Wisdom From Grandma

When Grandma put up fruit and vegetables for the winter months, canning jars and other canning supplies were easy to find. All the local general stores carried products to help preserve all that garden produce. Now, it can be a bit more challenging to find the supplies you need to can your summer harvest. I’ve put together this shopping list of favorite canning supplies so you can easily find what you need.

Ball Wide-Mouth Mason Canning Jar 1 Qt., Case of 12 – Ball is a classic. I have many heirloom jars that Ball made back in the late 1800′s.
– These jars are perfect for canning tomatoes.
Ball Home Canning Kit-This kit includes everything you need to start canning except the veggies
Ball Regular Dome Canning Jar Lid, Box of 12 – You can use jars over and over, but you’ll need to use new lids each time.
Ball Fruit Jell Liquid Pectin – Most jelly recipes call for pectin.
Ball® Complete Book of Home Preservation 400 delicious and creative recipes for today – This book is a great reference for people who want to can a wide variety of fruits and veggies.

I love these decadent breakfast recipes for holiday mornings. Remember, as with most of these recipes, you will need to prepare your Christmas Morning French Toast the night before so it will be ready to cook in the morning. I think I’ll try this recipe this Christmas instead of my standard stuffed French toast or hash brown casserole.

Ingredients:
1/2 (1 pound) loaf French bread, cut diagonally in 1 inch slices
4 eggs
1 cup milk
3/4 cup half-and-half cream
1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons light corn syrup
Directions:
Butter a 9×13 inch baking dish. Arrange the slices of bread in the bottom. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, milk, cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over bread slices, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

The following morning, preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup; heat until bubbling. Pour over bread and egg mixture. Bake in preheated oven, uncovered, for 40 minutes.

As your child is getting ready for bed, he or she yells down the stairs, “Hey, Mom. I forgot to tell you I need to take a dessert for school tomorrow.” Well, you have a reputation to maintain as the mom who makes cool desserts, so you can’t just stop by the grocery store and pick up a box of cookies. Luckily, you can whip up some of these Super Easy Christmas Swirl Brownies and still get a decent night’s rest.

Ingredients:

1 package cake style brownie mix
1/ teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 cup cream
1 package of cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 bag M&Ms holiday edition

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, cream the sugar and cream cheese until fluffy. Add the egg, cream and vanilla extra. Mix well and set aside.

Prepare the brownie mix according to instructions. Line a 9×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper and then scoop 2/3 of the batter into the pan. Place ½ cup of the M&Ms over the brownie batter. Then spoon the cream cheese mixture over the M&Ms and batter. And finally scoop the remaining brownie mixture over that. Using the tip of a knife swirl the mixture for a marbled effect.

Bake for approximately 45 minutes at 350F until baked through but still moist (do not overbake). Cool before cutting into squares.