I’m most definitely a canning novice. I’ve tried it a few times in the last couple years, and though few cooking experiences give you the same sense of accomplishment as a small wall of pint jars filled with homemade tomato sauce or peach jam, it’s always such a…project. Just when the markets are overflowing with fresh produce begging to be preserved is exactly when it gets so hard to make time for it.

Maybe that’s why I’ve lately become enamored of the bluntly named blog Food in Jars. Marisa McClellan teaches canning in the Philadelphia area and posts detailed techniques and recipes on the blog. One of her latest posts describes the apricots, peaches and plums slowly heading towards decay on her countertop (hey! she could be talking about my kitchen!) and how she turned them into a few small jars of jam in LESS THAN AN HOUR of work. You mean I don’t have to set aside half my weekend for some jam-making? Amazing–sign me up!