar lids are no longer dated.

Avoid rusty rings.

Use clean jars—no lime deposits or glass stains.

Wash food residue from jars and rings—no stickiness.

Label products—include contents, date canned, processing method (boiling water bath or pressure canned), time and pounds pressure.

Check jars for appropriate head space.

Best wishes to the competitors. May you win a blue ribbon.

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Don't Can These

Pesto is an uncooked seasoning mixture of herbs, usually including fresh basil, nuts, and some oil. Made fresh, pesto may be stored in the refrigerator for no more than three days. It may be frozen for long term storage in freezer jars or plastic freezer boxes. Allow 1/2 inch headspace.

Canning herbs and oil—a no no!
Herbs and oils are both low-acid and together could support the growth of the disease causing Clostridium botulinum bacteria. Oils may be flavored with herbs if they are made for fresh use, stored in the refrigerator and used within two to three days. There are no canning recommendations. Fresh herbs must be washed well and dried completely before storing in the oil.

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Problem Solving

What are the white crystals?
There are white crystals in the grape juice or glass-like particles in the grape jelly. Why? They are formed by the tartaric acid from a natural substance in grapes. Allow the juice to stand in the refrigerator for several days. Then strain it through a damp jelly bag or several layers of cheesecloth before preparing jelly. If crystals form in canned grape juice, allow the sediment to settle in the bottom of the jar and then carefully ladle juice off so as not to disturb the sediment. If desired, juice can then be put in clean, hot jars, capped and reprocessed the original length of time.

Tomato Juice—Preventing Separation
Have you wondered how to prevent canned tomato juice from separating? This is because the tomatoes are crushed before they are heated through. As soon as they are crushed, enzymes in the tomato start to break down the pectin that “cements” tomato cells together. Commercial tomato juice is heated much faster so that the enzymes that break down the pectin are destroyed before they have a chance to act. Thus the tomato cells remain intact and a thick-bodied, homogeneous juice is produced.

The best way to reduce separation is to quickly cut about one pound of tomatoes into quarters and put directly into a saucepan. Heat immediately to boiling while crushing. Continue to slowly add and crush freshly cut tomato quarters to the boiling mixture at a rate which does not slow the boiling. After all tomatoes are added, cook them another five minutes before juicing.
The least desirable way to make tomato juice is to put raw tomatoes in a blender. Blending raw tomatoes encourages the enzymatic breakdown of pectin leading to separation. It also incorporates air into the juice resulting in destruction of vitamin C.

Brown Corn
What causes canned corn to turn brown? There are several possibilities: corn that was too mature, liquid not covering the corn, jars being processed at too high a temperature, or the variety of corn used. Choose freshly picked corn which has plump, shiny kernels filled with milk. Pack the corn loosely enough with at least one inch headspace so that you can cover the corn with adequate liquid before capping the jar. Keep pressure in the canner at the recommended pounds—if you think you did, the dial gauge may be faulty and need to be tested. Some varieties of corn are more suitable for canning then others—try a different variety the next time.

New Dial Gauge Tester
Another reminder! Have your dial gauge tested each year before using your pressure canner. The cooperative extension office has a new dial gauge tester that works like a bicycle pump. It does not require any waiting time for your gauge to be tested. Martha will be here on Wednesdays from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. to test gauges.

Where trade names appear, no discrimination is intended, and no endorsement by Penn State Cooperative Extension is implied.

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