Homemade Chocolate Syrup

1 c warm water
1 c sugar
1 c cocoa
3 T homemade vanilla extract
pinch of canning salt

Whisk cocoa and water in a saucepan until cocoa is dissolved.  Whisk in sugar. Put on the stove and heat on medium to a simmer. Add salt and vanilla. Heat thoroughly but do not boil.

1/4 inch head space. Hot water bath for 15 minutes.

Makes 3 1/2 pints.

This recipe is from Noreen on youtube. She does not can it on the video. I found the instructions for canning (at my own risk) on another blog. Not recommended to can by other sources. I may try adding lemon juice to see what it does to the taste and texture.

French Market Soup

15 bean mix (2 1/2 -3 cups)
Hambone
2 bay leaves
2 T thyme leaves
1 T cayenne pepper
1/2 T black pepper
2 cloves garlic
2 pints diced tomatoes
2 onions, chopped
2 c chopped celery
1 lb raw sliced link sausage
2 c cubed raw chicken

Rinse your beans, dump them into a big soup pot with your hambone, cover with water, add 2 bay leaves, a couple tablespoons of fresh thyme leaves (or a couple teaspoons dry), about a tablespoon of cayenne, 1/2 tablespoon of black pepper, and either 2 cloves of garlic or a tablespoon of garlic powder. Simmer it, covered, 3 hours. Pull out the hambone and let it cool enough to get the meat off it. Meanwhile, add 2 pints of diced tomatoes, 2 white or yellow onions, chopped (or 2-3 tablespoons onion powder), 2 cups of chopped celery, salt and pepper if needed. Simmer another 1 1/2 hours, then toss in the meat from your hambone, 1 lb raw sliced link sausage (I'm going to try it with Andouille next time), and 2 cups cubed raw chicken. Simmer another half hour, throw in 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, and serve.

1 inch head space Process 75 min pints, 90 min quarts


This was shared on Facebook by Anne Ott.

Making soup base powder

Pour your stock into a pot or pan over medium heat
Bring to a boil and reduce until a 1/4 of the total volume is left
After the stock is thick, transfer it to you dehydrator
Turn on to high and wait 8hrs
crush and blend the dry stock into a fine powder
Vacuum seal in an airtight container for a year
To re hydrate mix a tea spoon of powder per cup until dissolved then additional powder to taste.

Canning Swedish Meatballs

5 lbs ground beef
1/2 c bread crumbs finely chopped
1 1/2 c oatmeal finely chopped
 parsley flakes
2 quarts beef stock
4 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 splashes Worcestershire sauce
1/2 onion
1 clove garlic
celery salt
oregano (will use kale powder)
pepper
pepper flakes
thyme
1 t canning salt

Mix oatmeal, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs and spices (dash if not specified). Add beef. Mix well.
Make small meatballs, 1 inch in size. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Test for doneness.
Mix soup, beef stock, 1/2 t pepper, dash of celery salt, 1 T parsley flakes, 1 1/4 t salt and Worcestershire sauce. Add additional water if the sauce is not thin enough (watery consistency). Bring to a simmer.
Fill quart jars loosely with meatballs, to shoulder of jar. Add sauce to 1 inch head space. Remove air bubbles. Process in pressure canner for 90 minutes at 15 lbs of pressure.

Makes 7 quarts

This recipe is from a youtube video by Janie Pendleton with some personal modifications.

Canning Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup

9-10 large Yukon Gold potatoes (unpeeled), diced into large pieces.   Rinse twice and then cover with water until used.
1/2 bunch celery
1 large onion
1 clove garlic
2 c carrots
olive oil
canning salt
1 qt chicken stock
3 c diced ham
1 pt ham stock or ham soup base
pepper
2 c corn
Optional - mix 1 c milk with 1/2 c flour. Or use clearjel.
2 drops Worcestershire sauce
1 c grated Parmesan cheese

Heat a large pot. add oil, garlic, celery, onions and carrots. Lightly drizzle oil on top. Add a pinch of canning salt.Simmer 5 minutes. Add potatoes and water. Add chicken stock, ham, ham stock, pepper and corn. Heat to simmer. Taste test and add spices if necessary.
In a separate bowl, whisk milk, flour (or clearjel) and Worcestershire sauce.
Add milk mixture by adding some of the soup broth to the mixture, then pouring some of the mixture into the soup. Repeat these steps until all of the milk mixture has been added to the soup.
Add cheese. Once cheese is melted, taste test.
Heat to boiling then pour into quart size canning jars, leaving 1 inch of head space. Pressure can for 90 minutes at 15 lbs of pressure.
Once processed, if it separates after the first 2 hours, shake the jar to mix it.


Makes 7-8 quarts

This recipe is from a youtube video by Janie Pendleton with some personal modifications.

Beef Vegetable Soup

1T oil
2 cloves garlic
2 bunches celery
1 small bag carrots
2-3 c sweet peppers
2 large onions
3 c corn
chopped roast beef from slow cooker, with drippings
2 quarts beef stock (or more if liquid is needed)
1 can diced tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 t canning salt
4-5 yukon gold potatoes
1/2 head cabbage
1-2 quarts home canned tomato sauce
1-2 c sugar (start with 1 and add to taste)
4-5 T chili powder
1 t celery salt

Saute garlic in oil. Add celery, carrots, peppers and onion. Drizzle with small amount of oil. Cook for 5 minutes. Add corn, roast, beef stock, tomatoes, salts and pepper. Heat to a simmer. Add potatoes, cabbage and tomato sauce. Add sugar, chili powder and celery salt. Only heat to a simmer so the potatoes and cabbage do not cook through. Taste test and add additional sugar, salt or chili powder.

Fill quart jars to 1 inch head space. Process at 15 lbs for 90 minutes.


This is a recipe from a youtube video by Janie Pendleton with some personal modifications.

Slow Cooker Peach Butter to Can

Peel, core and quarter peaches. Place in slow cooker. Stir in 4 cups of sugar, 4 T or 1/4c  ground cinnamon, 1 heaping tsp ground clove, 1 heaping tsp allspice. More spice can be added after it is cooked. Cook for 4-5 hours. Blend using an immersion blender. Cook for an additional 4-5 hours, depending on thickness.

Fill 1/2 pint jars to 1/4 inch headspace. Process in boiling water for 10 minutes.
Makes around 12 1/2 pint jars.

This recipe is from a Noreen's kitchen you tube video.

Tomato soup to can

Canning Celery and Onions

Syrups for Canning

Social Security Benefits

Social security is a complicated program, but you cannot afford to NOT know everything you should about your benefits. But it can be hard to get the information you need in order to make the most informed decisions for you and your family.
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Number 5: Social Security is MassiveIn 2014, over 59 million Americans will receive Social Security. Among them are:

• 38 million retired workers
• 9 million survivors and dependents
• 11 million disabled workers and dependents

Number 4: The Elderly Could Not Survive Without This ProgramMany elderly Americans heavily rely on Social Security; it's the major income source for most older Americans. In fact, 9 out of 10 people age 65 and older receive Social Security benefits, which sometimes comprise 38% of income. Even more important, half of married couples and three quarters of singles get at least half their retirement income from Social Security.
Number 3: The workforce is shrinkingDemographics are not in our favor, as fewer workers support more retirees. In 1950 there were 16 workers per Social Security recipient. In 1960 there were 5 workers per recipient. By the year 2033, there will only be 2.1 workers per recipient.
Number 2: The Numbers Just Don’t Add UpSocial Security relies on its trust fund in order to cover shortfalls between taxes paid and benefits paid. The trust fund is projected to run out of money in 2033. Once that happens, retirees can only expect to receive about 75% of the benefits they should have received had the fund not run out of money.
Number 1: The #1 Way to Increase Your BenefitsEvery year after your full retirement age that you wait to claim benefits will boost your annual payouts by another 8%, until you reach age 70. Waiting to take benefits at age 70 will give you 32% more in benefits than if you took them at age 66, and 76% more than taking them at age 62. If you can afford to delay benefits until age 70 and if you live past age 82, you will receive more in lifetime income from Social Security than if you wait until full retirement age.

http://www.fool.com/ecap/the_motley_fool/5-social-security-facts/?paid=7385&psource=eiidsq7410860001&waid=7387&wsource=esadsqwdg0860002

Earthbox AWS Notes

To prevent clogs:
1. We flush out all water lines after distribution lines are installed, but before applying water pressure to the EBs.
2. We install a 150 - 200 mesh flushable filter before the regulator (to protect the in-line regulator) or after if not rated for static pressure.
 

From the watering system directions...

"Each Pressure Regulator can water up to 30 EarthBoxes within 200’ of the spigot."

You are limited by the pressure regulator.

STUFFED PEPPER SOUP FOR CANNING

FOR STUFFED CABBAGE OMIT PEPPERS ADD CABBAGE



You can add or take away what you want I just throw it in some times adding more of one thing or another. These are estimates It is a "add to taste" recipe. Taste and add more of this or that.


2 lbs of ground pork
2 lbs of Hamburger
2-3 large to extra large onions, diced
8-12 Large Green Peppers, largely diced
2-3 quart Tomatoes, crushed
2-3 quart of tomato sauce (plain)
Water - Several quarts to make it soup not thick remember you add to rice later so liquid is good.(will use stock and reduce water added)

Spices: All to taste add as much or little as you like.

Oregano (2-4 tsps some times more)
Basil (2-4 tsps some times more)
Black Pepper (1 tsp to start for frying add to taste as needed)
dehydrated Garlic (add fresh if you have it) (A few tsp)
Crushed red pepper flakes if desired

Beef and Chicken Bullion cubes Start with 5 each (will use stock instead and reduce water added)

To Make:

Start by frying the meat and half the 4 spices, as you cook chop meat into bite size pieces.

Add a small amount of water as needed so meat does not dry out.

When it is half way cooked add diced Peppers and onions.

When they are partially cooked dump them into a large Stock pot.

Add Tomatoes, Tomato sauce the rest of the spices and the bullion cubes.

Add water (stock) to make soup "like".

Cook this until flavors blend I let it simmer for a hour or so. Nice to use 18 qt roasting pan.

Check every so often add flavoring to your taste.

I do not add salt until I am done adding bullion cubes they have enough salt most of the time.

I have also added sugar.

For Canning:

Pressure can at 10lbs pressure (or whatever is required for your altitude) for 75 minutes (pints) or 90 minutes (quarts).

Do not can with Rice...Add cooked rice at meal time. I place cooked rice bowl and add soup on top.

This recipe was supplied by  HOLLY DAVIDSON via the Facebook Canning page. I have made a few adjustments (highlighted portions).