I’m super excited to kick off a new series I’ve been wanting to start here on the blog – The Canning Diaries. Last year, I buckled down, with the help of some sweet ladies who shared with me their canning ways, and learned how to make shelf stable items through canning. The process itself kinda intimidated me, but after doing my own research and trial and error on my part, I got past that initial fear, and now somewhat know what I’m doing. Like I said, somewhat 😝. Believe me, I still mess up, but you just have to learn from the mistakes and continue to try.
This year, we plan to fill our garden with lots of veggies that I can turn around and make shelf stable through the canning process. So over the next few months, I’ll be sharing different canning recipes here and there, as well as tips, tricks, and how-tos.
Since it’s not quite time to get our garden going, I thought I’d share a easy recipe with y’all. Delicious Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate. My kids love strawberry lemonade, so I wanted to find a way to make a large batch and somehow preserve and use it during the summer months.
Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate Recipe⬇︎
Ingredients:
- 6 cups of washed and chopped strawberries
- 4 cups of fresh lemon juice
- 6 cups of sugar
- a pinch of salt
Directions:
Juice the lemons, making sure to remove any unwanted pulp or seeds. Then add your washed and chopped strawberries to a blender or food processor to puree. Add both the juice and strawberries to a large stock pot, along with the sugar, and heat on low until the sugar is fully incorporated and your lemonade is warm enough to process in your canner. You do not want to bring the lemonade to a boil. Low and slow is key! Add a pinch of salt, and stir. Then ladle into clean, warm, pint sized jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Be sure to wipe your rims with warm water or vinegar, to remove any residue. Then put the lids and rims on, with the rings on finger tight. Place your pint jars into a water bath canner, that’s as warm as your lemonade concentrate. You don’t want to shock your jars and chance breaking all your hard work (trust me on this one, trial and error I’m telling ya 😝). Bring to a rolling boil, then process for 15 minutes. It’s 20 minutes if you are between 1,000-3,000 ft in elevation. Or 25 minutes if you are between 3,000-6,000 ft. Once your jars have processed for the amount of time needed, depending on your elevation, remove and place them on a towel on your kitchen counter. Allow them to seal and cool for 24 hours before storing.
When you’re ready to make some strawberry lemonade, all you have to do is mix 1 pint of the concentrate with 3 pints of water and that’s it, you have quick and delicious strawberry lemonade!
This recipe makes 7 pints of the concentrate, so feel free to double the recipe to have more to store! You can also use either fresh or frozen strawberries, it’s completely up to you. I tend to use frozen, unless I’m able to find some fresh strawberries in bulk at a farmers market, or through someone I know.
