April 3, 2020 Canning, Preserving Recipes, Recipes

Top Recipes for Victory Gardens

Many families are repurposing their outdoor space into a new era of victory gardens in an effort to be proactive during the coronavirus crisis. These gardens are symbols of self-reliance, food production and community resilience. Some families might be new to growing their own food, others may grow food in much larger quantities than normal, in addition to introducing more varieties of vegetables. This increase in production poses a couple of questions:

How can I stretch this food to nourish my family for longer than just the growing season?
What options do I have to offer more variety on our table?

Well, we’ve got some ideas for you…and they’re not all canning recipes! There are several different methods to expand your pantry. Since we’re still getting some chilly days here, let’s start with soup!

PRESERVING SOUPS

Making and preserving soups can make use of a variety of vegetables, but it’s important to understand that not all soup recipes are safe for canning. The ONLY way to preserve low-acid soups and stocks safely is to pressure can them or freeze them. Get tips, safety reminders and a round-up of soup recipes here.

TOMATOES

There are so many ways you can preserve tomatoes. Preserve them whole or turn them into sauces, soups, salsa, relish, and more.

Tomatoes in the Raw

If you want to preserve tomatoes in their most natural state try Home Canning Tomatoes Raw or whole or halved with no water added – Whole Peeled Tomatoes;

Beyond the Basics

Add a little variety to your tomato preserves by trying one of these recipes.

Tomato Soup Concentrate for Canning from Food in Jars
Roasted Grape Tomato Pizza Sauce from Food in Jars
Antipasto Relish from Ball Fresh Preserving
Basic Tomato Salsa recipe for preserving.

PICKLING

There aren’t many vegetables that wouldn’t taste great pickled, but there are a few guidelines to follow. Read this to get the basics – How Do I Pickle from the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

To keep those traditional cucumber pickles crispy, you’ll want to read our post – Tips for Crispy Pickles.

Quick Pickles

If you’ve got a small batch of produce, or don’t have the time to water bath can, quick pickles are a natural choice. Try this Basic Quick Pickle Recipe.

Pickling isn’t just for cucumbers! Try making these Fermented Dill Zucchini Pickles. Or this Quick Pickled Asparagus Recipe.

Relish

Making relish is a wonderful way to preserve peppers, cucumbers, onions, herbs and even zucchini or corn. Humble burgers, casseroles, pulled meats and other dishes can be supercharged with the flavor of a good relish! Warning…these are so tasty, you might not want to buy store-bought again.

Corn Relish – this amazing recipe comes from Ball Fresh Preserving.
Cucumber Relish – a favorite with our family & friends – and an easy one!
Zucchini Relish from Grow a Good Life is a wonderful response to an over-productive plant!

BERRIES

Berries can be preserved by canning, freezing, or dehydrating. Often berries turn into jars of jam. Think beyond jam, make syrups, fruit butters, pie filling, can berries whole, freeze fresh berries for use later, make fruit leather, and so much more.

A Recipe Round Up of some of our favorite ways to put up red or black raspberries, blackberries or wine berries.

Our Strawberry Round Up has more than a dozen amazing recipes for you to enjoy.

HERBS

If you are growing herbs in your garden, you’ll likely find most plants give you more than you can use on a daily basis, so it’s helpful to have some other preserving methods up your sleeve.

When life becomes stressful, nature can be a peaceful escape, and gardening, in particular, can prove to be quite therapeutic. We hope that you can take the opportunity to learn some new gardening or preserving skills that will stick with you even when this current state of sheltering in place is in the past.

Penn State Extension Master Gardener Program is a great way to learn about best practices for growing vegetables including, starting seeds, site selection, soil, mulching, weeds, planting, and more.

If you’re interested in more ways to strengthen your pantry dollars, check out a few of our Pinterest boards;