pride and cinnamon sticks

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It's 11:30pm and my 3yr. old twins are sleeping, my husband turned in early because of his 3am wake-up call and I stayed up canning. I just had to tell someone who knows what I mean about how I feel. I did cinnamon pears and tomato sauce. I also have in the cellar corn relish, 5 different kinds of jelly, about 30 odd jars of tomato products and some peaches!! I feel so good because I was a country girl born in the city by accident and this is my second year of canning. It's not like we could make it through the winter with what I've got but I feel proud of my accomplishments. Does anyone know if you can re-use cinnamon sticks if you let them dry out again? Thanks for being out there!!

-- evelyn Bergdoll (evandjim@klink.net), September 19, 2000

Answers

The cinnamon sticks probably won't have much flavor left, but you can try to use them again. Congratulations on learning to can. You spend all that time preparing the food, processing it and there you have it in front of you, 7 jars and you think "that's all, after all that work?:. But then you can more and more and you put it just right on the shelf and admire it's beauty and your hard work. And you stand back and smile:~) Very satifying, isn't it?

-- Cindy (atilrthehony_1@yahoo.com), September 20, 2000.

Evelyn, isn't it exciting canning your own food? That feeling has never left me, and every year I try something new and different. And to think that there are zillions of people out there who can't understand why we would want to go to all that trouble.....

-- Cathy Horn (hrnofplnty@webtv.net), September 20, 2000.

Congratulations! It is a good feeling to have those jars of food stored--kind of like having a barn full of hay-a security blanket, and a feeling of satisfaction knowing you did it yourself. Don't know about reusing the cinnamon, probably just have to try it. Maybe you can use two of the used ones in place of one new one and see if it is strong enough.

On another note, I have been given lots of canning jars by folks who told me there "are only two of us now, so I don't can anymore". I always wonder if they have stopped eating, or what? I canned when there was just my hubby and myself. Of course,if you don't use the stuff you can, you aren't gaining anything, either. Keep up the good work! Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), September 20, 2000.


Good Job! Doesn't it look good when you see those jars lined up? It's like money in the bank! We don't put up enough to get us through a winter either. That's ok. We may or may not get there.

My wife and I planted a bunch of extra beans this year. Put up 80 - 90 quarts, most of which have gone to her sisters house. Things are a little tight for them right now. Along w/30-40 qt of tomatoe sauce. Big family, 6 kids. It was great loading all those up in the truck.

I hope to do more jams & jellys next year. Am expecting Her to come home this weekend w/ a truck load of apples. The pecans, walnuts and persimmons are loaded this year. Haven't gone out and scouted the Paw Paw's yet. God is good!

-- John in S IN (jsmengel@hotmail.com), September 20, 2000.


I don't think there's a sound in the world more satisfying than the pop of a jar as it seals. Congratulations!!!

-- Julie (rjbk@together.net), September 20, 2000.


I knew you guys would understand. I'm trying pear chutney next. It's kind of like an addiction. Sometimes I do look at those 7 jars and say all that work for these? But I know those pears will be sweeter than Libby's could ever hope for. I peeled pears till my hands were cramped!!

-- evelyn Bergdoll (evandjim@klink.net), September 20, 2000.

There really are few who understand the feeling of a full pantry, or the giddy feeling you get when you hear those lids pop. Isn't it great? I have a wonderful friend who lives in the same town, and we swap canning stories. She's always as excited as I am for my success. Today we took a meal to an elderly gentleman in our church. We ate at his house. I made homemade everything, and it was great to see him enjoy the pickles, beets, green beans, and chicken noodles. Today made any work this summer worth it! Guess what he's getting for Christmas??

-- Terri Miller (tchr4hm@juno.com), September 24, 2000.

You all rock! I get a real warm fuzzy feeling when I look over my pantry after canning. Its such a hard feeling to describe! So many emotions for one thing..pride, joy, awe ..you name it! I too am a transplanted townie and love my country life. This year with the kids always under my feet I hardly preserved at all. But next year watch out! LOL Last year I made Carrot Marmalade and Mock Apricot jam for christmas gifts. They were so good and a real frugal way to have jams because carrots are so cheap or out of our gardens. I will be making these again or something else along that vein.

-- Alison Proteau (aproteau@istar.ca), September 25, 2000.

Evelyn, My hubbie was adopted, & we searched for over 20 years for his birth parents as he was adopted in MO. a closed record state. To make a very long story shortier--a few years ago we found my hubbies half brothers & half sister. His birthmother had died a few years before. That year for Christmas his half brother gave him a jar of pickles that his Mother had canned!!! They were old enough we were afraid to eat them ==plus then/ they would be gone!!! So I made a lamp out of the jar of pickles!!!! Everyone who sees the jar/lamp asks about it/ & my hubbie gets to tell the story again! Also his other half brother gave him a quilt top his Mother had made! It was really ugly colors & not put together well/ so I asked a friend to help it out & we picked out really pretty colors to add a large border on it & increased it to a king size quilt/ & quilted it as a gift for my hubbie last year for Christmas!!! Now, I'm sure when my hubbies birthday Mother was canning those pickles she never dreamed that one day a son she had given up for adoption/ would be hopeing he could feel some of her love/ she put into something she made!! Just wanted to share that story with you--so who knows --sometimes it is not just a jar of pickles!!!!! Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), September 25, 2000.

Sondra: What a neat story. Brings joy to my heart and tears to my eyes. I canned 7 quarts of beans and ham and 7 quarts of potato soup this week, made a huge kettle of each on the day I canned them, then had enough left to have for supper, and one more meal to freeze besides. The garden was the pits this year, but there are still things you can put up. Keep it up! Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), September 25, 2000.


Lot's of cool stories, but back to the question. Yes, you can re-use cinnamon sticks. You must use at least twice as many, and "crunch em up" for the second use. This lets the oils (flavor) that haven't been leached get out. Don't expect the fullness of flavor as the "virgin" cinnamon, but there is some flavor left. Now - you "spice- weirdos"- as Maggie considers me, here's a great supplier if you want premium stuff at a reasonable price, and are willing to get a fairly large amount at a time. (Share!) Penzey's Spices (1-800-741-7787) or at www.penzeys.com . Even if you don't order, the catalog is a wealth of information. GL!

-- Brad (Homefixer@SacoRiver.net), September 26, 2000.

I remember as a 20 year old when I got fed up with my parents and set out on my own. Got the apt and utilities and the job ($200 a week), then realised how much I bit off. Sure made it easier to chew after I stocked the cabinets in that galley kitchen with 5 for a dollar cans. 20 years later on this acre, I still think of that first larder whenever I walk in my pantry patting my pot belly looking at our home cans and dehydrated packs.

-- Jay Blair (jayblair678@yahoo.com), September 26, 2000.

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