* Canning Green Beans & Peaches *

Canning week...so fun! There really isn't much to tell you about canning green beans and peaches. Neither of them really have a "recipe" per say, but I'll let you know the process I used--it might be different for others! I'd love to hear any variations you use!

* Peaches *
(for great instructions and step-by-step pictures--this website is awesome!) A bushel of peaches (about 48 pounds) and will yield about 16-24 quarts or 32-48 pints (depending on how full you pack your jars). We got 2 boxs of peaches, about 1 bushel, but ate maybe half a box so we technically canned 3/4 of a bushel and got 40 pints of peaches.

As always, your first step is to wash all your jars and rings. Leave them in the dishwasher to keep them warm until you are ready to fill them. Bring a large pot of water to boil. This will be the water we blanch our peaches in to peel them. Also, fill your waterbath with water and start warming it up on low.

Next you need to make your syrup to pack your peaches in. Peaches can be packed in light, medium, or heavy syrup or even fruit juice (usually grape juice).

Sugar Syrup
for a Light syrup: 2 cups sugar + 6 cups water
for a Medium syrup: 3 cups sugar + 6 cups water
for a Heavy syrup: 4 cups sugar + 6 cups

I used a light syrup for my peaches. I brought 6 cups of water to a gentle boil and then added the sugar to it and stirred until it was dissolved. Keep it hot until ready to use.

Next, wash and peel your peaches. Wash in lukewarm water. Dip the fruit in your pot of boiling water for 20 to 45 seconds. (I usually do about 8 at a time) Remove from the boiling water using a slotted spoon and put into a large bowl or pot of cold water and ice for several minutes. Keep doing this process until all of your peaches have been blanched and cooled in ice water. Once you pick your peach out of the ice water, the peel should slip right off...so easy!!!

Now, remove the pit and slice up your peaches however you want. You can cut them in half, quarters, slices, chunks, etc. (some people like to soak their peaches in a lemon juice/water mixture to keep them from browning...I don't worry about it because...well, it's just another step. But feel free to do so if you want to!) Fill your jars with the peaches leaving one inch headspace. Pour syrup over peaches being careful to leave the one inch headspace. Run knife or small spatula around the jar to get air bubbles out.

Wipe rim with clean cloth and place hot lid on jar. Screw on ring and put into water bath canner.and process 30 minutes for pints and 35 minutes for quarts. Once processed, remove from canner and put on towel or cooling rack to cool completely (24 hours). Make sure jars sealed (if not, put it fridge and eat soon or reprocess it using a new lid) and enjoy!

* Green Beans *
(for great instructions and step-by-step pictures--this website is great!)We grew our own green beans in our garden but you can get them from a local farmer's market, grocery store, pick your own farms, neighbor, etc. Generally speaking, you need one pound of green beans for each pint or two pounds per quart. A bushel of green beans (about 30 pounds) will make 26-40 pints or 13-20 quarts.

As always, your first step is to wash all your jars and rings. Leave them in the dishwasher to keep them warm until you are ready to fill them. Fill a large pot with water and bring it to boiling. You will use this water to pour over the beans after you fill the jars. Fill up your PRESSURE CANNER/COOKER (different than a water bath) with 4 inches of water and start heating it up on low heat.

Next, wash your beans in cold/lukewarm water. Trim the ends and cut into smaller pieces, if desired (mine usually end up being about and inch long). You can cut them with a knife or snap them with your hands.

Pack your jars with the beans. Pack them pretty tightly and leave one inch headspace at the top of the jar. Pour 1/2 tsp. salt in each jar--this is optional but we like them seasoned. Pour water over the beans, being careful to leave one inch at the top. Using knife or spatula, run it around the edge of the jar to get air bubbles out. Wipe around edges of your jars with a clean cloth. Put hot lids (soaked in hot water for a few minutes) on jar and screw lid on.

Place jars in the PRESSURE CANNER/COOKER and add more water if needed. Put lid on pressure canner and twist to seal. Build pressure up to 11 pounds. Once the steam starts spurting out, let your jars cook for 25 minutes for pints and 30 minutes for quarts. When the time is up, turn off the heat allow the pressure to drop to zero before opening your canner. Remove lid and place jars on a towel or cooling rack on the counter. Allow to cool completely (24 hours). Check to see if your jars sealed.

*NOTE*--technically, I do not have a pressure canner! We use a pressure cooker. I have seen a lot of resources that say that a pressure cooker will not work at well as a pressure canner (saw these after we bought it) but it has worked fine for me. We have not had any problems with getting sick or anything but it is probably best to stay on the safe side. If you are planning on buying a pressure canner...make sure it is a canner--not a cooker. Just to save you some money since we will probably have to invest in a real pressure canner some time soon :)