206: Allison Duffy on Food Preservation.

Canning and other preservation techniques to safely store foods longer.

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Allison has been growing and preserving food for over fifteen years.  She is a Master Food Preserver, trained through the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, and holds a Master’s Degree in Gastronomy from Boston University.  She has written about food for various publications including the Boston Globe, Backpacker magazine, and Taproot magazine, and is the author of the book Preserving with Pomona’s Pectin.
She regularly writes and develops recipes for the Pomona Pectin company, and blogs at her own website CanningCraft.com plus she teaches canning and preserving classes. Allison lives on several acres in Mid-coast Maine with her husband Ben and their two young boys, where they tend an apple orchard, look after a way-too-big vegetable garden, take care of chickens, and put up as much food as they can manage.

In this podcast:

Canning food is a favorite topic of Greg’s so of course he was excited to talk to Master Food Preserver Allison about her experiences and get some tips from her as well.  As a bonus, they also chatted about her ‘too big’ garden and how this homestead is so rewarding for her family.

Listen in and learn about:

• How food has been a passion ever since she was young and the path to her degree in gastronomy
• Why she took the Master Food Preserver course
• How she got connected to Pomona’s Pectin and why she loves it so much
• The coincidence that helped her get asked to write a book for Pomona’s Pectin
• Some of the topics and cool aspects of the book
• What pectin is and what it is made from
• What is unique about Pomona’s pectin and why calcium is the key
• Her garden that is ‘way too big’ and why she says that
• Some of the items that she is successfully growing
• The difference between winter and summer squashes
• How she preserves kale
• Why she blanches before freezing and how
• The family aspect of canning in her homestead
• Their apple orchard and making apple cider
• How her ten-year-old get motivated to participate in the homesteading activities
• The different methods of food preservation and some of the food types that work best in each method
• Resources for learning about canning or jar preserving

As well as:

• Her failure – thinking that she had done enough to prepare her soil and realized that she to nurture and amend her soil
• Her success – working with her kids as they are growing up
• Her drive – that it is important for all to know where our food comes from, and what goes into it, and to know how to take care of ourselves if we can’t get food from the store; also spending quality and rewarding time together with her family
  
• Her advice – just get out and try it
  

Books written by Allison:

Preserving with Pomona’s Pectin: The Revolutionary Low-Sugar, High-Flavor Method for Crafting and Canning Jams, Jellies, Conserves, and More

 
Allison’s Book recommendations:   

The Garden Primer: Second Edition – by Barbara Damrosch

Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long, 2nd Edition – by Elliot Coleman

How to reach Allison:

Website: www.canningcraft.com

Also check out: pomonapectin.com

 UrbanFarm.org/CanningCraft