Canning to preserve the summer

I remember when I was young watching my father in the kitchen canning hot peppers.  Being Hispanic meant that hot chili peppers were essential at every meal.  My dad loved many different varieties of peppers, like jalapenos, serranos, chili pequin, and so many others. 

It seems like it was just yesterday that I was walking in the house and being confronted by the strong aroma of boiling peppers.  The aroma hit like a strong heat to my eyes, my nose, and quickly to the back of my throat.  As a kid it was yucky, but now it's a wonderful memory.  He took such delicate care in making sure everything was perfect through out the canning process.  He would blend some of the peppers in to a salsa base.  Others he would leave whole, which was a perfect finger food at kitchen table.  The pantry cabinets were fulled with bottles of canned peppers, and there were always opened bottles chilling in the refrigerator. 

My father passed away several years ago and I wish I could go back in time to learn the canning process from him. I wish I would have sat there with him as he proudly and loving worked with his beloved peppers.  There is so many things I would do if I could turn back time.

Canning to preserve the summer

If you want to eat locally ― and eat well ― year-round, can your own fresh fruit and vegetables. That’s what Kelli Glazier of Palo Alto, California, and her book club decided they’d do last summer after reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, inspired by the author’s account of preserving the glut of tomatoes and other summer produce from her farm.

"We wanted to support our local farmers, buy as much pro-duce as we could, and can all day ― like in the old days, making food for the winter," Glazier explains.

None of the four friends had canned before, but they jumped in and learned together. "It was so much fun," says Glazier. By the end of their first day, they had transformed boxes of produce into gleaming jars, and everyone got to take some home.  source