Sweet Potato Heaven

I have a question for you and if you’re a true southerner you’ll know the answer. Why are baked sweet potatoes always sitting on a pie plate on top of a southern stove – morning, noon and night?

I’m smiling because I can see it right now. Anytime I walked into my grandma’s house, there were baked sweet potatoes on the stovetop. It could be seven a.m. and you’d think they were having sweet potatoes for breakfast. Truth is, not even some of us southerners understand that one. It’s just a memory so many of us share. Maybe it had something to do with the Depression? Anyone have any idea? Let me know. That’s one crazy image I’ve got to understand.

Anyway, here is a delicious sweet potato recipe that I accidentally discovered the other day. Its so easy and delicious!! You'll be in sweet potato heaven.

Ingredients:

-1 baked sweet potato

-1 jar Lauri Jo's Pinapple Jam

Directions:

Slice baked sweet potato in half lengthwise. Scoop two tablespoons of jam into the potato and enjoy.

-Lauri Jo

Fresh Produce

It’s hot and dry here in the Deep South, but we’ve been blessed with summer’s beautiful bounty.

In case you didn’t know, our products taste so good because 90 percent of the produce is picked right here from our farm.  What we don’t grow, our local farmers (they’re our friends, too!) provide for us.  Tomatoes (toe-maters), squash, green beans, strawberries, blueberries, cucumbers, peppers and more are picked daily and brought in to wash and start preparing to put away for later enjoyment.

That to me is the nicest pleasure in the cold days of winter, when the colorful garden and flowers are gone.  I open a jar of my fresh salsa, or blueberry jelly and I smell the fresh garden again.  All the warmth, sunshine and fun memories with my kids come rushing back and make me so happy.  And it tastes so darn good too, ya’ll! 

Check out this truck load of freshly picked tomatoes and peppers from our field!  My son, Hal, is helping us load them up so that we can use them in our products!  Excited about this batch!

I Love Canning

Canning is an art in the south.  It’s something I grew up with.  But most people today don’t do it because it’s a lot of work.  I can just about everything... from different kinds of pepper jellies and salsa to pickled okra and asparagus.  

When it turns cold outside later in the year (hard to believe right now because we’ve had 100 degree heat waves!), I love to open a jar of my jelly and smell the freshness of ripe, summer fruit.  Summer comes rushing back and warms me all over! 

So you’re probably reading this thinking, Lauri Jo, what is canning exactly?   What ingredients do I need to can?  How long does it take?  Can I do this in my kitchen? 

 

Steps for Canning Fresh Salsa

1. Pick or Purchase fresh tomatoes (I prefer picking my own.)

2. Wash them off real good.

3. Place them in boiling water for about 15 minutes to loosen the skin.

4. After they are cool enough to handle, peel the skin off and put peeled tomatoes in a separate container.

5. Gather other ingredients such as garlic, salt, onion, jalapeños, tomato paste, and any other    ingredients you choose to put in yours. (Now I mash my tomatoes by hand as I am peeling them, but all of my other ingredients I chop in a food processor.)

6. Place all ingredients into a large boiler.

7. Let the salsa cook for 30 to 40 minutes on a good rolling boil. After about 15 to 20 minutes of cooking. (Take a quick taste to see if you need to add any salt, pepper or garlic.)

8. Fill jars while still hot, screw lid on and turn upside down for sealing.

9. Let cool completely and then ENJOY!!!

Welcome!

My family in Panama City Beach last week
Left to Right: Hal, Me, Mike, Mikelyn

Hi, I’m Lauri Jo. It’s nice to meet you who are reading this. My company is called Lauri Jo’s Southern Style Canning (www.laurijos.com) and lately, some people have been calling me the ‘pepper jelly queen.’ That’s alright. It’s kind of stickin’ to me.

Here’s my story. It all began as a much loved hobby of mine at my high school canning plant. Canning is an art in the south, you know. It’s something I grew up with. But most people today don’t do it because it’s a lot of work – and hot and nasty. After marrying my husband, Mike, I found myself fixin’ holiday gift baskets full of canned goods each year for the customers at his trucking company. Everyone told me the produce and jellies I canned were so good, that I ought to start a canning business!

My interest in canning followed me through my years as a reading and special education schoolteacher and eventually blossomed into a full-blown business.  With a few of my great-grandmother’s recipes, mixed with some of my husband’s and my own, we offer products that have a true Southern taste and are now selling 32 different products to 41 states and counting!  This year at the 2012 Flavor of Georgia food product contest, my Blueberry Pepper Jelly won the People's Choice Award and my Muscadine Jelly won first place at the in the jam, jelly and sauce category.

I’m a southern woman through and through.   I love to do things for my family, help people in the community, cook a down-home style meal, work in the garden, be on just about every committee I can join ‘cause I love people, and I like to make things pretty and enjoyable for everyone.  You just can’t beat Southern tradition and hospitality. It makes us special.  I hope every southern woman out there is passing that down to their daughters and sons.  

Well, that’s a little about me.  Oh!  I almost forgot to tell you about my new blog.   I’m going to give you some great southern menu ideas and recipes (ya’ll are going to love this), ideas for entertaining and backyard family fun, canning tips, and share lots of pictures from our farm – we have produce coming out of our ears!  Summer’s bounty is a true blessing so we can’t waste it.  I’ll give ya’ll ideas on how to preserve produce now to taste and enjoy later when it’s cold outside.    

Signing off, because every day, we strive to “Preserve the South One Jar at a Time” by making fresh, all-natural, farm-picked products with our hands, our hearts, and hard work to share with our families, friends, and fans.   Oh, and feel free to comment anytime – I love hearing from ya’ll!