POST EIGHTEEN - A FEW THINGS...

well, this post is a random assortment of things i've come across online lately. i thought some of you might appreciate one or more of them...

~just in case you, or someone you know is looking for a fun little paper city, fully equipped with people, vehicles and a helicopter, check out http://madebyjoel.blogspot.com/2010/04/paper-city.html ... its really cute- you should check the site out!

~this site is really cool. it has all kinds of fun stuff including tons of tutorials for making all kinds of different things! i've been wanting to make an advent calendar and saw one listed under the "top 100 tutorials of 2009" tab- i'm really excited! you really should look at http://thelongthread.com/

~http://www.etsy.com/shop/fabricworm is a shop that has lots of really fun fabrics. i know its pretty dorky, but i love checking to see what new fabrics they have. i have yet to purchase anything from fabricworm, but they have great feedback ratings.

~along the lines of canning (post 17) http://www.foodinjars.com/ seems like a really cool site! and if any of you happen to live in the philly area (megan & vicky:) and are interested in going to a canning class they offer them! i didn't check out all the details-it does look like most of the summer classes are done, but there are still a couple coming up.

so, those are a couple fun things i've found online lately- hope you find them of interest too!

POST SEVENTEEN - CANNING...

i am a canning novice for sure, and i am here to encourage anyone who has not given it a try to do so! i made some blueberry jam last year during a little canning adventure with a friend (cara:) and have been looking forward to doing more canning this year. so, after we went strawberry picking a little bit ago i was ready to make jam!

i have been a bit intimidated about canning (afraid someone might end up with food poisoning from something i canned improperly) but, it really isn't so hard! that said, there are different ways to can, and all i have done is a water bath. the supplies are pretty basic and you can actually make do without some of them, but others are pretty handy- (like a funnel and jar lifter) when i started researching this whole canning thing last year i came across this website http://www.pickyourown.org/index.htm which has a TON of information on it.

you can find listings of farms near you to "pick your own" produce, information on types of canning supplies and equipment and where to get them, and recipes and detailed instructions on how to can, pickle, dry, freeze, etc...

when it came time to actually make the strawberry jam and can it, i really just followed the pretty basic instructions on the pectin box. one note- definitely check out the low sugar or no sugar added pectin this is the kind i used http://www.amazon.com/Sure-Jell-Premium-Fruit-Pectin-1-75-Ounce/dp/B001E50XBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1279043852&sr=8-1

you use significantly less sugar with this kind than the usual pectin, and it tastes great!

even with a couple minor deviations (not fully intentional) from the recipe the jam turned out good with everyone in our house willingly eating it. so, if you have any interest you should give it a try!

now i know some of you have lots of canning experience, so if you have any wisdom or resources to share please do! happy canning!!

ps. http://www.simplebites.net/ is doing a series on canning right now that looks pretty cool...