We were down to two jars of homemade applesauce...not good...but yesterday I came across apples for 53 cents per pound! I got 15 pounds and made up some applesauce to replenish our supply. Crisis averted.
Discoveries made during the process:
I have discovered that crockpot applesauce has a brown color even if you add lemon juice, but stovetop applesauce will yield a color more like store bought applesauce. My kids don't seem to care either way, but it is nice to know in the case of making applesauce for other people.
I also discovered that I prefer to use pint jars because I feel like I've accomplished more when there are more jars sitting there cooling on the towel and pinging to tell me they're sealed. How silly is that??? I decided to use quart jars because the girls will finish a pint jar in one sitting, but was a bit disappointed in the number of jars I got from 15 pounds of apples. I may have to go back to the store and get another 15-20 pounds...at that price, it's hard to pass up!
I've also discovered that I like wide-mouthed jars best because they stack more easily.
I wonder what all of you do with your empty jars. How have you found to store them? I was putting them back into my pantry, but really would prefer to find a better place. After all, full jars are so pretty, but empties just take up space.
7 comments:
I store most of my empty jars in the attic. I do keep some in the garage so there are some at hand for a quick canning session. I like to leave the peels on my apple so the sauce has a rosy tinge to it. It all gets taken out in the food mill.
One of the blogs had a suggestion that our empty jars could be filled with water for "just in case" times. I thought that was a good idea...
We have a large floor to ceiling built in shelf in the kitchen that we keep our home canned food on and most of the empty jars (store bought food in the pantry). We have so many jars now though that they have overflowed into the cabinet at the bottom of our baker's rack and our bedroom closets (put back in the box and stacked in a corner).
And I TOTALLY understand about pints versus quarts ;-)
I used the crockpot to make my applesauce this year too. I haven't tried any due to the darker color. Guess that is the norm even with lemon juice. I will do like you did and can them in pints next time. Thanks for the post!
-Heather
good post, Lady!
Nice price on the fresh fruit, and right on time!
What about wicking lids and lamp oil in those empty jars, for backup lamps/ light?
Just my $0.02...
C.
I haven't found a good solution for empty jars, partly because I'm short on them at the moment so there isn't much crisis. We have a little storage space in our under-the-stairs closet, so I've put some there.
I have to share the applesauce love! I'm fortunate to live in an apple-producing region, so I pick up half-bushels at a time quite cheaply from farmer's markets. Applesauce is one of my favourite things to make with them.
Well, either you have the space to store them or you don't. Each house would have it's own individual quirks for storage. As far as keeping them rounded up and unbroken goes... The only thing I can think of is to use a pack & play (playpen) to stack them in so they're contained but won't fall out. A blanket between layers would keep them from chipping each other. I've seen racks built for them out of dowels and standard lumber but that (I would think) is for short term drying and easy access when filling as they would get dirty inside if left that way for long.
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