Tuesday, June 27, 2017

More Canning and Dehydrating

It is one of those busy days.  I dehydrated three good sized heads of cabbage, filling the dehydrators last evening.  I got about three quarts of dried cabbage, all bagged up and ready to use in soups, etc.

This morning I am browning 12 lbs. of hamburger to jar up and can.  I had seen a video about packing raw hamburger into the jars without browning it first, so last time I canned hamburger, I tried that method.  It turned out just fine, but I find I like the texture of the precooked meat better.  It is just a personal preference.

There are 6 bananas sitting in the fruit bowl on my kitchen table that need to be turned into a couple of loaves of banana bread, so as soon as the pressure canner full of meat is going, banana bread making will commence.  I will share a loaf with Oldest Son.  He loves banana bread as much as I do.  He reads my blog, so I am guessing he will show up tonight after work to collect his loaf without my having to call him.

And that's the extent of the excitement here in my little Home Sweet Apartment.  When the chores are done, some sewing will happen.  And quite possibly, a nap.

There was a time when I would tease my Dad about his afternoon naps, but the older I get the more I realize, the man was on to something.  :)

14 comments:

  1. Banana bread..yum!! Babies and toddler nap, older people nap...I think offices should close for afternoon power naps lol!

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    1. I think you are on to something, Jenn!! People protest everything under the sun these days. Maybe you could organize a protest for power naps. :)

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  2. Great idea about a nap..that sounds like the perfect activity right now.

    Loved your story from the last post about your baked beans. I laughed out loud -- that's totally like my 'bean lasagna'.
    SJ

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    1. Yep, SJ...As soon as the banana bread comes out of the oven and the pressure canner is done.....BAM! Naptime!

      I have had epic cooking disasters. Like the Thanksgiving Day pumpkin pies that I forgot to add in the sugar. Ah, well. Keeps life interesting. :)

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  3. LOL - Vicki, there are days that I wish I lived next door to you!

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    1. Aw, Gorge...Sorry, but that spot is occupied. Son called about 15 minutes ago to see if his banana bread was done yet. ;)

      Probably a good thing we don't live neighbors. Couple of old farts like us might get ourselves into some mischief. :)

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  4. Do you blanch the cabbage before you dehydrate it?

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    1. Linda...No, I don't blanch the cabbage. I just cut it up into the size pieces I will use, spread it out on the dehydrator trays that have the plastic mesh inserts to keep the pieces from falling through the trays and dry it at 135 degrees.

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  5. Your post reminds me of something that happened a couple of days ago. I was bringing in squash and green beans to put up and my wife laughed and said we still haven't finished eating the green beans from the last two years!

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    1. Bill...Just look at it like you have a good food storage plan in progress. :)
      I opened a jar of chicken for my supper a couple of night ago that I had canned in 2012. It made a good meal of chicken and dumplings.
      Thank you for stopping by and for leaving a comment. I always like to hear what other folks are doing.

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  6. I have not dehydrated cabbage. I probably should so I have ample supply all winter long. Thanks for the idea.

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    1. Kristina...I really like the dehydrated cabbage in soups. Just another way to add variety to my food storage.

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  7. Vicki, do you use some kind of machine to slice up onions and things like that, or to make little cubes of them? I bought a spam slicer I saw on Riverriders blog, and it works great. But I went to Walmart looking for something to slice and dice onions, and I found absolutely nothing. All they had was big powered machines like blinders that cost a hundred bucks. I just want something simple and cheap, but can't seem to find the right thing.

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    1. Harry...I use a mandoline slicer for slicing potatoes, onions, etc. There are models that are inexpensive and models that run into big bucks. Mine is probably the bottom of the line and it works just fine. I got it at one of the big box stores for under $20. There are slicers that are freestanding and slicers that you set on top of a bowl and they don't have legs. The freestanding one works best for me.

      For dicing vegetables I use a Vidalia Chop Wizard. This is one of the best tools I have for food prep. It will make a 1/2 inch dice and a 1/4 inch dice. I use the 1/2 inch mostly. I dice onions, carrots, potatoes, peppers, etc. for canning and dehydrating. It doesn't work well for meat, but it is great for most any vegetable. I got mine at a big box store for about $20.

      You can get both from Amazon for about what I paid for mine. The Vidalia Chop Wizard I have is the one they show with the two green colored inserts. I swear by that one and I sure wouldn't want to be without it, especially with as much produce I process.

      If you go to YouTube and search 'mandoline slicer' or 'Vidalia Chop Wizard,' there are videos showing how to use each. I can't see paying huge amounts of money for a slicer or dicer when these inexpensive tools work so well.

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