Giveaway: Gloria Nicol's preserving book & Ball's vintage edition jars
Spring is here, for many of us (sorry snowy midwest!), which means fruit is on its way. I’m excited to offer up a preserving book from an e-friend in the UK, Gloria Nicol, whose lovely blog I’ve tracked for some time now. When browsing in a local shop for resources supporting my kitchen book research, I came across her book:
;)
And absolutely fell in love with the simplicity and style of her recipes.
They’re fruit-forward and elegant; I think this is another great book to have when considering what delicious end your strawberries or [insert fruit/veg] might face. Thanks to CICO Books, and her publisher’s US office, I have a copy to send you!
As a bonus, courtesy of our friends over at Ball, I’m also able to toss in a flat of their newly-released Heritage Collection jars. They’re blue, like the old quart jars I’ve been collecting from every antique shop I run across. These limited-edition jars come six to a case and match year-appropriate writing for the 100-year anniversary of Ball “perfect mason” jars. Read more about them here.
Ball also announced that their lids no longer contain BPA in the sealing rubber effective last fall. New packaging is rolling out this spring indicating the omission of the toxic plasticizer. Good news for us!
Back to the book and considerations for what you’re going to put in your brand new, not-chipped, old-timey jars.
Reading Gloria’s book is like going on a trip overseas and visiting your cool aunt. She takes you to the market (you probably ride cute, old bikes), she feeds you scones and lets you taste a bite from all the jars from the pantry.
Here are a few highlights from the book, which features lovely photography and a blend of unique and classic flavor ideas.
I made her strawberry jam last weekend with our stash of berries and it was a vibrant and dazzling spread.
I love the nectars section!
Yes, she’s in the UK, where preserving practices differ from our USDA-prescribed methods, but you need not worry about safety. Either reduce the recipe and stash your jars in the fridge, or (ever so blasphemously) just process the jams or chutneys according to waterbath times listed for other US-published recipes of the same fruit jam. (Pretty much any jam gets a 10-minute processing time…)
For shipping reasons, we’re asking for entrants from the US & Canada only. Sorry international loves. Please enter by Friday, April 5, 2013 at midnight CST by leaving a comment below telling me about traditions, anything large or small that you’re continuing or bringing back with your family or within your friend circle. Good luck! (p.s. if you don’t leave your email address in the little box where the comment form asks for it, you won’t win because I can’t track you down otherwise)
Kate
Congrats to Kymm, lucky number 117; please check your email. Thanks everyone for entering and sharing such wonderful comments about traditions.
Canning, Cookbooks, Food Preservation, Fruit, Giveaways, Pickling, Traditions, Vegetables
Reader Comments (224)
Making jams and pickles was not something I learned from my grandmother or mother. Rather it was my mother-in-law who held my hand at the beginning of my preserving journey. Her favorite jam was black raspberry and that is a legacy that she left for all her children and grandchildren.
Since we're talking about jam, my grandmother has been my inspiration -- she made amazing jams every summer from her garden. I love these jars and love Gloria Nicol; great giveaway!
I am bringing back canning to my family and teaching my children (12 and 9) all about it. When I was younger than they are, my mother I and I did jelly and pickles because we had easy access to needed supplies (we lived on a good deal of land and the neighbors lets us glean from their fields). After seeing how many chemicals are in the different foods we eat, I decided that I could make better with fewer ingredients, so that's what I set out to do. The children find it amazing that you can use so few ingredients and have food that tastes better than stuff from the store! So far, they have helped in making 3 different salsas (varying in spiciness), and grape jelly and they are looking at other things that we could can. I'm afraid I created monsters, but in this case, I think they're "nice monsters" lol
I carry on the tradition of canning in my family. We have a garden, and I just love seeing my jars all lined up after the season is over. We also love to eat! I can jams and jellies so the cookbook would be a great addition. And the jars, they are beautiful! Thank you for the opportunity to win them.
My Italian great-grandmother made the best spaghetti sauce ever! She taught her daughter-in-law (my grandmother) who taught her daughter-in-law (my mother) who taught me. I make big batches of it and freeze half of it every time. I hope that my daughter (and maybe son-he doesn't like to help in the kitchen, maybe I can teach a DIL oneday) will continue the tradition.
My wife and I have started making jams and jellies which is something both our parents used to do back in the day. We may move on to canning tomatoes which my Dad is famous for if we can get a big enough harvest. Our own new tradition is to make limoncello and aranciacello. I'm wondering if the book will help connect me with my Mom's canning practices as she is also from the UK.
I have been canning for the last three years. Although my grandparents canned from their garden, I never learned the process. I look forward to starting new traditions with my daughter and teaching her how to preserve deliciousness. P.S. Thanks to Ball for BPA free lids! :)
I grew up around families who gardened and canned. Now that I live in a home (not an apartment), I am also canning and gardening. Even though I live in the city, it makes me think of those pleasant country days. Now if I could only have chickens...
We moved into a new house last January and were so happy to be able to have a garden. My dad had a garden every year and I can remember sneaking veggies from it before it was harvest time. This year we are continuing the this tradition. I can't wait to get everything started!
My children are learning how to make traditional Polish pierogies every holiday season with their grandmother as the their wise teacher and guide. I love that this family and cultural tradition is a part of their lives.
I remember years ago watching my grandmother can! Now , she has passed on but I can today . I am teaching my grand daughter and it so much fun. I also have a friend and we can together and we hold " canning classes" for other who want to learn! Really neat to pass this on. Something that was a dying art is now coming back!
my grandmothers both canned and in my new part time bakery business we started canning unique jams this year they have been a great hit. would love to add some of these recipes to our collection:)
I am making wine and hard cider this year for the first time and really loving it. So far, I have made wine and cider from local (Washngton) anjou pears, black currants, honey crisp apples, raspberries, black cherries and honey. I'm looking forward to making beet, rhubarb and peach with what I harvest from my garden. I'm doing everything without sulphites which most of my family members are sensitive to, and I'm trying to do everything organic and completely natural. For example, I'm making my own yeast, and using raw cane sugar. I can't wait to taste the aged product, especially the mead and the black currant wine!
My kids both can and would adore the book these jars....maybe even fight over them and break them. =)
The tradition I'm most passing down to them is sewing. Although neither of them love it as much as I do.
Picking strawberries from the home patch was always my task (if you could call it work!) and now my little guy is taking the torch. That's a very sweet tradition! Thanks for such a great giveaway, Kate!!
living in the country, I come from a long line of canners, and still do, would love to get a book from a Gloria nicol, who knows maybe even a kin lol. (gggrandmother was a nicol from Scotland. Love trying some knew receipes.
i just started canning about six months ago and i absolutely love it! everywhere and everything i look for is new canning recipes and tips. i've done pickles, salsa, green beans and swamp cabbage. i want to start working with fruit.
Canning and preserving fruits and veggies, my Mom did it and I am doing it now
I grew up with my mom canning lots of stuff - jams and jellies, beets, beans, all sorts of tomatoes, beef, chicken....I've started slowly, with the easier stuff that doesn't require the use of the pressure cooker. My favorites include strawberry jam and apple butter, and last year I got some pickled beets done successfully. I hope to continue to increase the number and variety of what I'm canning, with some help. If you have a good teacher, it is really quite easy!
I just made my first attempts at canning last year. I am trying to get my children more involved in our gardening, composting etc. I love being able to enjoy the fruits of our labor all winter as we have jars of pickles, homemade pizza sauce, and frozen chopped veggies for spaghetti sauce, soups etc. Friday nights have sort of turned into the unofficial pizza night. I've learned to make my own whole wheat crust from scratch...topped with sauce made from roma tomatoes I grew last summer...wow! I'll never look back! I hope my kids will enjoy these learning experiences and take them with them when they grow up!
While winning the jars would be wonderful, it would just be the icing on the cake. And even if I don't win this preserving book is going on my Must Have list of cookbooks. This year I'll be making Fig, Bourbon and Vanilla Bean jam for holiday gifts. Pickles and boozy fruit were great hits this past holiday but I saved all the fig jam for myself. It's just wonderful, especially on Greek yogurt.
Traditions I would like to carry on with my daughter include mom's (my grandmother's) spagetti sauce and all kinds of holiday recipes that make our gatherings complete. I have been the one to bring back canning and I hope she will get into that as well.
I learned canning and preserving from my grandma and mother when we lived on a small Iowa farm. Love how I always think back to those times as a little girl when I'm working in my own kitchen! This summer I have plans to teach a girlfriend to make raspberry jam! And my grandmother had an entire storage room full of jars in her root cellar. Boy do I wish I had access to that room now to inspect all those jars!
My mom canned all kinds of things when I was growing up and, now that I'm a mom needing to feed my family lovely things that are healthy, I've taken up doing the same. Thank you for the chance to win!
Picking fresh berries tomorrow, could really use those beautiful jars!