Reclaiming the specialness of eating in season

Recently at a family reunion my cousin served a fabulous corn/zucchini casserole dish. It was the hit of the dinner and everyone asked for the recipe. Being a family of cooks and eaters, we all wanted to recreate it and enjoy it again. It would be particularly good in the dead of winter, and rather than buying imported corn and zucchinis, I decided that I would explore how to create this dish so that it could be canned and then re-heated. I knew I could freeze it, but I had my doubts about the texture after freezing and also wanted to see lovely jars of summer on my shelves.

We're just coming into corn and zucchini season so my timing was spot on. But I didn't know how to convert the recipe into one that could be canned - I didn't think it should be cooked as long because it would cook in the canning and then again when reheated. So I contacted Lori Evesque who was my instructor in a pressure canning class last fall. She's a food scientist as well and I was sure she'd know the answer.

She did. It's not something that can be canned successfully.

Lori explained why - the dairy wouldn't hold up, the amount of cooking would leave the veggies overdone and there wasn't enough liquid in the recipe to successfully can it. In short, it would be a disaster. That's when it occurred to me that I was guilty of trying to have my cake and eat it too.

As much as I try to each seasonally, its clear that I wanted to eat what I wanted when I wanted it. If I use local produce at its best, then I can only enjoy it fresh for a few months in the summer. Then I will need to wait until next year to enjoy it again in such dishes. How nice! Something to look forward to...something that truly is and remains special. It was good to be reminded of what I already knew but hadn't taken fully to heart. That if we can have anything we want any time we want it, then absolutely nothing is special any longer.

Here's to special dishes enjoyed at the top of the season and canning what can be done well to enjoy in those months between. Thanks Lori!