Canned Apricots

 You may have noticed an absence of posts last week. This is because I was up in Utah visiting my family. Fortunately for me, my mom and I came across a fruit stand selling apricots. I was really excited about this because I usually am given apricots every year by friends whose trees are overloaded with them. This year, however, those trees were not overloaded. I had accepted the fact that I would not be able to can any this year, which for me was a little sad. Canned apricots are nostalgic for me. My mom canned them every year and we always had a ready supply. So when I saw the large boxes of apricots, I went and bought a large box. I decided to can some and to try drying some. Here's how I can them:

I washed them, tore them in half, and removed the pit, then stuffed them in these quart mason jars. We had made a syrup by combining 1 1/2 cups of sugar per quart of water. This we dissolved and brought to boiling and then poured into the jars filled with apricots.

After wiping the lip of the jar to ensure a proper seal, we screwed on the lids and placed them in this water bath canner. I do not have a water bath canner, just a pressure canner, but this sure was convenient. I'm told that they are very inexpensive too. Maybe some day I will pick one up.

If I remember correctly, we processed them for about 35 minutes and then pulled them out to cool.

This was the final result. We ended up with 14 quarts. I have to say that canning is a lot more fun and a lot easier when you do it with some one. Everything I have canned to date has been by myself so it was nice to do this with my mom. It time passed quickly and we were able to do a lot in a small amount of time. Maybe next time I so some serious canning I'll invite some people over.