Farmfresh
City Biddy
Here is what I do ... and have been doing for several years.
I figure how much we can eat in a year or year and a half of a certain item. Then shoot for that number.
Example. My family eats canned green beans, but are just not crazy about them. If I can get them to eat a pint jar of green beans in a week I am doing good. The number I am for then is approximately 52 to 60 pints of green beans a year.
I also try to can like we eat it. Most veggies are in wide mouth pints. It is easier to open two jars if I need to than to house leftovers that may not get eaten up. Tomatoes on the other hand ALWAYS go into quarts. We always us a quart when making a tomato recipe.
I also can a big variety of things instead of lots of one thing. Some tomatoes for example are canned with hot peppers inside - great for chili and stews, some are canned plain, some make pizza sauce in pint jars, some make spaghetti sauce in quarts, some are paste, some are ketchup, and some are BBQ sauce ... you get the idea.
I have about 20 different varieties of jelly, jam or butters. I do lots of extra of this type of thing and then either give as gifts or sell some extras at Holiday time.
I try to have all of the jars rotate out on an annual basis. I want a year of food available and all fresh nutritious foods. I usually only donate extra produce or food I raise BEFORE I can it. I also try to provide meat for my grown children, by sharing when I buy a butcher beef, pig or lamb and by raising extra poultry for their use. They are out on their own, but no families (D1 is married only) so they usually only want the sweet stuff.
Also keep good records. What you canned, dried, froze, etc.. And mark off what you ate. After a few years you can plan better for success!
Hope that helps.
I figure how much we can eat in a year or year and a half of a certain item. Then shoot for that number.
Example. My family eats canned green beans, but are just not crazy about them. If I can get them to eat a pint jar of green beans in a week I am doing good. The number I am for then is approximately 52 to 60 pints of green beans a year.
I also try to can like we eat it. Most veggies are in wide mouth pints. It is easier to open two jars if I need to than to house leftovers that may not get eaten up. Tomatoes on the other hand ALWAYS go into quarts. We always us a quart when making a tomato recipe.
I also can a big variety of things instead of lots of one thing. Some tomatoes for example are canned with hot peppers inside - great for chili and stews, some are canned plain, some make pizza sauce in pint jars, some make spaghetti sauce in quarts, some are paste, some are ketchup, and some are BBQ sauce ... you get the idea.
I have about 20 different varieties of jelly, jam or butters. I do lots of extra of this type of thing and then either give as gifts or sell some extras at Holiday time.
I try to have all of the jars rotate out on an annual basis. I want a year of food available and all fresh nutritious foods. I usually only donate extra produce or food I raise BEFORE I can it. I also try to provide meat for my grown children, by sharing when I buy a butcher beef, pig or lamb and by raising extra poultry for their use. They are out on their own, but no families (D1 is married only) so they usually only want the sweet stuff.
Also keep good records. What you canned, dried, froze, etc.. And mark off what you ate. After a few years you can plan better for success!
Hope that helps.
