By Maggie Edwards 

Summer is the perfect season for a juicy tomato, but it’s not the only time to enjoy the freshness of its flavor. 

“Canning brings instant gratification,” said Coosa County’s Paula Neighbors. “I like to see vegetables in the basket and then put up in a jar. It’s fresh when you get it and just as fresh months later.” 

Neighbors said she’s always considered herself a canner but chose to attend Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s (ACES) Home Food Preservation Camp in Goodwater this summer to hone her skills.

“I wanted to learn the newest and safest techniques for growing and canning vegetables,” said Neighbors, who has a backyard garden. “Canning is a long process, but you’re putting up food for winter and hard times.”

The key to successful canning lies in the produce. Purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables helps extend the flavor of contents safely sealed in a jar, she said.

Alabama farmers like Blount County’s Destiny Allman Gladden are there to ease the stress of finding local products. Her family cultivates high-quality crops for wholesale and retail at Allman Farms & Orchards.

“Shopping from our local farm allows consumers to come here and meet my family,” said Gladden, a fifth-generation farmer. “We’re eating this produce, so you know we’re growing it safely. Our livelihood depends on this. If we can’t grow a good product, then we aren’t going to sell it.” 

Gladden said produce hits the shelves of on-farm markets within 24 hours of being picked.

“We see a big interest in American-grown goods now,” said Daniel Allman, Destiny’s father. “We can just get a fresher pick here on the farm.”

The Allman family grows peaches, corn, melons, squash and other summer produce, but their most popular items are red, green and grape tomatoes. 

Those farm-fresh tomatoes quickly find their way to homes and are often destined for the pantry. 

“Canning is a lost art,” said Destiny’s mom, Amy, a long-time canning connoisseur. “Why go buy stuff when you have the resources in front of you to preserve? When you can, you know everything that’s going into it. It’s different, and it helps reduce waste.”

Though not as common as it once was, ACES is preserving a love of canning in communities.

During three summer Home Food Preservation Camps, agendas included pressure and water-bath canning. Participants enjoyed hands-on demonstrations of canning carrots, jams, jellies, pickles, sauerkraut and tomatoes.

ACES Regional Extension Agent Dani Reams held the Goodwater group’s attention in the classroom discussing the steps of preparing tomatoes and jars for salsa.

Reams stressed the importance of using a tested, canning-approved recipe for food that’s preserved in water baths. Water-bath canning immerses lidded jars filled with high-acid foods into hot water. This process kills target microorganisms, inactivates natural enzymes and forms a vacuum seal. 

“How long something can be canned and enjoyed is more of a quality issue than a safety issue,” Reams said. “If it stays sealed, it should be safe because you have killed all bacteria in the jar.”

With the basics under their belts, Reams dismissed the class for the kitchen.

Their salsa adventure began with washing. Attendees then rinsed tomatoes and cut an X across each fruit’s base. After plopping them into a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds, the group quickly removed the scalded tomatoes and placed them in an ice-water bath, a process that made peeling easier.

Next steps included dicing, mixing in seasonings and vinegar, and boiling. The vinegar addition made the salsa acidic enough to water bath. When the salsa began to boil, the group lowered the pot to a simmer. From there, it was time to spoon salsa into hot jars and place them into the water bath. 

The process originally sounded daunting, said Janet Lovelady. But the family and consumer sciences teacher said the reward would be worth it when popping the salsa seal this fall.

“You have to dive into canning,” said Lovelady. “I took a similar class 15 years ago. I came back to refresh my memory and take this information back to my students.” 

How to Water-Bath Can: 

• Wash jars and keep hot (an oven works). 
• Use a tested, canning-approved recipe.
• Pack food and liquid to within 1/2 inch of top of jar.
• Remove air bubbles.
• Wipe jar rims.
• Adjust lids and bands to finger-tip tight.
• Place jars in canner or pot using a jar lifter.
• Process according to recipe. 
• Remove jars using a jar lifter.
• Place on towel. 
• Let sit 12-24 hours.
• Check seals.
• Remove bands and wipe jars.
• Label with product and date.