Every time I announce my class schedule, I hear from bunches of you that you wish I could come and teach a class in your town. This summer, I’m going to be doing a bunch of traveling and teaching as a way to help promote my book and hopefully, I’ll be able to make a few of your wishes come true.

The first firmed up, official book-type dates I have to announce are those in Seattle in early June. On Sunday, June 10 at 11 am, I’ll be at the Book Larder, doing a canning demo and book signing.

Then, on Monday, June 11 and Tuesday, June 12, I’ll be at The Pantry at Delancey, teaching a pair of identical classes that will feature four recipes/canning skills. We’ll be making gingered pickled sugar snap peas, slightly spicy pickled asparagus, rosemary rhubarb jelly (you can see the jam version of that recipe above) and strawberry vanilla jam. Those classes are filling up fast, so make sure to reserve your spot soon.

For those of you who don’t live in Seattle, I’m also currently working on events in Portland, Eugene, San Francisco, LA, Austin, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, DC.

If your city isn’t on the list and you want me to come to your town, let me know. Because I’m funding this tour entirely on my own, what I’m trying to do is schedule pairs of paid classes and free events everywhere I go so as to help cover costs. If you can help me find ways to make that work, I’d love to hear from you.

Related Posts:

• Off to Seattle
• Sour Cherry Winner, Classes + More
• Upcoming Classes for February through May

January has been a blessedly quiet month for me. I haven’t taught a canning class since the beginning of December. It’s been a nice break, but it’s time to get things moving again.

If learning to can was one of your resolutions for 2012, you should come and take a class with me!

I have monthly Philadelphia-based canning class scheduled February through May (I plan on adding summer classes soon). These classes are on Saturday mornings from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and cost $50. Students take home a jar of what we made in the class, as well as a printout of the recipe. These classes are all held at Indy Hall, 20 N. 3rd Street, in Old City.

February 4 – Meyer lemon jelly
March 3 – Blood orange marmalade
April 7 – Pickled asparagus
May 12 – Strawberry rhubarb jam

Currently, all these classes have availability but will all fill up. Email me at foodinjars@gmail.com to sign up!

I’m also teaching another class at the Kitchen Potager in Bucks County on April 14. We’ll be doing a pickled asparagus and vanilla rhubarb jam. Click here to register for that class.

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Canning at The Kitchen Potager on November 12
• A Portland, OR Canning Class

I mentioned this awhile back, but it was in a long list of other classes, so it’s time to shine a little light on a fun event. On Saturday, November 12, I’m partnering with The Kitchen Potager at Linden Hill Gardens to teach a class on canning holiday gifts.

We’ll make make an apple cranberry jam and a cranberry chutney (perfect for serving with your Thanksgiving chutney). Attendees will take home small jars of both preserves as well as a few tips on how to fancy up your jars for holiday giving. Cost is $45 per person and you can sign up by clicking here.

Hope to see a few of you there!

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• A Portland, OR Canning Class

Dear Portland. I am coming to visit you in just a couple short weeks. I am going to eat a Pok Pok (fish! sauce! wings!), dig for treasure at the bins and attend my 10 year college reunion out in Walla Walla (I’m still not certain how I got to be this old).

I am also going to teach a canning class at Kitchen Cru. It’s on Tuesday, October 4 from 7-9 p.m. and costs $60 to attend. We’ll make pear vanilla jam and I’ll answer every canning question you have (even the ones you think are too silly to ask. Nothing is too silly).

I’ll bring some bread and goat cheese and you’ll swoon when you taste hot pear vanilla jam on top of crusty baguette and creamy chevre. You’ll even get to meet my mom.

Click here to sign up.

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Pickles and Potlucks

So far, unemployment has treated me exceedingly well. Opportunities have popped out of the woodwork and I’m busier now than I was when I was going to an office multiple days a week. Happier too. Here’s just some of the recent goodness that I’ve got cooking.

As I mentioned a while back, I’m doing two events on Sunday, September 18. At 12 noon, you’ll find me making jam and pickles at Cook. At 4 pm, Madame Fromage and I will be at Wedge + Fig, pairing cheeses and preserves.

On Saturday, September 24, I’ll be at Linvilla Orchards for their annual Apple Festival. I’ll do a demo of a preserve that makes good use of apples (I’m working on a new recipe for this one). It’s a free event, so come on out and say hi!

In just two weeks, I’ll be heading to Portland, OR to see my parents, attend my 10 year college reunion out in Walla Walla, WA and teach a canning class. You’ll find me making pear vanilla jam at Kitchen Cru on Tuesday, October 4 from 7-9 pm. Cost for that class is $65 per person and you can register here.

On Saturday, October 8, I’ll be back in Philly, teaching a canning class at Greensgrow. I’ve loved this urban farm since the first time I clapped eyes on it and I’m delighted to have been asked to teach there. We’ll be canning and jamming fall fruit (either pears or apples, depending on what looks good as we approach the day). This class runs from 10-11:30 am and costs $35 per person. Click here for more information.

Finally, on Saturday, November 12, I’m partnering with The Kitchen Potager at Linden Hill to teach a class on canning holiday gifts. We’ll make preserves from apples and cranberries from 1-4 pm. Cost is $45 per person and I’ll have a registration link for you soon.

Now, on to the writing. These days, you’ll find me gabbing about pickles on a weekly basis at Serious Eats in a column called In a Pickle. So far, I’ve written about basic garlic dills, pickled red tomatoes and how to pickle Chinese long beans.

I’ve also launched a weekly column on Food Network’s blog, FN Dish. My first piece was an introduction to canning and blueberry jam, but with the next installment, it will change topic and I’ll be writing something other than canning and preserving. Shocking, I know.

If it’s still summer-like in your neck of the woods, check out my tips for late summer entertaining on the Cuisinart blog. You should definitely make that salad (here’s what my version looked like).

What have the rest of you been up to? Can anything good over the holiday weekend?

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Canning at The Kitchen Potager on November 12

Writing this blog is most often a joy. However at heart, I’m something of a social girl and so like to get out from behind the computer screen and talk preserving with real, live people instead of just typing my thoughts. To that end, I have several upcoming events where I’ll be doing just that and I hope to see some of you there!

The first two are both on Sunday, September 18 (it’s going to be a very busy day!). At 12 noon, you’ll find me at Cook, Philly’s soon-to-open cooking school. I’ll be teaching a canning class in that beautiful space that will demonstration how to make both Pear Vanilla Jam and Refrigerator Pickles.

There will be plenty of snacks to munch on and all the question and answer time your collective hearts’ desire. At the end, everyone will take home an eight ounce jar of the Pear Vanilla Jam, as well as handout to ensure you can do it later. That class is limited to 16 people and costs $70. Click here to register.

At 4 pm that day, I’ll be teaming up with Madame Fromage at Wedge + Fig for a cheese and preserves tasting. Here’s the announcement for that event:

Dreaming of fall? Sit down to six autumnal cheese selections and learn how to pair them with warm flavors like dark beer, chutney, and homemade pickles.  In this class, we’ll explore pairing fundamentals for the winter months and taste six styles of cheese with an emphasis on learning how to mix and match. This is a great Cheese 101 for anyone interested in developing a palate, and if you’re a home canner you’ll leave with recipes you can use for parties and gift giving.

This session costs $65. Buy your seats soon, Wedge + Fig is a charmingly snug and space will go fast. Click here to register.

Finally, this Saturday, August 27, I’ll be doing a canning demo out at the Phoenixville Farmers’ Market. If you’re out that way, stop by and say hi!

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Canning at The Kitchen Potager on November 12

There are a couple of events coming up in the next few days that I’ll be at. If you’re in the area, consider stopping by and saying hi!

First is the Kennett Square Fermentation Festival this Friday, October 1. It’s happening in conjunction with Kennett Square’s regular Friday afternoon Farmers’ Market. It will feature lots of samples of fermented foods and drinks, as well as a number of demonstrations on how to ferment at home. I’ll be doing at sauerkraut demo there at 4 p.m. so come out and say hi!

On Sunday, October 3, I’ll be at Slow Food Philly’s Dig In event. There’s a delegation of folks from the city who are heading to the Terre Madre Conference in Turin, Italy in a few weeks, and so this is part send-off, part celebration of the people and businesses who are living and working with the Slow Food philosophy in mind. The event is taking place at the World Cafe Live from 12 noon until 3 p.m. and tickets are $10. I’ll be there for my day job, representing the Philly Homegrown project, so while I won’t officially be talking canning, feel free to come and chat about it nonetheless.

There are still a few spots left for my sauerkraut class on Tuesday, October 5 at the Swarthmore Co-op, so get in touch (foodinjars AT gmail.com) if you want to sign up.

The Portland canning class on October 13 is totally full. I’m still taking names for the waiting list, so please email if you’d like to get on it. If you missed out this time around, I’ll be back in Portland around Christmas and am planning another class to take place then.

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Canning at The Kitchen Potager on November 12

Got canning questions? I’ve got answers! Tomorrow at 1 p.m. (10 a.m. west coast time), I’ll be joining Kim O’Donnel (who’s got a lovely new book hitting the shelves soon) on her weekly chat over at Culinate. We’ll be talking about canning, preserving and what to do with the barrage of end-of-season produce. Please come and join us!

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Fall is coming, but that doesn’t mean that the time for canning is coming to an end. I firmly believe that there’s plenty of canning to be done straight through the autumn months. I’ve got a series of four jam and chutney classes scheduled September through December that take advantage of all those sweet, crisp apples and pears. These classes cost $45 per person and are all scheduled for Saturday mornings, 11 a.m. through 12:30 p.m.

September 18
Spicy Applesauce

October 23
Pear-Ginger Jam

November 6
Cranberry Apple Jam

December 4
Apple-Pear Chutney

Additionally, I’ve been thinking about offering a sauerkraut class. If you’d be interested in something like that, please leave a comment on this post, so I can determine whether there’s enough interest.

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Canning at The Kitchen Potager on November 12

All over the country, farmers’ markets are opening, gardens are growing and edible abundance is pouring forth. Preserving season is here and what better way to get yourself on board to capture some of the summer season than to take a class with me! Classes will be held at Indy Hall, which is located at 20 N. 3rd Street, 2nd floor (sadly, Foster’s Homewares has shuttered, leaving a giant hole in the Philadelphia retail scene).

My classes are good both for people just starting out canning as well as those who have been doing it for awhile. I always hit the fundamentals of boiling water canning and also share the many tricks I’ve developed while standing over a steamy stove. Each class offers multiple opportunities to ask questions, so that each student can get the information they need from the experience.

For the complete schedule of classes, click here. There are still five spots available in my Rhubarb Chutney class this Saturday, May 15th. Each student who attends that class will receive a print-out of the recipe and a jar of the chutney we make in class. I still have a jar of this chutney that I made last year (I’ve been saving it just for this occasion), so we’ll also have a little snack of goat cheese, baguette and chutney to nibble while we work. Classes cost $39. Please email me at foodinjarsATgmail.com if you’d like to sign up.

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If you follow me on Twitter, you might have picked up the fact that my sister Raina is a musician. She’s been playing guitar since she was 9 years old and has been making her living (such as it is) as a performer for more than five years. Music is all she’s ever wanted to do.

She is currently a top contender in a contest held by The Recording Conservatory of Austin, but desperately needs more votes. Winning this contest would be an enormous boon to her career, so much so that I’m interrupting my endless stream of food chatter to ask you all to consider supporting her. It’s just what big sisters do.

Voting is easy.  CLICK HERE and vote for the Raina Rose Trio, which is Raina and her backup band. Right now she has a good chance of winning but it is competitive and every vote is important. Only one vote from each email address is allowed. There is nothing to join and you won’t be subscribed to a new mailing list.

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Now the giveaway. My birthday is Friday (wow, 31. How did that happen?) and I am hip deep in celebrations. Last night, my husband took me out for the most elegant (and expensive) meal of my life. Tomorrow, I’m having a cluster of friends and family over for a potluck (because I like nothing more than honoring a special moment over delicious food that has been made with love).

In order to share some of the joy with you, I’m giving away two copies of my very favorite canning book. Called So Easy to Preserve, this is the most referenced book on this site. It’s not a glossy book filled with pictures, it actually looks more like a community cookbook than anything else. However, whenever I want to try something new, this is the book that I look to first. The instructions are easy to follow and the explanations are written in a way that inspires confidence in the reader. If you are someone who takes your canning seriously, you must have a copy of this book on your shelf.

To enter yourself in this giveaway, leave a comment on this post and tell me what you’re most looking forward to about  summer foods. Whether it’s making your annual batch of peach butter, eating fresh raw peas or attending your neighborhood’s annual tomato festival, I want to read about it. Entries will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, May 16th. The winners will be posted Monday morning (I promise).

Related Posts:

• Classes at The Pantry at Delancey in Seattle and an Event at the Book Larder
• Upcoming Classes for February through May
• Cranberry Marmalade Class at Indy Hall on December 3

Last Saturday, another batch of jar cozies appeared in my mail box. These guys are from Marci in Wisconsin and I’m absolutely smitten with them. I particularly love that she made one that is just a band, because it slides right around my beloved pint and a half jar. She also included a handmade dishrag that I will be pressing into service later tonight. Thanks Marci!

And now, some news about my canning classes. If you’ve tried to register for one of canning classes on the Foster’s Homewares website in the last few days, you may have noticed that their site is currently down. Sadly, the store is having some troubles. The owners are trying to find a way to stay in business, but the future is murky. Happily, some friends have already volunteered an alternate location, so the classes will go on with their topics, dates and times intact.

As soon as I know more, I will announce whether the classes will indeed be moving and where the new location will be. You can continue to sign up for my classes, just drop me an email at foodinjarsATgmail.com. Unfortunately, the class scheduled for this Saturday, May 1st is canceled. If you were signed up for this class, please get in contact so we can make arrangements to get you into a different class.

Related Posts:

• Summer Canning Classes + More!
• New Classes and a Cookbook Giveaway
• Update on the canning classes