Preservation Link Roundup 1/31/10

Television station WALB in Georgia has an interesting story about a school teacher who has started a canning business with help from the state and whose product is now sold in 16 states (Teacher Gets State Assistance to Start Business). What I found most interesting is not that she is living the dream, but that got her start in the local high school's canning plant. That's right, some Georgia high schools have their own canning plants!

"We're in a global market place but we also have to find out niches, and niches like Lauri Jo's canning business that started in the canning plant of our local high school, it just gives our farmers another market for their produce and vegetable product that they sell," Sunbelt Ag. Expo Exec. Director Chip Blalock.

This is one of my passions - LA County needs a community canning center!

Tigress in a Jam has her roundup for the January Citrus Can Jam (Can Jam January Round Up - Citrus). There was quite a response ... an excellent collection of the various things you can do with citrus. Well worth taking a look at.

Doris and Jilly Cook announce February's can jam ingredient: February Can Jam: CARROTS! This is a water bath can jam, so pressure-canned carrots need not apply.

Membrillo (quince paste) is a wonderful example of the food preservation arts. Serious Eats presents an interesting use of membrillo as a glaze (with rosemary) for lamb (The Secret Ingredient (Membrillo): Membrillo-Roasted Lamb). Sounds delicious, and makes me wonder about infusing membrillo with rosemary. I usually use vanilla, but rosemary would make an interesting addition, I think. It also makes me think of other fruit pastes, since membrillo is only the most famous example of what are more generically called fruit pastes or fruit cheeses.