About
I have been canning and pickling since 2000 when I found a Ball jam kit at a local craft store. My initial success among my friends with this kit made me curious about this old tradition which I know had been practiced in my family but failed to be passed down to my generation.
The initial acclaim from my friends over the jam experiment led me to ponder the possibilities of turning my annual tomato picking and sauce making tradition into a canning experiment in order to reclaim the vast amounts of freezer space it inevitably (but deliciously!) robbed me of ever year. This led to the purchase of The Joy of Pickling (in its first edition at the time) which is still my favorite canning recipe book to this day. After the tomato success, I moved onto savory cucumbers and also began taking requests. Ten years later I have developed some recipes (non-laboratory tested), learned to pressure can, and haven’t run out of new things to try. As the name of this blog implies, one of my favorite items to enjoy my pickles with is some gin, specifically a good martini.
As of July, 2010, I have my Master Food Preserver certification through the University of Wisconsin Extension Services.
In November 2011 I began to knit too. And since I cook a lot as well, I suspect you will see posts related to these activities from time to time as well.
This site is meant to chronicle my home food preservation endeavors and is not an all inclusive step-by-step educational resource to teach you home preservation techniques. I will attempt to answer as many questions as possible and assist you with finding resources you need to be a successful and safe home food preserver. If you have any questions that are not answered on this site, you can contact me directly and I will try to answer your question as quickly as possible. The Safety Information page is a good starting point for resources and pertinent safety information relating to home food preservation.
I live and work in Washington, DC.
Gin and Pickles chronicles the DIY adventures of a a Master Food Preserver in Washington, DC pursuing the
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I took your class at Hill’s Kitchen last Sunday. I did the Splendid Table green tomato pickles this week and they are awesome. I have so many green tomatoes now and am planning to do at least two more batches and gift them. I made the apple butter today and it tasted really good. I used Honey Crisp apples and plan to can apples in light syrup tomorrow. Thanks for a great class.
Susan (from Walker-Jones)
You’re welcome! I am glad to hear that you are putting everything to use so quickly!
You did a great job today. You were much less nervous this time than last time. I definitely see some of the advantages of pressure canning over water bath canning. I checked out the Grey Farmer’s Market, interesting, may go if the day permits.
Thanks Susan! I am glad you were able to come out for another class!
I am going to can tomatoes next weekend as I am picking up 20 pounds of them from my CSA farmer. I think I want to pressure can them, due to the excessive heat. Ideas or comments?
Thanks,
Susan
Approved tomato recipes will usually have times for boiling water bath and pressure canning http://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/B2605.pdf
Using the Ball cookbook, I did 7 quarts, although one didn’t seal properly. I put it in the frig and will use it to make chilled tomato soup with basil this week. I will never again do 20 pounds of tomatoes, next time, 10 pounds with jalepenos.