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Welcome to the thirteenth edition of UC Master Food Preserver Program’s monthly newsletter. Our mission is to extend culturally appropriate, research-based practices for preserving food in the home.
Each month, you’ll receive recipes, how-tos, and inspiration straight to your inbox. In case you notice these things, please note that starting next month this newsletter will be sent out on the fifteenth of each month. Thank you for subscribing and feel free to reply with any food preservation questions.
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Mary Nazara (used with permission) | | |
Spotlight: Mary Nazara Class of 2025 Master Food Preserver Volunteer
I started preserving in the summer of 2022 after a phone call from my sister. She had a tree full of ripe plums and didn’t want them to go to waste. I already had a canner I’d bought years earlier on clearance, still sitting unopened in my pantry because, honestly, I was too nervous to use it. I had read through the Ball canning books, watched videos, and done plenty of research—but I just couldn’t bring myself to start.
That all changed the day my sister and I made plum jam together. We spent the afternoon laughing, learning, and cheering...
Read More
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Pasting and Saucing Chili Peppers:
Exploring Flavors from New Mexico to Peru
By Robyn Barker
If you have a sunny spot in your garden or on your patio, chili peppers are fun and easy to grow. The plants don’t get too large; they can even be grown in a container. Saucing chili peppers preserves summer flavor to enjoy later in the winter. Use Hatch and Aji Amarillo chili pastes for dips, marinades, or to spice up sauces and soups.
Hatch peppers are synonymous with New Mexico. I’ve heard said that, just as sparkling wine must be from the Champagne region of France to be Champagne, a Hatch pepper must be from New Mexico to truly be a Hatch pepper. Whether you visit Albuquerque or Santa Fe, these peppers will be found in a myriad of dishes: chilis, cheeses, tacos, burritos, or my favorite, a Hatch chili cheeseburger.
Read More & Get the Hatch Pepper Sauce Recipe Here
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Ripe Hatch peppers
(Robyn Barker, used with permission).
| Aji Amarillo peppers in various stages of ripeness (Robyn Barker, used with permission). | | |
Applications are Now Open for the 2026 UC Master Food Preserver Training Program!
By Henry Shaw, UC Master Food Preserver Online Program Volunteer
Do you want to learn more about safe food-preservation techniques? Do you have a passion for sharing your knowledge with others? Are you willing to donate your time as a volunteer for a good cause? Would you like to help people in your community learn to preserve food safely in their homes?
If so, consider becoming a UC Master Food Preserver! Follow the link below for more information and to apply.
"The Master Food Preserver program gave me the knowledge and confidence to safely preserve food for my family—and to help others feel comfortable doing the same. I love canning, freezing, and even a little dehydrating, but pressure canning is still my favorite!" - Mary Nazara
Learn More and Apply
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All About Apples: Which are Best for Your Recipe?
By Tim Long, UC Master Food Preserver Online Program Volunteer
If you’re looking for a native apple tree, you’re going to be disappointed. Apples aren’t native to the Americas. They originated in Kazakhstan, in central Asia and eastern Europe about 6,500 years ago. Apples came to America with the first colonists, who carried young trees and seeds from home. Unlike today’s apples, they were likely smaller and not so pleasant tasting. Even so, apples became a staple in the American diet with many being pressed to make cider. Hard cider was regularly consumed at meals—a safer alternative at a time when water supplies often carried disease due to poor sanitary practices.
Today, there are over 2,500 varieties of apples grown in the United States. Which one is best suited for your pie or your apple butter? Which one is best for juice or cider, or canning? And why do we need to add lemon juice to our apple recipes?
Read More Red Delicious apples at market (Tim Long, used with permission)
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Understanding pH and Why it's Important in Food Preservation
By Earl Weak, UC Master Food Preserver Online Program Volunteer
In simple terms, pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline (basic) a solution is.
- A pH below 7 indicates an acid solution
- A pH above 7 indicates an alkaline (basic) solution
- pH 7 is considered neutral
Note that the lower the pH value, the higher the acidity. Because most harmful bacteria cannot grow in highly acidic conditions, controlling pH is a key food safety strategy; understanding and controlling pH is essential to safe and successful food preservation.
In the context of food preservation, pH is especially important because acid environments help control the growth of bacteria and other microorganisms that cause spoilage or illness.
Read More Pigments in red cabbage indicating solution pH (Earl Weak, used with permission)
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