Two days out of the week, my husband and I have soup for dinner. All I have to do is pop the lids on my canning jars, pour the contents into a big pan, add spices and whatever extras I want. I make two weeks' worth of bread and freeze. All the can food is processed during summer harvest and canning season. I paint in the winter and don't want to cook when I am in the creative zone.
I helped butcher my neighbors' deer, and he gave me the ribcage, which has at least eight to 10 quarts of meat after boiling the meat off the bones. I also get the heart, liver, and tongue. I break off the ribs and cut the vertebra to fit in my colossal boiling pot. My dog Mina gets the bones. I also can the leftover liquid for broth. The leftover bones are burned with garden and tree debris and added to my compost for my garden. No waste.
In the photo, you can see a half-gallon jar of canned broth, my garden green beans, carrots, salsa (peppers, tomatoes, onions), venison, and potatoes. I preserve potatoes that are getting old rather than tossing them out. I can grow my mushrooms, but I am too lazy right now.
The canned deer heart is tender after pressure cooking. It's like slicing through butter. It is so easy! No worries if the electricity goes out and your freezer full of food will go bad. You can save your food from spoiling by canning if you have a gas stove or even a wood-burning stove. I will create a series of blogs on how to pressure can meat.
You can add what you want for soups, stews, or pies. This time I am adding mushrooms, onions, and garlic. Add the broth and cook off some liquid to concentrate and meld the onion and mushroom flavors.
Heat and serve with bread once the broth is ready and seasoning and the canned ingredients.
I am an American, so I like sharp cheddar grilled cheese buns. My husband is Dutch and doesn't think cheddar is real cheese. He had to get used to eating American cheese. His favorite cheeses smell like dirty socks to me.
The buns are made from organic white flour, eggs, salt, and water. I buy bulk flour. I store the flour in one-gallon reusable freezer bags and store the flour in my freezer. I make two weeks' worth of bread and freeze. I also have several hundred pounds of wheat grain to grind into flour. I have a hand mill, and it's a workout making enough flour for a week's worth of bread. If anyone is curious about grinding wheat into flour, I write an article. The process has more involved than just grinding grain.
Bon apetit
