EVERETT, Wash. — Juicy ripe peaches, snapping fresh green beans, sweet raspberry jam, and crunchy dill pickles – nothing tastes better than home-preserved foods. In addition, a well-stocked pantry is a big first step towards ensuring your family always has plenty of healthy food available. However, safely preserving fruits, vegetables, and meats requires a bit of knowledge, some time set aside, and a small investment in equipment.
Starting June 26 Washington State University Snohomish County Extension will present a series of five Saturday workshops on how to safely preserve fresh foods. All classes will be held from 10 am to 2 pm at the Extension office in McCollum Park, 600 – 128th Street S.E. in Everett. Participants should bring a brown bag lunch.
Saturday, June 26: The basic canning workshop will cover the basics of food safety and canning skills, including preventing bacteria and food spoilage, canning equipment, and canning high acid foods. Includes a demonstration and hands-on training.
Saturday, July 10: The drying foods workshop will cover the basics of drying and freezing foods for long- and short-term storage. Includes basic preparation steps to ensure that quality and nutrition remain high. Both methods will be demonstrated.
Saturday, July 24: The workshop on canning specialty items will demonstrate how to can such foods as jams and tomato or fruit salsa.
Saturday, Aug. 7: The pickling workshop will discuss how to make great crunchy pickles of all types, not just from cucumbers. Includes demonstrations of pickling green beans and quick pickles.
Saturday, Aug. 21: The pressure canning workshop will cover how to safely pressure can low acid foods such as vegetables, seafood, and meats, with a demonstration of vegetable canning.
Nutritionist and WSU Master Food Preserver Susy Hymas will present all of the workshops. She has been canning, freezing, drying, and preparing local foods for more than twenty years and teaches classes on home food preservation and nutrition all over western Washington.
Class sizes are limited, and advance registration and prepayment is required. The cost is $25 per session, or take all five for $100.
To register, download a form at snohomish.wsu.edu/ag/workshops/FoodPreservation2010.pdf and mail with your check, or contact Karie Christensen at 425-357-6039 or klchristen@cahnrs.wsu.edu
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