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CraigC, boiling WILL destroy the botulism toxins, It won't destroy the spores, but the spores are harmless until they grow in an anaerobic, low acid environment. You eat botulism spores all the time--they are pretty ubiquitous, in the air and in the soil. Sherryarnold--I wouldn't worry about...

Next time, don't touch the lids or jars for 12 hours. Just put them on the counter on a dry towel as you take them out of the canner, and leave them alone to let the rubber on the lid cool.

3 or 4 days and then it goes to the chickens.

In most of the country, plant garlic in the fall and harvest in June or July. Garlic does not fight weeds well, so mulch is a good idea, and garlic needs rich soil for big heads. I have grown grocery store garlic for a long time.

To have safe results, use the Ball Blue Book. You are gambling with your life when you wing it. You can do it your way for years, because odds of botulism are slim, but if you 'hit the jackpot' with botulism, you are dead.

In the south, 'sweet' milk is regular milk, and the sweet part distinguishes it from buttermilk.

If you make chili with beans, it can only be canned in pints, not quarts. It is a density issue.

Eggs--haven't bought any eggs for 16 years. Tomatoes--I did buy some last year, because I had a total crop failure but those were the first since I moved here. I don't buy tomato sauce/salsa/pizza sauce, either, I can my own. Vanilla. I bought a pound of beans about 5 years ago and several...

Three dogs here. No food on the kitchen floor or any other floor, for that matter.

Uncle Frank gave me a dozen ears of corn from his garden, and that was supper. Little salt, lots of butter, many napkins.

Another thing you want to look at when buying a huge canner is whether your stove burners will support it. if you have a glass topped stove, check with the manufacturer--some won't support it, some shut off burners if they have been too hot for too long. Yes, you can stack jars, with a rack or...

Disaster Preparedness Plan | Make a Plan | Red Cross Red Cross has some great info on how to get your family ready for any kind of disaster. Prepper folks seem to concentrate on the apocalypse/nuclear war, but there are lots of smaller disasters all the time. Chemical spills on the...

My sis lives just south of Carbondale, Illinois. There is a major celebration happening in C'dale, but we will be floating in her pool! We are not much for crowds.

Skilletlicker, your shelf/shop light system is what I use to start my plants for the garden. Works great, and no need to buy the expensive grow light bulbs. I don't keep mine growing all year long, but the thought of having fresh lettuce all the time is tempting.

No need to label--they are white cheese curds or yellow cheese curds. :) A big platter with cheese and fruit would be nice. I don't really think you need to ice them. Maybe put half of the curds out in the beginning and keep the rest in the fridge/cooler until they are needed.

Baking powder should bubble when you add a bit of plain water to it, baking soda will not. Baking soda will bubble with vinegar. I think baking powder will, too. So--take a spoonful of one container. Add water. If it bubbles, it is baking powder. If it doesn't bubble at all, it is probably...

I have a Rada paring knife, too. I don't like their bigger knives or their peelers--the handles are not comfortable to me, but the little bird beak is great. Stays sharp a long time, and if it gets too dull, they are cheap enough to toss and buy a new one.

I usually make the frozen biscuits. Like them way better than whomp biscuits.

Got Garlic is absolutely spot on with the links. If you are a new canner, you can't go wrong with the first link, everything you need to know is in there. You do need to use an approved recipe. Look thru those recipes and find the one the matches best with what you make, and use that recipe...

My old Kentucky friend Malva Gay gave me her biscuit recipe and her secret to success was to bake the biscuits for 10 or 12 minutes at 400 degrees, and then she turned the broiler on to brown the tops. Makes pretty biscuits that are not dried out. Don't turn your eyes away, she said, or you...

I hate to be the canning police, but you really need approved recipes to be safe, even if you pressure can. The original question was about salt. In most recipes, salt is optional and is just added for flavor, not preserving qualities. The only place salt matters is in pickles, where a...

I make it a point NOT to buy organic. Organic farmers, especially large scale organic, DO use pesticides. The pesticides are 'natural', not synthetic, but that does not mean they are safer. Copper sulfate is natural, but not safe. USDA has a whole list of 'organic' pesticides and herbicides...

Canning considers both time and temperature. You cannot can in a pressure cooker that is too small to hold 4 quart jars (upright) because the length of time to heat a small pressure cooker is too short. I prefer to follow canning directions to the letter. The cost of doing it wrong is too high.

Beans will never soften in tomato sauce--they should be fully cooked before adding to the chili. Something about the acid in the tomatoes.

Larry, my 86 year old mother said her parents used to use a buried barrel to store cabbage and carrots for the winter. You might want to drill some holes in the bottom of the trash can, just in case some water finds it way in.