canning...

I have been missing in action. I know. Where have I been? Canning. I think I am becoming addicted. I have this weird feeling like I am a bit excited for when we have an emergency and I will be required to eat my food storage. I know that excited is not actually the right word to describe my feeling, but maybe your eloquent minds can fill in a more appropriate word there. It is just comforting knowing that we are setting food aside. I really did not intend to have two posts in a row about emergency preparedness/food storage, but that really is what we have been up to lately. This week, we canned pinto beans, sweet pork and made two batches of raspberry freezer jam. I even made homemade rolls. I'll be honest. I feel pretty domestic :) I also made a fabulous discovery. I no longer need to buy rhodes rolls in the freezer section. I now know that I can freeze my own homemade rolls. After the dough rises the first time, I punch it down then form my little rolls and stick them in the freezer. Once frozen, I put some in regular ziploc bags and some in food saver bags and vaccuum sealed them in (to prevent freezer burn). It turns out that there was no need to vacuum package the rolls because with all this delicious freezer jam around, the rolls did not stay in the freezer long enough to accumulate even the slightest hint of frostbite. Once we were ready to cook the rolls, we simply removed them from the freezer, put them on a cookie sheet and stuck them in the oven at 200 degrees. Then, on the stovetop, we boiled a small pan of water. Once boiling, we placed the pan underneath the rolls and let the humidity/warmth work its magic. In a short time, the rolls had doubled in size and were ready to bake and enjoy. Yum. Just FYI-Sprouts has a great sale on berries this week. So, if you like Freezer jam (who doesn't like freezer jam?), this is the week to make it!