TWENTY Top 20 - PRESERVING

TWENTY Top 20 - PRESERVING

This is the twelfth post in my blog series called "TWENTY Top 20".  We are celebrating 2020 (and celebrating this unique decade) with this series.  In this series there will be a total of twenty different categories featuring the top 20 previously published posts on that topic.  Once or twice a month I will feature a new category.  
Growing your own food means preserving your produce to last until next gardening season.  Today these twenty posts focus on canning, freezing and dehydrating.
ENJOY!

click on each title to view the entire post:
Rosehip Applesauce

Never Use Cheap Lids!

Sandwich Sliced Dill Pickles


Use Your Pear Peelings In Your Syrup

Mulberry Syrup

Strawberry Syrup

Making Cherry Jam From Frozen Fruit

Canning Tomato Sauce

Canning Your Own Grape Juice

Peeling Peaches for Preserving

Freezing Garden Fresh Green Beans

Freezing Garden Fresh Peaches

Freezing Blueberries

Freezing Goji Berries

Freezing Shredded Zucchini

Freezing Strawberries

Woven Lavender Bundles

Drying Stevia for a Natural Tea Sweetener

Dehydrating Blueberries

Preserving Mint for Tea




Other TWENTY Top 20 posts:
WINTER
CHOCOLATE
LOVE
GREEN
SPRING
FORGIVENESS
FLOWERS
HERBS
BERRIES
VEGGIES
SUMMER


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Classic American Potato Salad

Classic American Potato Salad

I have two recipes/versions of potato salad - this American Potato Salad I use during Spring and Summer;  and during Autumn and Winter I make my mom's Hot German Potato Salad.
The recipe that I'm sharing with you today is my mother-in-law's recipe (I have her permission to share this with you).
If you are interested in growing your own potatoes then click here:
Potato Planting Lesson



Printable Recipe

10 medium potatoes

7 eggs (hard boiled, cooled, peeled & sliced horizontally and vertically using an egg slicer) (click HERE to learn how to boil the perfect egg)

(IMPORTANT - reserve 2 boiled eggs for the top of the salad)

1/2 an onion (peeled and chopped)

2 celery stalks (chopped)

1 cup dill relish

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

salt to taste

paprika for sprinkling on top

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

(optional) dash or up to 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Begin by cooking (boiling) the potatoes.  I boil the potatoes whole, then I allow them to cool to warm and then the peeling is so easy (see picture below).  After peeling - chop the potatoes into larger chunks.  Continue peeling and chopping all of the cooked potatoes.  Place the chopped potatoes in a large bowl.

Chop the onions and celery (see picture below) and place in the bowl where the potatoes have been placed.



Chop 5 eggs using an egg slicer - by chopping I mean to slice once horizontally and once vertically (they will then be chopped).
IMPORTANT - remember to reserve 2 eggs for the top and also make sure to only slice these 2 eggs vertically (see picture below)



Stir the 5 chopped eggs into the potato/onion/celery mixture (see picture below).



In a separate small bowl mix the mayonnaise, mustard, celery seed and optional black pepper.  Stir until combined and then stir into the potato mixture (see picture below).



Neatly place the sliced eggs on top of the salad (see picture below).



Sprinkle paprika on top (see picture below).

Serve immediately (or chill first) & ENJOY!

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Grow your own!

Many wonderful garden products from

 "Mary's Heirloom Seeds"!!

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Canning Advice - NEVER Use Cheap Lids

CANNING ADVICE: Never Use Cheap Lids

The cost of everything including canning supplies has been increasing incredibly over the past few years.  I have been trying to economize by buying the cheap "no-name" brands of everything from clothing to groceries and last year was the first year that I tried a "no-name" brand canning lid.  That was a huge mistake!

These pictures do not show the true discoloration of the "cheap-lidded" tomato sauce.  In both pictures (above & below) you will notice that the middle jar is different in color than the other two jars.  In real life that middle jar is a brownish red color similar to that of a rotting tomato.






On the top of this jar I wrote: "USE FIRST 16" (16 is for the year 2016).  Somehow this jar was shuffled to the back of the row and I did not "use it first" (thankfully so - I'm sure that we would have become ill if we had eaten this jar since it obviously did NOT seal properly).

These cheap lids are so thin, plus the quality of the metal is very low.  The heat and pressure from the sealing process of canning warped and creased this cheap metal (see the arrows pointing out these dented areas in the picture below).

The lesson:  It is worth spending a little extra money on either "Ball" or "Kerr" name brand canning supplies.






Some of my favorite canning recipes (previously shared on this blog):
Sandwich Sliced Dill Pickles
Blackberry Applesauce
Blueberry Syrup
Canning Your Own Grape Juice
5 Different Dishes Using HomeCanned Tomato Sauce
Canned Pears - Using the Peelings in the Syrup
Mulberry Syrup
Strawberry Mango Jam

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15 Top Posts from 2015

15 Top Posts from 2015


It is amazing how fast this year has flown by and it is time to reflect on the many blessing from 2015.  Below are the top 15 blog posts from God's Growing Garden in 2015 in order of popularity. 


Please click on each title to view the entire post:


Minted Lava Cake Made with Lindt Truffles



Strawberry Blonde Sunflowers




Photo by Angie Ouellette-Tower

Living a Childless Life - Dealing with Guilt



Sonrise Easter Eggs



The Toledo Zoo Feature #5 & Name That Plant




Photo by Monique Ouellette-Fittler

Recipe Genealogy Through Moms Baking



Christian Camp Songs & Chorus Hymns



Our Heavenly Father is Always Working



5 Must-Grow Veggies For Home Gardeners



Upside Down Lemon Meringue Tarts



Sandwich Sliced Dill Pickle Recipe



Obedience - Obeying God with Your Body



Heartnut Cake - It's All in the Frosting



Pounce My Calico Cat - 2003 to 2015




Photo by Angie Ouellette-Tower

Swedish Skorps - Similar to German Zwieback

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Take Up The THANKFULNESS Challenge!

I challenge you to thank God for something everyday for one year!  Either write it down in a diary OR share with us on a blog.  If you have a blog & would like to share your THANKFULNESS posts with us, then please fill out this form: 365 Days of Being THANKFUL form - click HERE and you will be added to the THANKFULNESS page.

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