I very rarely do this but it's so fun when I do get around to it: Making chutneys, breads, pickles, tarts, etc. ahead of time, to fill a freezer/refrigerator/pantry -- though truth be told I've never actually made "real" preserved food like could go into a pantry. My grandmother used to fill her cellar with canned fruits and vegetables from their acres of fruit trees and their many fields. This looks just like their cellar! minus the maid-type person!
...Her only cookbooks for such foods were, for jams and jellies the pamphlet found in pectin packages, which she never kept but would just get again the next year, which I guess makes sense because perhaps the company would've adjusted their product a little year to year and you would want to use their newest recipe...and a booklet from the company that made her jars.
I've not been able to find the jar one she used, but these are similar. This looks most like hers; it's from 1948, which makes sense, given that was about when she and Grandpa settled on their farm, after the war.
This one is from 1917! and through it I discovered an extremely cool-looking site:
http://historiccookingschool.com .
Here's a pretty one from 1930:
Lastly, here's the cover of a 1930s? 1950s? French magazine? on canning; ah those ladies are so chic even when they're canning, their children are underfoot, their friend is jabbering, and they're carrying a ton -- note the wonderful jam jars like you can get when you buy Bonne Maman's preserves today:
......Back to 2014. This week I've gotten a nice start on making these for people arriving after an overseas trip, both as a welcome and to make for easy suppers!
...an olive-rosemary bread
...an amazing tapanade-tomato tart I'll post about soon
...mini frittattas made in custard cups
...homemade granola or muesli (someday I'll post favorite recipes for that)
...beans-butternut squash-bacon dish (making tonight)
...ploughman's chutney (yet to try)
...cucumber-citrus pickles
