Making Local Food last

If you have been harvesting your own food from the garden, getting inundated with your CSA box, or shopping for locally grown food at your nearest market, the thought of preserving food has likely crossed your mind. I am aspiring to can and otherwise preserve my own food as a way to eat more locally in the winter. I read a great article about the resurgence of making jams, complete with recipes and jamming tips. If videos are more your speed, you can also watch a video about easy food preservation tips on the Ball jar website. On the same topic, you can also read about Chef Tory Miller of L'Etoile's methods of putting food by for the winter. He has to manage food for a whole restaurant...we can at least learn to preserve some of the bounty for our own families.

Here's an easy way to get started: berries. All you have to do is go berry picking or buy a whole mess of berries at their height of flavor and then freeze them on cookie trays. After they freeze separately you can put them in a ziplock and enjoy smoothies for months to come! Yum!!!