janniecooks's Profile
How to can homemade tomato sauce?
This is what my 2006 edition of the "Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving" has to say about home canning tomatoes:
"Although tomatoes are classified as high-acid foods, they have a pH of 4.6, which falls very close to the dividing line between high- and low-acid foods. Differences among varieties of tomatoes, growing conditions, their maturity and how they are handled can cause their natural acidity level to vary. As a result homemade tomato products MUST (emphasis added) be "acidified" by adding bottled lemon juice or citric acid before they are heat processed. We specify the use of bottled lemon juice rather than freshly squeezed because the commercial product has a known and consisten pH. Fresh lemons produce juice of variable acidity."
The book goes on to discuss water-bath canning versus pressure canning for home-canning tomatoes, and says that as a general rule tomato products with added vegetables are too low in acidity to be processed in a water bath and must be pressure canned. The book also says that acidification is required for all home-canned tomato products, regardless of the canning method used.
How to can homemade tomato sauce?
It is NOT SAFE for you to can non-acidulated tomato sauce in a water bath canner.
You cannot just disregard the recipes, omit the citric acid or lemon juice, and pay attention only to processing times. Botulism is not a toxin to take lightly, and you risk botulism if you choose not to acidulate your tomato sauce, then can in a water bath method. Here is an excerpt from the National Center for Home Food Preservation:
"Low-acid foods have pH values higher than 4.6. They include red meats, seafood, poultry, milk, and all fresh vegetables except for most tomatoes. Most mixtures of low-acid and acid foods also have pH values above 4.6 unless their recipes include enough lemon juice, citric acid, or vinegar to make them acid foods. Acid foods have a pH of 4.6 or lower. They include fruits, pickles, sauerkraut, jams, jellies, marmalades, and fruit butters.
Although tomatoes usually are considered an acid food, some are now known to have pH values slightly above 4.6. Therefore, if they are to be canned as acid foods, these products must be acidified to a pH of 4.6 or lower with lemon juice or citric acid. Properly acidified tomatoes . . . are acid foods and can be safely
processed in a boiling-water canner.
Botulinum spores are very hard to destroy at boiling-water temperatures; the higher the canner temperature, the more easily they are destroyed. Therefore, all low-acid foods should be sterilized at temperatures of 240° to 250°F, attainable with pressure canners operated at 10 o 15 PSIG. PSIG means pounds per square inch of pressure as measured by gauge."
Please in the interest of food safety, read up on home canning and botulism. Did you know if you suspect that one of your canned goods has botulism it needs to be treated and handled as hazardous waste, not just discarded in the trash?
Fourteen ounces is the new pound
Paulj, thanks for the info. Yes, this was the first time I had used Dufour pasry, and I wasn't necessarily holding Dufour responsible for the whole shrinking package thing, but I suppose my post does seem to accuse them of the practice.
It is interesting that neither of the two manufacturers sell or sold its product in pound packages. I suppose pound specification is more convenient when writing recipes; it would be more useful to specificy dimensions needed. But if the packaging doesn't identify sheet dimensions, where does that leave the consumer? Actually I'm not sure if the Dufour package stated the sheet dimensions and I've discarded the cardboard lid. The website states the sheets are 11 x 11 x 1/4 (though it only specifies food service packages), however once unrolled the sheet I purchased was more like 9 x 10. I might have been happier if it really were 11 x 11 and of uniform thickness - the sheet was perforated and tissue-thin at the folds.
I don't believe I was accusing Dufour of duplicitous behavior, I specifically stated my post was NOT A RANT AGAINST MANUFACTURERS. Dufour happened to be the packaged food product I purchased around the same time I purchased a bag of dried beans, that used to be sold in one-pound bags. I used those two products as specific examples to make a generalization.
Fourteen ounces is the new pound
If you read my original post, you will see that I did not intend the topic to be a rant against price increases or against food producers. I tried to make clear that I would willingly pay more for the same size product and prefer that for certain goods over shrinking package sizes. Why should I have to purchase two of something to make up for the missing 20%, and end up with more than I need or want?
As for recipes, no it is not a red herring. And of course a recipe dictates shopping behaviors: I choose to cook the things I do and then must purchase the ingredients to support that choice, since I am not a farmer, rancher, grower or food producer. Using the example puff pastry illustrates this perfectly.
I needed a pound of puff pastry, and I was filling the pastry with another ingredient set, also a specific measured quantity. These quantities of pastry and filling had been worked out to yield 12 pieces. I only wanted to make 12 pieces, that I would/could cut in half to yield 24 pieces. The recipe assumed a certain dimension for the puff pastry sheet in order to yield 12 equal size pieces of puff pastry. But 14 ounces of puff pastry provides a sheet that is roughly 20% smaller than what I needed, and rolling out the pastry thinner changes the character of the pastry--it doesn't rise and becomes like cardboard. So I ended up with 10 pieces, not the 12 pieces I wanted. I didn't want to make the recipe with two packages of puff pastry ($20 for the pastry, for one thing, the extra work for another, and not wanting so much food or leftover pastry).
So I was not able use up all the filling that I prepared. I have a bit of left-over filling that I didn't want and probably won't use or re-purpose. Does that rock my world? No, but either way it ends up being a waste of food and a waste of money - either too much stuffing or too much expensive puff pastry.
Shrinking the package size to allow the manufacturer to raise prices is covert only if the shopper pays no attention to size. I always regard package size, I am a careful shopper. I have no problem with producers needing to maintain a certain profit margin, but to do it by reducing the amount of product offered is often detrimental to end consumer beyond the unit price. I wish it would stop, I wish for a return to standard sizing, hence my post.
Dufour Puff Pastry is expensive!
Yes, I have made puff pastry from scratch and it's quite an ordeal, and hardly worth it for the home cook (at least this home cook). So I guess the way to look at it is the price is a good trade-off to avoid the effort of home made.
Fourteen ounces is the new pound
Yes,I agree with you. And I know the practice has been around for a while - I can't recall when coffee was actually sold in pound packages. For things like coffee, ice cream, orange juice, cereal and the like, the typical usage is to remove a portion for immediate use, rarely does one use up an entire package of coffee, OJ, ice cream, etc. at once, and the shrinkage while irritating and maybe noticeable, won't affect the end use. But when a recipe specifies a pound package of puff pastry, or a pound of dried beans, the shortage of 2 ounces will make a difference in the yield or the taste. Perhaps not significant, but noticeable. Yes, I wish standards remained standards.
Fourteen ounces is the new pound
Wow, I'm surprised that the deli worker didn't ask if you were okay with the extra amount. Whenever I order deli meat at Publix and they slice more than I asked for I'm always given the option of accepting what they've sliced, or just getting what I asked for. And they remove the extra cheerfully, no problems. Isn't Harris Teeter known for its customer service?
Fourteen ounces is the new pound
I couldn't help notice yesterday when I purchased a package of puff pastry that it is sold in a 14-ounce package. Most recipes that I can recall that specify pre-made puff pastry generally call for a pound package.
I also needed a pound of Great Northern Beans. The first bag I picked up was the Iberia brand, and as I was examining the beans inside the plastic bag I noticed that the weight was only 14 ounces. That kind of surprised me, as I had always purchased dried beans in 16-ounce bags, as least I always thought I was buying 16-ounce bags. Never paid attention to the net weight before, but now all the dried beans and lentils (Iberia, Goya and store brand) are packaged in 14-ounce packages. No longer one pound bags. Kind of annoying when most recipes that specify a quantity usually call for a pound of beans. In a soup the missing two ounces won't make much difference, but there was a time in my salad days when I might have thought I needed the exact ONE POUND measure and likely would have purchased two bags so I could obtain the missing two ounces. I've noticed the same thing on certain canned goods, where the net weight is an ounce or a couple ounces less than they used to be.
I know there have been other posts on shrinking package sizes, and this is is NOT a rant on rising food prices, evil food producers charging more for less, or food processors trying to fool or somehow take advantage of us poor consumers. But sheesh, I feel like I'm being nickel and dimed to death. Food manufacturers, please cover your increased costs and just charge a bit more, I'll gladly pay the cost for a full found of product. Don't pare away at the quantity in the pacakge, on a unit basis we'd end up paying about the same anyway.
Dufour Puff Pastry is expensive!
I paid $9.99 for a package of Dufour puff pastry. I know Dufour is made with pure butter, but I was taken aback at the price for a 14-ounce package of what is basically flour and butter. I've always used Pepperidge Farm pastry since that was what my local market carried. For what I paid I do hope there is a big difference between the two brands.
Is $9.99 a reasonable price? What does it go for in your neck of the woods?
Aluminum pans and acidic foods
Just this week I marinated a spatchcocked chicken in lemon juice, rosemary, garlic and olive oil on an aluminum quarter-sheet pan. I had never given a thought to the idea that it might be a health risk to me (and, throwing caution to the wind, will continue to use and love my aluminum cookware). Even with a 24-hour marination, there was no effect on the aluminum sheet pan. You'll be fine.
Storing onions and garlic
They should be stored away from light, but in a container that allows ventilation. I keep onions in a mesh strainer basket, garlic in a garlic keeper, on a shelf in a pantry closet. Onions and garlic also should be stored away from potatoes, they hasten the ripening/rotting process for each other. I keep potatoes in a separate pantry closet from onions.
If the onions or garlic are starting to smell, they are rotting and should be discarded; they cannot be saved and should not be eaten.
Straining broth through a coffee filter
Nemo, it really isn't necessary to hem the muslin. It will fray a little bit, but not enough to be a problem. Check out Nguyen's post, she has a photo of a well-used unhemmed piece of muslin she uses for straining. Good luck on your next attempt.
Straining broth through a coffee filter
As you've discovered paper coffee filters don't work well for straining stock. I recently read on another site (Andrea Nguyen's Asian Dumpling Tips) about using unbleached muslin instead of cheesecloth. Either cheesecloth or muslin would be preferable. the advantages of muslin are that it is cheaper than cheesecloth, easily washable, won't fray to the same degree that cheesecloth would, works as well because the weave is slightly open, and is reusable. Just pick up a yard or two at a fabric or cloth store, wash and dry it in the washing machine, then cut to desired size. Once used for straining stock, rinse it and toss it in the wash (let it dry first if wet and you won't be washing it right away so it doesn't mildew). And as Karl S. has pointed out, stock or broth should be strained before chilling.
Edited to add link to source for tip on using muslin:
http://www.asiandumplingtips.com/2012/03/muslin-is-the-better-cheesecloth.html
Bamboo shoot question
I was re-reading Nina Simonds' "Classic Chinese Cooking" last night and she writes that fresh bamboo shoots should be boiled for 15 minutes - no explanation as to why, just directs the cook to do so. This was in the ingredients chapter wherein she discusses bamboo shoots in general, not in any specific recipe.
New 5 qt dutch oven! Recipes for inauguration.
And take a look at these home cooking threads for more inspiration - all asking for recipes for a new dutch oven:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/688930
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/755762
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/570809
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/656948
Really mad right now, why do my pastry cream fail?!
Hmmmm . . . After reading your reply I did a little research. I was surprised to learn that cornstarch has twice the thickening power as flour. So based on that and your point, clearly my assumption re: cornstarch is off-base. So what would explain lottobear's problem?
I also read that cornstarch loses thickening potency in acidic mixtures, so perhaps the acidity of the egg yolks causes the cornstarch to fail?
Really mad right now, why do my pastry cream fail?!
One factor may be the cornstarch. Cooking cornstarch too long and at high heat causes it to lose its thickening ability. Rose Levy Beranbaum's pastry cream recipe calls for two whole eggs, three tablespoons cornstarch, 2 cups half-and-half and 1/2 cup sugar. Beranbaum has you whisk together the eggs and cornstarch, then add 1/4 cup of the (cold) half-and-half. She instructs you to bring the remaining half and half and sugar to a full boil, temper the egg mixture with about 2 tablespoons of the hot half-and-half, and strain the egg mixture into a bowl. Bring the half-and-half back to a boil and quickly add all of the egg mixture, whisking vigorously. Continue to whisk vigorously for 20 to 30 seconds, then remove from heat.
So Beranbaum's recipe with cornstarch calls for only 20 to 30 seconds cooking, which for a cornstarch-thickened cream sounds about right to me.
Otherwise the ingredients you list are more or less what I use but I use flour. (5 or 6 yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 2 cups milk). Once the scalded milk is whisked into the beaten yolks and the mixture is strained into a clean saucepan, it should be beaten or whisked (whisk is my preference for avoiding lumps) vigorously over low to medium heat until it boils. "Boils" doesn't mean a full rolling boil, just lots of bubbles. Once it has reached this stage, continue to whisk for about two minutes, or until it has become thick.
Six seconds is absurd, five to seven minutes total (for flour-thickened cream) once the egg/sugar/milk mixture is returned to the saucepan sounds about right - three to five minutes over medium heat to reach a boil and two more minutes to thicken. Low heat isn't necessary, just be sure to whisk constantly at medium heat.
Unless you have a need for a gluten-free pastry cream, try it with flour to see if the problems you experience are indeed due to cornstarch. My understanding is that cornstarch should not be boiled. If you must use cornstarch, follow Beranbaum's method.
Making Fine Cake Crumbs
Break apart a couple of cupcakes in as small pieces as you can without smashing them, then dry them out in a 350-degree oven. Once they're a bit dry you should be able to crumble them more finely or process them into fine crumbs.
How to can homemade tomato sauce?
Be sure to check out this site, The National Center for Home Food Preservation, for the complete USDA guidelines on home canning and preserving:
http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
What Foods Do You Forego in the Name o' Domestic Tranquility?
When I saw the topic on the discussions list, I started thinking about my sacrifices. Gave me a start to read your list. With the exception of radishes, which Mr. Cooks does tolerate, I have had to eliminate the very same foods. In fact, he won't even allow liver to be brought into the house (but I am able to treat myself to smoked salmon; he won't touch it). Sadly I gaze at the lovely wild salmon when it's in season, and hope our favorite restaurant has it on the menu!
Reusable Parchment Paper - Williams Sonoma
You can reuse regular parchment as well, but probably not thousands of times. In fact, regular parchment can be reused until it takes on a scorched appearance. Commercial bakeries do this, but then they can keep the parchment in the sheet pan and they have the facilities to store a bunch of sheet pans horizontally. Me, I store sheet pans vertically so I use fresh paper for each cooking session.
What did you have for breakfast today?
Smoked salmon on Ryvita spread with cream cheese and topped with sliced scallion,
peeling FRESH eggs
Since you want them for egg salad, why must they be peeled? Once cooled, just cut them in half and scoop out the egg with a spoon. If you're careful you'll end up with mostly intact halves that you can then chop for egg salad.
Eating Raw Oysters, Is it safe?
The problem with contaminated oysters is that you cannot see or smell the contamination. Spouse contracted hepatitis A from eating raw oysters; the oysters looked, smelled and tasted fine in fact we both ate them with relish. But only he got sick - very, very sick. Since then I cannot bring myself to enjoy them raw anymore. So it really is a crapshoot and all it takes is that one bad oyster. As others have pointed out, the odds are low, but after witnessing my husband's illness I'm not willing to chance it.
Mango Pepper Jelly (or Jam?) -- Need a "Tried and True" Recipe
Sealing with wax or parrafin is not recommended as a safe method to seal jams and jellies. Another common method people use is to turn the hot filled jars upside down without processing, the idea being that a vacuum is formed, but also not recommended. Food safety is the issue here. The very best site for information on home canning is the following website from the USDA, there are also many threads here on Home Cooking with good information and lively discussions of various sealing methods:
http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
Mango Pepper Jelly (or Jam?) -- Need a "Tried and True" Recipe
You must not reuse jars from purchased food products for home canning. It is usually necessary to use new lids because of the sealing compound on the inside edge of the lids. Rings and jars can be reused, but use only those purchased for the purpose of canning. Never reuse commercial products' jars for canning.
You can overnight them as long as they remain on ice. Personally I would not mail or gift any unsealed, home canned goods, I keep those for family consumption only.
Recommendations for my brand spanking new pressure cooker
If you scroll down past the last reply to your post, you will see a list of related home cooking threads. In that list are five lengthy topics on pressure cooker recipes. If the fact that your cooker is brand new makes a difference to the recipe, there is also one thread specifically for recipes for a brand new pressure cooker. And, among the related threads are topics where pressure cookbooks are recommended. Perhaps there are some good ideas for you in those threads.
Back navigation malfunction again
Thanks for the response. Will see if I like your workaround. Either way, it's not a big problem just a minor annoyance.
Favorite Weight Watchers Recipes??
There are apparently many CHers doing weight watchers, witness the following threads:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/380557
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/702275
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/828701
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/473398
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/745827
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/838158
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/806541
