Brown's Kitchen House
If you knew my grandaddy, Dolan Edward Brown Jr. then you would understand my affinity for canning. Friends and acquaintances of the Brown family have enjoyed many a meal at the Brown’s Kitchen House. What most folks would call a pond house, club house, or cabin the Brown’s lovingly refer to as the “Kitchen House”. My earliest memories of the Kitchen House are the delicious smells escaping through the screen door. The scent of onions and bell peppers cooking with just a tang of vinegar in the air takes me back to the summer days of my childhood. My cousins and I hung around like little beggars just waiting for a morsel. When we heard the familiar beep of the big wheel on “The Price is Right” we knew lunch would soon be served. All the men would come in with their big clunky work boots and wash up with dial soap. Grandaddy would say grace, “Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies, and us to thy service.” And dinner was served.
In the big room where we gathered to eat the walls were covered in shallow, wooden shelves. The shelves held Mason jars filled with any canned or pickled delicacy you could imagine. Pickled peaches, grape jelly, blackberry jelly, pears halves, cucumber pickles, pear relish, and even whole muscadine grapes glistened brightly like colorful gems on display.
After the lunch dishes were washed and put away, Grandaddy would continue pickling and preserving. The cousins would perch on deep chest freezers and sample warm blackberry jelly from solo cups. The freezers were loaded with produce from Grandaddy’s garden including: fresh squash, peas, beans, and creamed corn. I consider it a great privilege to have experienced and enjoyed these times with my family.
My forays into canning have produced much success as well as miserable failures. Pectin remains a formidable adversary and necessary friend. No matter the amount of pectin a recipe calls for I always add a little or even a lot extra. My first attempt at blueberry jelly was a bust. It turned out more like blueberry syrup, but it tasted good! The Methodist Men’s prayer breakfast group ate many a jar of my strawberry fig preserves made with figs picked from Grandma’s “patch” in Twin City. Every summer Daddy brings me big mesh bags full of hard pears from the farm. I grate them to make pear relish using Grandaddy’s hand-written recipe. My kitchen at Honey smells like I stepped back in time. The slightly sweet and tangy flavor of the pear relish compliments a bowl of buttery peas perfectly. It's hard to eat a good smoked sausage dog without a heaping spoonful of pear relish on top!
Canning is not for the faint of heart. It is real WORK. I suggest gathering family or friends to help. After all this is the way it should be. I have a large, industrial kitchen with room to spread out and work. I just can’t imagine little, old ladies standing over boiling pots in tiny kitchens without air conditioning. Man are we spoiled!! Try your hand at a little canning this summer. I promise there is nothing more satisfying than hearing the faint pop and click of metal lids sealing at the end of a long day.
The recipes below are passed down from family members or created from trial and error throughout the years. Pinterest, Google, and your local county extension agency are all great sources for recipes, tips, and the correct methods for canning.
A Typical Kitchen House Dinner Menu:
Fried Fat Back
Grilled Fresh Sausage
Creamed Corn
Fresh Peas with Pear Relish
Chicken and Dumplings
Cat Head Biscuits
Black Berry Jelly/Cane Syrup
Fried Apple Tarts
Strawberry Fig Jam
Strawberry Fig Jam
12 c Figs (ripe, skin-on, stems removed)
4 lb. Sugar
4 3oz boxes Strawberry Jello
18 8oz Jars
Place figs in a pot with sugar. Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves. While the figs and sugar are cooking crush figs with a spoon, or I like to use a potato masher. Once sugar is dissolved add the Jello and cook an additional 10 minutes. Stir constantly. Use traditional hot water canning method.
Pickled Peaches
Pickled Peaches
7 lbs. Peaches (washed and peeled)
3 lbs. Sugar
1 pint Vinegar
1 c Water
1 Tbs. Cloves
1 Tbs. Allspice
6-8 Quart Jars with Wide Mouth
Boil all ingredients until liquid is clear. Put fruit and juice in jars and seal with hot water canning method.
Makes approximately 6 quart jars.
Mama Cil’s Pear Relish
14 lbs. Pears (weight after they have been peeled and cored)
4 lbs. Red and Green Bell Peppers (approximately 6 of each color)
3 lbs. Onions
Grind all the above ingredients. I use a food processor. Let stand in colander and drain for 2 hours.
While fruit mixture is draining assemble the remaining ingredients.
2 Qt. Vinegar
2 lbs. Light Brown Sugar
2 Tbs. Black Pepper
1 tsp. Celery Seed
2 tsp. Cinnamon
2 Tbs. Mustard Seed
Dash Turmeric
24 Pint Jars
Cook vinegar and spices until hot. Add fruit mixture and cook 10 minutes. Can using hot water canning method.