Food safety starts with cleaning!
Wash hands for 20 seconds
- Wet hands under hot running water. Add lots of soap.
- Rub and wash back of hands, wrists, between fingers and under fingernails for 20 seconds.
- Rinse well under running water.
- Dry with paper towels.
- Use paper to turn off the water faucet.
Clean and sanitize sink and counter tops
- Wash counter tops and prep sinks with hot soapy water.
- Fill squirt bottle with 1 quart water. Add 1 teaspoon of unscented regular chlorine bleach or ¾ unscented ultra (6% sodium hypochlorite) chlorine bleach. Or use commercially prepared cleaner and follow directions on label.
- Spray counter tops and sink with bleach solution. Let air dry.
- Wash hands.
Clean as you go
- Wash dishes, utensils, cutting boards, etc. in hot soapy water.
- Let air dry.
Blueberry syrup recipe
Wild fruits from Minnesota's fields and woods can make very good syrups.
Ingredients
- 2 quarts blueberries
- 4 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup cold water
Procedure
- Mash fruit, sprinkle with sugar, cover, and let stand overnight in the refrigerator.
- Add water, bring to a boil, and cook 20 minutes.
- Strain through cheesecloth.
- Heat to boiling point; pour into hot, sterilized half-pint or pint canning jars. Seal with two-piece canning lids.
- Process in a boiling water bath. The time in the boiling water bath varies by elevation. For Minnesota, it is 5 minutes for half or quarter pints and 10 minutes for pint jars.
- University of Alaska Cooperative Extension Service
- Preparing and Canning Fruit. Berry Syrup. National Center for Home Food Preservation. http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_02/berry_syrup.html
Reviewed in 2021