Bt 2-Uncaster Farming, Saturday, October 21, 2000
Canning Is Hobby
While Jarred, 2, and Meghan, 1, nap, Lynette delves into
her favorite hobby canning.
(Continued from Page B 2)
said of the need for the dry run.
People unfamiliar with canned meat
often question the reason behind the pro
cess. Lynette explains that not only is the
meat more tender and ready to use imme
diately, canned meat is also convenient
when preparing many kinds of casseroles.
“When canning meat, never add liq
uid,” Lynette stresses. “Meat forms its
own liquid.”
She adds salt to the meat before can
ning but does not recommend adding pep
per and other spices because they float to
the top. Pepper and spices also tend to in
tensify in flavoring when canned.
Lynette uses whole, boneless chicken
and turkey breasts for canning poultry.
She also has canned some boned chicken.
She said, “It falls off the bone when you
remove it from the jar, which makes it
easy to use but I prefer using boneless.”
Although some fruits are still consid
ered safe to process with a boiling water
bath method rather than a pressure can
ner, Lynette said that she prefers pressure
canning just to be safe.
Growing up, Lynette retains fond mem
ories of helping her mother, Linda Nolt,
can food. Lynette now cans many items
that her mother never tried. In addition,
proper canning methods have changed to
protect against botulism and other food
safety concerns.
“But Mom often helps out,” Lynette
said. In fact, Lynette keeps her garden at
her mother’s Manheim farm.
One of Lynette’s most memorable can
ning experiences happened last summer,
when she canned seven baskets of
peaches. The last batch of jars was fin
ished processing at 10 p.m. At 2 a.m., Ly
nette had her first contraction, and by
4:30 a.m., the Steagers had a new baby
daughter.
Jars of peaches filled the countertops
and kitchen table. Lynette’s mom came to
her rescue and put everything back in
order for the family’s return from the hos
pital.
With two children under two, Lynette
did not cut back on her canning projects
this season. Organization is her key. She
picks the produce in the morning and pro
cesses during her children’s afternoon
naptime.
During the winter months, one of Ly
nette’s favorite things to do is read the
“Blue Ball Canning Book” (available at
county extension offices).
“I get ideas of things I haven’t tried be
fore, and make plans to try it,” Lynette
Harvest Roundup
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.) - Fall is
a great time of year at the Amazing Maise
Maze at Cherry-Crest Farm. First there is
the maze - the world’s corniest planetari
um with the sun and nine planet carved
into a five-acre field of corn.
Each Saturday through Oct. 28 visitors
can also enjoy the annual Harvest Round
up Festivals - down-on-the-farm cele
brations with pumpkin slinging, face
painting, pumpkin painting, plus guided
said,
This includes growing the items in her
garden.
This past year for the first time, she
canned zucchini and tomatoes together,
carrots with a glaze, and taco sauce.
Also new this year were an Amish sweet
pickle and a hot pickle, resulting in nine
varieties of pickles for her.
After an extension workshop on can
ning pie fillings, Lynette did several suc
cessful batches of blueberry and apple pie
fillings.
She cans many different varieties of jel
lies and jams for gift giving. Another fa
vorite for gift giving is watermelon rind,
which many older relatives appreciate be
cause it is not available to purchase.
In addition to canning, Lynette has
some other hobbies. She sews, plays the
piano, and volunteers at the Lancaster
County Prison, where she plays volleyball
with women prisoners. She also volunteers
at a local nursing home, where she plays
the keyboard to entertain dementia pa
tients.
In addition to the enjoyment of eating
home-processed foods, Lynette gains lots
of pleasure in rearranging the processed
jars on the basement shelves.
“I feel so much satisfaction admiring all
the jars,” Lynette said of the full shelves.
Here are some recipes Lynette recom
mends. The recipes were distributed in a
pressure canning meats and poultry work
shop taught by Wiker.
Beef Stew
With Vegetables
4-5 pounds beef stew meat
1 tablespoon oil
3 quarts cubed, peeled potatoes
2 quarts sliced carrots
3 cups chopped celery
3 cups chopped onions
l‘A tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon thyme
Vi teaspoon pepper
Cut meat into I'/2-inch cubes; brown in
oil. Combine meat, vegetables, and sea
sonings; cover with boiling water. Bring
stew to a boil. Ladle hot stew into hot jars,
leaving 1-inch headspace. Remove air
bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process
pints one hour, quarts one hour and IS
minutes, at 10 pounds pressure in a steam
pressure canner. Yield: about 14 pints or 7
quarts.
Use a jar of this canned beef stew to
prepare the following recipe.
Encrusted Beef Stew
1 quart jar beef stew with vegetables
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons cold water
Festivals At Cherry Crest Farm
tours of a working dairy farm that is
home to 125 registered Holstein.
The maze is now surrounded by four
acres of pumpkins, a field of popcorn, and
27 different varieties of mums - to pick
and take home. Plus, on a hillside adja
cent to the maze, the spectacular Sun,
Moon, and Stars floral artwork created
out of 16,000 petunias and marigolds is in
full bloom.
Maze is open Friday-Saturday through
Yt cup flour
1 tablespoon minced herbs, pars
ley, basil, thyme
Vi teaspoon baking powder
'A teaspoon salt
'A cup butter
2 tablespoons heavy cream or
milk
To make stew: Drain liquid from
beef stew, reserving Vh cups. Com
bine flour and cold water, stirring
to dissolve. Add reserved liquid.
Cook until thickened. Stir in beef
stew, set aside.
To make crust: Combine flour,
herbs, baking powder, and salt. Cut
in butter. Stir in cream. Form into a
ball. Roll to '/i-inch thickness. Cut
into a shape one-inch larger than
casserole dish. Cut vents in the cen
ter to allow steam to escape.
Place stew mixture into a one
quart casserole dish. Top with
crust. Decorate as desired. Place
casserole on a baking sheet. Bake at
350 degrees for 35 minutes or until
crust is golden brown. Cool 10 min
utes on a wire rack. Serve warm.
Serves 2-4.
Chicken A La King
2 (3'/2-4-pounds) stewing chicken,
cut into pieces
2 stalks celery, quartered
1 onion, quartered
1 carrot, quartered
4 peppercorns
2 whole allspice
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons salt
'A cup chicken fat or butter
Vi cup flour
5 cups chicken broth
'/< cup chopped celery
'A cup chopped pimento
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Combine chicken, celery stalks,
onion, carrot, peppercorns, allspice,
bay leaf, and salt in large saucepan.
Cover with water. Bring to a boil;
reduce heat; simmer 2 to 3 hours or
until chicken is tender. Remove and
discard vegetables. Allow chicken
to cool in broth. Remove chicken.
Skim off excess fat; strain broth.
Remove skin and bones from meat.
Cut meat into 1-inch pieces. Melt
fat or butter; add flour, stirring
until smooth. Gradually stir in
chicken broth and cook until thick
ened, stirring constantly. Add
chicken and remaining ingredients.
Simmer 5 minutes. Pack hot meat
and sauce into jars, leaving one
inch headspace. Remove air bub
bles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process
pints one hour and 5 minutes, quar
ts one hour and IS minutes, at 10
pounds pressure in a steam-pres
sure canner. Yield: about 4 pints or
2 quarts.
To serve: Brown mushrooms in
butter; add mushrooms to Chicken
a la King, if desired. Heat until hot
throughout.
To prepare, roll out pie crust.
Cut into squares. Bake in
375-degree oven until slightly
browned. Remove from oven. Place
on serving dish and top with heated
Chicken A La King.
October 28 from 10 a.m to dusk.
Annual Flashlight Maze Oct. 20-21
and Oct. 27-28 from 7:30 to 11 p.m.
Admission: $7 adults, $5 kids age 5
to 11, free for kids under age 5.
Cherry-Crest Farm is located in
Paradise Township at 150 Cherry
Hill Road, Ronks, (a few miles east
of Lancaster). Long onto www.a
mazingmaze.com. Phone (717)
687-6843.
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