Metcalfe County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences Education and SNAP-ED program assistant partnered with the new, Old School Cafe commercial kitchen, Community Education and the Metcalfe County School Board, to conduct two, hands - on food preservation workshops.  Participants made traditional salsa following the recipe from the University of Kentucky publication Home Canning Salsa.  All ingredients for the recipe were sourced locally from producers participating in the Metcalfe County Farmer's Market.  Two participants indicated that they do not cook/prepare food beyond heating store canned, pre-prepared frozen foods in the oven or microwave, at home.  These two participants had never diced a fresh tomato, or held a head of fresh garlic in their hands, prior to this workshop.  All participants learned how to "slip" the skins off of par boiled tomatoes, remove the core and seeds and the different sized dices. Each participant used a SNAP incentive paring knife and cutting board (that they then kept), to properly prepare and dice all of the required salsa recipe ingredients.  

Each participant received a food preservation notebook with all of the UK Extension food preservation publications included.  While the salsa ingredients were cooked and and also during the canning process, we went through the basics of home canning and food safety, to include low acid items that require pressure canning and why it is important to use only recipes from approved sources, for shelf stable and safe to consume home preserved products.  Items that are not safe to home can, such as pureed pumpkin (due to it's density) were also reviewed.  Each participant practiced all of the food preparation and preservation steps hands - on, including filling hot jars, placing lids and rings and lowering filled jars into the hot water bath canner.  Each participant brought home two pints of traditional salsa and two half pints of apple butter, after the completion of these workshops.  This group so enjoyed their first hands - on food preservation class that they requested another class, to learn how and to make apple butter.  All participants from the first workshop returned for the apple butter workshop and three reported that they each made a batch of traditional salsa at home, after the first workshop.  A combined total of 34 pints of home canned salsa were preserved in private residences, by these three first time, home canners.