Blue Ribbon Preserves: Secrets to Award-Winning Jams, Jellies, Marmalades and More [Paperback]

Linda J. Amendt (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 1, 2001

Blue Ribbon Preserves features the award-winning recipes, canning tips, and methods for making preserves that have made Linda J. Amendt one of the top prize-winning cooks in the nation. This handy and helpful volume explains how to make the finest jams, jellies, marmalades, preserves, conserves, butters, curds, fruit, vegetables, juices, sauces, pickles, vinegars, syrups, and specialty preserves. Plus, it has a complete canning guide with the latest methods and safety precautions.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you've been laboring under the illusion that your grandmother just smashed berries into a jar or that pickles grew on exotic pickle trees, prepare to be enlightened with Linda J. Amendt's Blue Ribbon Preserves: Secrets to Award-Winning Jams, Jellies, Marmalades & More. Canning, as shown in this exhaustive edition, is as much a science as an art, and this book includes every detail to educate the uninformed on what it takes to make great preserves.

Her recipes include the standards, such as strawberry jam, and the obscure, such as Garlic and Onion Jam. Amendt also does the public service of explaining the real difference between jams and jellies. Special caution about food safety holds a prominent place in Blue Ribbon Preserves and Amendt teaches us how to chose optimal foods for canning as well as how to safely store preserves to avoid potentially lethal food contamination. Be prepared for a bit of a chemistry lesson, which can be a long and sometimes didactic read, but it's well worth it for the critical food-safety information.

So complete is the book that Amendt, herself a recipient of countless state-fair awards for her preserves, includes pointers on how to succeed at such competitions (in a very thorough chapter which includes insights into how judges pick their winners). Blue Ribbon Preserves covers everything that goes into a ball jar and more, and in the process earns not only a tight seal of quality but its own blue ribbon. --Teresa Simanton

From Library Journal

With more than 300 blue ribbons from state, county, and other fairs to her credit, Amendt is an authority on the subject of preserving and her pantry must be an impressive sight indeed. Here she provides an extremely detailed introduction to home canning, from U-Pick farms and other sources of ingredients to equipment to safety concerns, along with a lengthy troubleshooting section and a chapter on fair competitions. This is followed by more than 200 delectable small-batch preserving recipes, from classics such as Bing Cherry Jam to variations like Caramel Apple Butter to innovations like Margarita Jelly. In addition to jams, jellies, and fruit preserves, Amendt also includes canned fruits and vegetables, sauces and salsas, and pickles and vinegars. Valuable as both a reference and a cookbook, this is highly recommended.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: HP Trade (July 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557883610
• ISBN-13: 978-1557883612
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #45,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Cooking by Ingredient > Sauces, Salsa & Garnishes
  • #75 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Canning & Preserving

More About the Author

Award-winning cookbook author Linda J. Amendt, an accomplished and experienced baker and home canner, has won over 900 awards in food competitions across the United States, including over 600 first place blue ribbons and special awards for excellence. She has earned national recognition for her exquisite food creations.

"400 Sensational Cookies" is Linda Amendt's third cookbook. Her second cookbook, "175 Best Jams, Jellies, Marmalades & Other Soft Spreads", earned a prestigious Cordon d' Or - Gold Ribbon 2008 International Cookbook Academy Award. "Blue Ribbon Preserves: Secrets to Award-Winning Jams, Jellies, Marmalades & More", Linda's first cookbook, was selected by the International Association of Culinary Professionals as a finalist for the IACP Cookbook Awards in the category First Book: The Julia Child Award.

Linda Amendt's tropical "Pineapple Coconut Crumb Muffin" was chosen as the Grand Prize Winner in the nationwide 2009 Mimi's Meaningful Muffin Search contest sponsored by Mimi's Cafe to celebrate the restaurant's 30th birthday. Her winning muffin is being featured on the menu in all 144 restaurants across the United States for a limited time with $1.00 from the sale of each muffin being donated to Share Our Strength to help end childhood hunger in America.

Linda Amendt currently serves as a highly respected judge, advisor, and sponsor for preserved foods and baked foods competitions at state and county fairs.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 47 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Home Canning Cookbook! July 28, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

This book is wonderful! The recipes are outstanding and the selection is impressive -- from jams and jellies to ice cream toppings and pie fillings, and everything inbetween. The text at the beginning of each recipe chapter and the separate chapters on tools and ingredients are very interesting and informative. I appreciate the author's attention to detail and her emphasis on using proper canning techniques so that the food you prepare for your home table will be both delicious and safe to serve.

I have made dozens and dozens of recipes from this book and they have all turned out great -- outstanding flavor with beautiful color and perfect texture. The Salsa Jam, Banberry Jam, Cherry Marmalade, Peach-Pineapple Preserves, Jalapeno Jelly, Strawberry-Raspberry Jelly, Asian Marinade, Basil Marinara Sauce, Pineapple Upside-Down Ice Cream Topping, and many more have become family favorites.

I never had much luck with jams made using the long-cook method, or homemade pectin. They took forever to make, it was nearly impossible to figure out when they were done, and they just never worked right. My jams ended up being either thin and watery or overcooked and hard as rubber. So, I really appreciate the wide variety of traditional and exotic soft spread recipes the author offers that use packaged pectin. Now, my jams turn out perfect every time and they are very quick to prepare. For people who still prefer to make spreads using the long-cook method, there are several chapters in this book filled with many other wonderful recipes that make it well worth the purchase. There are recipes for butters, curds, fruit, juices, vegetables, pickles, sauces, vinegars, syrups, liqueurs, pie fillings and ice cream toppings....

I had never thought about entering my canned goods in a fair competition but, after reading this book, I just might try it myself for fun. It was interesting learning how judges use the USDA standards to evaluate the entries plus the flavor and texture criteria that are used to choose the winners. I now understand the reasons why it is so important to only use the approved, modern methods of canning and processesing, not just for fair competitions, but also for the foods I will serve daily to family and friends.

This is an excellent cookbook and I highly recommend it for both experienced home canners and those who discovering the fun and joy of home canning for the very first time. Read more ›

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceptional Preserves Cookbook! September 30, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Blue Ribbon Preserves is a great cookbook for home canners of all levels of preserving experience and skill. It is easy to read and follow, with the comprehensive canning text and detailed recipes presented in a clear and understandable manner. Linda Amendt's impressive wealth of knowledge, special techniques, recipes and expert advice make this delightful and impressive book a gold mine of information for anyone interested in home canning.

The author presents the latest modern canning techniques and safety precautions and explains the importance of each step in the canning process. She is also careful to explain why old-fashioned and out-dated canning methods should not be used, and how the use of old-style and nonstandard canning jars can lead to serious problems.

In entering my preserves at the State Fair the past few years, I have been disappointed at not winning blue ribbons. After reading the extensive chapter on fair competitions and Linda's helpful advice and preparation tips in each recipe chapter, I now understand the judging process and am confident I can win those precious blue ribbons. I am grateful to the author for her generosity in sharing her secrets to winning so many awards with the rest of us fair entrants.

I have made several of the delicious jam and jelly recipes, as well as fruit, juice, sauce and pickle recipes, and all have yielded perfect results. Blue Ribbon Preserves has become my 'Canning Bible' and I will use it again and again with each new canning season. I am giving copies of this wonderful book as Christmas gifts to many friends and family members who enjoy making preserves.

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best preserved foods book ever! July 14, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Wow! What an impressive book. Linda Amendt sure knows her stuff - no wonder she has won so many blue ribbons!

The Food safety information and canning instructions are outstanding. Not only does the author carefully explain the steps that need to be followed to prepare safe and delicious preserves, she also explains why each step in the canning process is so important. Nearly 300 excellent recipes, such as Peach Melba Jam, Tropical Peaches, and Sweet and Sour Plum Sauce, clear and easy-to-follow instructions and tips for success make this book a joy to use.

I highly recommend this book to all home canners - whether you are an experienced preserver or are trying home canning for the first time. You will be amazed by the wealth of information and great recipes it contains. - An A+ book!

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Old Fashioned Recipes March 13, 2005

By Kyra_Athena

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I found these recipes to be similar to ones my Southern grandmother made. They were easy to make and full of flavor. The taste is far superior to that of the typical store-bought fare. Jelly and jam making is not hard, but finding a good recipe seems to be an ordeal. (I did write off my first jelly making session as a lesson learned, but that was before this book came to my attention.)

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars From a Long-Time Canner November 5, 2006

By A Wisconsin Reader

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have been putting up jams and other preserved food for more than thirty years, and of the many books I have on preserving, this is my favorite. It would probably be overwhelming for first-timers, who should buy the Ball Blue Book to start, but for anyone with experience these recipes are wonderful.

I cannot vouch for the pickling sections - my husband cannot eat pickles so I don't make them, but the jam, jelly and marmalade recipes are fabulous. The nectarine jam recipe alone is worth the price of this book - I made several batches of nectarine and next year I will make more - these jars are flying off the shelf. The "Peach Melba" recipe, using the classic combination of peach and raspberry is incomparable, and the Apricot-Plum and Apricot-Pineapple recipes are just excellent. I have not been disappointed in any recipe, and I envision using a number over the coming seasons for which I didn't have time this summer.