The worst recession in decades and healthy eating has homeowners putting up food from their gardens this year. A comeback for the art of canning has homeowners “in the can” stretching their food dollars into the winter months.
With unemployment at high levels nationally (getting canned) has created a renewed interest in canning at home. In our household we decided to take a bumper crop of tomatoes and make some tasty salsa that could be enjoyed on those snowy nights to come this winter. The salsa turned out great but I have to admit each batch turned out different than the next which in my opinion adds to the adventure of “putting up” your own food supply. Canning in bottles may have its “roots” in the early part of the 19th century. Famous Frenchman and conquerer Napoleon Bonaparte was influential in getting some of his countrymen to develop a method of sealing food in bottles. He of course was the man known for the quote: “An Army marches on its stomach.” On long military conquests in the early 1800’s he recognized that food was the fuel that made his army go.
If you are “in the can” or considering starting to can, here is a link to a great Wall Street Journal article and a link to a great website called “Canning Across America.” Bon Appetit!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703787204574449160079437536.html
