We’re all familiar with the old tradition of canning jams, fruits and vegetables, right? Our mother’s and grandmother’s used big Ball brand canning pots to preserve goodies that would take us well into the blistery weather seasons. This week’s temperatures have brought all those warm memories to the forefront. All I can think about is the coziest drink and food to keep me from shivering and becoming numb. Don’t get me wrong, though. I love the cold weather. So many wonderful things come with it–like serious comfort food.
Canning has started to make a solid comeback through a series of online and social initiatives by a group of young and old. When I first read about the growing interest in the old-school cooking method, I though how great! Not because people would be preserving, rather because I thought it’d be a good opportunity to talk about using a pressure cooker to do the canning–not the big Ball pots. But, that didn’t take on too well. That’s another story for another day I’d be delighted to entertain you with.
In the meantime, while preserving food for year-round consumption is becoming popular again, the little mason jars used to store the food are finding a secondary use–eating fresh food directly out of it and gifting them. How fabulous is that. I’ll be honest; I wasn’t keen on the idea at first. I mean the thought of eating out of a tight-lipped glass jar wasn’t the sexiest way to enjoy, let’s say, peach cobbler. Or, black beans–both of which I’ve seen served.
I wanted to learn more and get excited about the new serving concept. It sounded neat. I just wasn’t convinced. I did some moseying and reading (mostly by food bloggers) and found some novel ideas. The most practical I came across has in fact been the peach cobbler. I can dig that. Especially since eating the fabulous summer fruit dessert tends to melt down anyway. No foul done in gently smashing into a glass jar. But then the most interesting I saw recently was cupcakes!
Yes, cupcakes.
Continue reading on how and what to eat of a jar in this week’s Dean & DeLuca column, here.
Eat well, love unapologetically, pray with true intention, and take care of yourself.
Follow the sexy & delicious fun on
TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | GOOGLE+ |YOUTUBE
Don't forget to check out my debut cookbook!
