Starting the Testing of 4ever Recap Reusable Canning Lids and Gaskets

I have been a high volume home canner for over three decades, reaching well over 1,000 jars of home canned foods annually with closer to 1,400 jars annually over the past 14 years.  I really went into high gear with y2K preparedness then never really decreased the amount but rather added more products each year to avoid buying mass produced canned foods with food additives and BPA in the can liner.  The single use metal snap lids (the only ones recommended by the USDA) have always bothered me because they are not eco-friendly but the cost is a factor as well.  Even with reusing the metal snap lids for vacuum sealing dry foods, many of my used snap lids found their way to the curbside waste collection because until we moved here they could not go into the recycle box.  That meant my used lids were ending up in a landfill something that really did not sit well with me.  The cheapest price for the metal snap lids was 12/$1 (8¢ per lid) at Dollarama but within a two month period the price went to $1.25 then $1.50 (13¢ per lid).  At 1,000 jars my cost went from $80 to $130 annually but in reality more because the old price only had sales tax of 7% added whereas the new price has HST of 13% added.

Back in August of 2010 I was beyond elated to discover Tattler Reusable lids and rings, manufactured by S&S Innovations, Corp. in Fruita, CO and wrote a review of my experience with the Tattler reusable lids.  The Tattler reusable lids have proven themselves to be well worth the cost.  They perform as promised.  I very seldom have a seal failure.  They are second only to my glass inserts that are no longer in production but I have quite a few and am always looking for more.  Once I got used to the Tattler lids, my intentions were to make the switch to mainly Tattler lids, use glass inserts for jars not leaving the house and use as few of the metal snap lids as possible.  A couple of months ago I came across a new brand of reusable canning lids called 4ever Recap, manufactured by 4Ward Industries in Anna, OH.  The caps looked very much like the Tattlers but were less expensive and the rings were silicone so I ordered a 24 pack of 12 each of standard and widemouth lids with rings.

The 4ever Recap lids are used in the same manner as the Tattler reusable lids and glass inserts in that they are tightened then turned back a quarter inch for process then fully tightened immediately upon remove from the canner.  This differs significantly from the metal snap lids that are tightened finger tight then not tightened after removal from canner.  Processed jars regardless of the lid used to seal sit undisturbed for 24 hours after removal from the canner then the bands are removed, the jars and bands washed and dried.  The metal bands can be replaced loosely on the jars for storage for all but the glass inserts.

Tattler lids have been in production  since 1976 and yet even with all the canning I do and how involved I was with y2K preparedness, I never heard of them until 2010.  The tattler lids (original packaging is darker blue) come packaged 12 in a box.  Part of the pricing of course is to cover the costs of packaging.  When I ordered three dozen the individual boxes were shipped inside a USPS priority post box.  The Tatter lids are 3 dozen standard lids for $30.95 (85¢ each) with free shipping to US destinations.  Each plastic lid (disc) comes with a rubber gasket that sits on the bottom of the lid during use.  Rubber does wear out, can stretch or harden over time and/or become damaged by sharp objects so Tattler does sell the rubber gaskets separately 12 for $3.50 which is a dollar more than when I first started buying Tattler lids.

I could not find a date when 4Ward Industries began manufacturing but it is likely within the last 4 or 5 years if that.  The 4ever caps were simply stacked inside a heavy cardboard box leaving room for quite a bit of movement especially of the standard size lids.  There is a colour sticker on the box so packaging costs are kept to a minimum.  The 4ever Recap lids and rings are 24 standard size at $17 (71¢ each) or a 24 combo pack (standard/widemouth) for $17.50 (72¢ each) with free shipping to US destinations.  That is a 14¢ price difference compared to Tattler!  Each plastic lid (disc) comes with a silicone gasket.  Silicone does not wear out or stretch over time so properly cared for, there is no need to replace the gasket and as such, 4Ward Industries does not sell replacement gaskets at this time.

I ordered the 24 combo pack for $17.50 and had them shipped to our US postal box.  Their shipping time was good.  The only thing I was not impressed with was one of the widemouth lids was damaged along the edge reaching in towards the centre as if it had been pried down.  Obviously 4ever does not mean forever!  I did email them but they did not offer a replacement although they wanted me to ship the lid back so they could troubleshoot.  Let's see, the lid cost 72¢ but to send back would cost me 42¢ for a stamp, the price of a small padded envelope (25¢) and a trip to the US.  In other words, cutting my loss at 72¢ was the frugal thing to do but I must say I am not impressed.  Leaving enough room in the box for the lids to shift and move around during shipping is likely the cause of the breakage but it could have been due to something else and not noticed during packaging.

The Tattler and 4ever Recap lids are similar in function and design but there are some differences.  The Tattler lid (left) is empossed with 'Stieg Tattler reusablecanninglids.com® Made in USA' on the top and 'recycle logo 7 Pat Pending 1' on the underside. There are three raised lines around the rim where the gasket sits.   The 4ever Recap lid (right) is embossed with '4ever recap Made in USA' surrounded by three leaves.  The underside as no embossing but there are 6 circle marks (? from the die) and five raise lines around the outer rim where the gasket sits.  What is clearly missing from the 4ever Recap lid is the burr that Tattler lids have.  This sharp piece of plastic is caused when the piece breaks from the mold.  I find it very irritating and really the only thing I don't like about the Tattler lids as it can cause cuts.  I use an emery board on my Tattlers to remove this burr.  The 4ever recap lids are perfectly smooth which is nice.

The flange (sits inside the jar) on the underside of the Tattler lid is lightly larger in diameter than the 4ever Recap flange.  On the top side, the part of the lid where the flange starts on the Tattler has a gentle slope towards the centre of the lid.  On the 4ever Recap, this portion is raised then has a short, steeper slop.  Clearly the dies for the plastic discs are different. 

The Tattler rubber gasket is a pinky red in colour while the 4ever Recap silicone gasket is an orangy red.  While the Tattler gasket is the same thickness as the 4-ever gasket, it is not as flexible .  A comparison of holding each on one side between thumb and pointer finger, the Tattler gasket has a slight bend while the 4ever Recap has almost twice the bend.  The Tattler gasket sits tight against the flange but there is a bit of play with the 4ever Recap but only on the standard lids.  There is not play on the widemouth lids.  I know there were questions on some of the canning forums regarding the gaskets.  The 4ever Recap gasket does fit the Tattler lids so if 4Ward Industries ever decides to sell the gaskets separately, the rubber gaskets could be replaced with the silicone ones.  I have not tested using a Tattler lid with a 4ever Recap gasket.

According to my husband, 4Ward Industries' business model is not sustainable because it is focused on new customers building their supply of lids and rings rather than building repeat customers.  Their model doesn't support those who may need to buy replacement gaskets.  While the silicone gaskets will last indefinitely with proper care, they are still subject to damage via sharp objects like knives when opening the sealed jar.  The plastic disc becomes useless without the gasket, something we have already seen with glass inserts.  Finding the glass inserts is not the problem, finding the gaskets is.  Currently, home canning is seeing a renewed interest but it is only the hard core home canners that would be interested in reusable canning lids to begin with.  Those are the folk who will quickly note that replacement gaskets are not available so they are more apt to buy Tattler lids that do have replacement gaskets.

I am currently in the testing phase of using the 4ever Recap canning lids so I will be putting them through the paces in both the boiling water bath and pressure canners as well as vacuum sealing, multiple times.  I am not anticipating any problems as in terms of design the 4ever Recap as pretty much the same as Tattler.  The only big difference is the gasket material being silicone rather than rubber but that should not cause any problems, any more than it did going from rubber to plastisol as the sealant on the metal lids.  I will be reporting back each time I use them.  In all honesty, providing the 4ever Recap lids and gaskets perform as well as the Tattler lids and gaskets, I will be buying more.  I currently have 6 dozen Tattlers, 4 dozen glass inserts and 2 dozen 4ever Recap which is a start but I really need to build my supply of reusable lids.  That 14¢ per lid savings is looking very favourable for the 4ever Recap lids.

Kitchen Quick Tips - Storing Potatoes

Store potatoes in a dark, cool location away from onions that will cause potatoes to spoil but near apples that will prevent the potatoes from sprouting.

Homemade Shake & Bake Chicken with Steamed Asparagus and Pierogi (Polish Dumplings)

The last part of winter hung on and the cold weather really hasn't let go.  So far, it has been a cold, damp spring with snow still in the forecast.  Last night and this morning, heavy thunderstorms with rain advisories are rolling through.  While it isn't perfect outdoor weather, it is a great time for me to do a bit of home canning and baking, especially breads.  Mid-February through to the first week of May, we are in overdrive mode working 16 to 18 hour days 7 days a week, more so my husband for the past couple of years.  We are in bed before 8 PM and while he drifts off to sleep immediately, I sip on camomile tea and play a hidden objects game or crochet before going to sleep by 8:30 PM.  He's up at 3 AM and out the door 20 minutes later.  I'm usually up the same time, sometimes a half hour later.  I have dinner ready for 5:30 PM and these days I am relying on home cooked comfort foods.

Homemade shake & bake chicken is one of our family comfort foods.  It's quick, easy, no muss, no fuss, and just downright good!  What you may not know is homemade shake & bake chicken reheats nicely so you can cook extra one night then simply reheat for a quick meal another night.  To reheat, place the cooked shake & bake chicken pieces in an oven proof casserole dish.  Cover with aluminum foil.  Heat in oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and serve.

I used four bone in chicken breasts for homemade shake & bake chicken, 2 each for Saturday and Sunday's dinner.  The first dinner I served the chicken with steamed broccoli, baked potatoes and homemade creamy coleslaw.  The second dinner I served the chicken with steamed asparagus, potato and cheese pierogi and a small garden salad.

Pierogi are Polish dumplings made with unleavened dough stuffed with a potato filling that are either boiled, or boiled then baked or fried.  Traditional pierogi are filled with a mixture of potato, meat and sauerkraut.  Sour cream or caramelized onion pieces are popular toppings for pierogi.   I have not made pierogi from scratch as they are not something we have very often, as in once a year if that.  I bought frozen pierogi this time to serve as a guideline in making them from scratch.  This is a handy tip for getting an idea of how the final product should be prior to making your own from scratch.  I did the same thing when learning to make fresh pasta by comparing it to store bought fresh pasta and when first attempting certain artisan breads.  At any rate, a 1 kg bag of frozen store brand pierogi costs $1.79.  There were about 30 pierogi in the bag but I used almost half the bag for dinner leaving me half to use in my testing.  Homemade pierogi should come in less expensive with a fresher flavour.  One recipe on Food Net work uses 3 c of flour and 3 eggs for the dough which would cost me 99¢ plus the filling so an estimated added 50¢ for potato and cheese, which gives a total cost of $1.49 for 72 pierogi.  So, based on this homemade pierogi should be under half the price of store bought.  I'm off to do a bit of experimenting so will report back on the results later this week.

Healthier Versions of Two Family Favourites - Peanut Butter Cookies and Banana Bread

My husband and I have always believed in eating good foods which for us translates in home cooked from scratch.  Over the past few years I have modified many of our family favourites so they are slightly to moderately healthier versions without losing the tried and true flavour of the original dish.  Why would I do this?  The culinary world and that does include home cooking like any discipline is constantly evolving.  New knowledge comes to light that gives insight into the nutritional aspect of cooking, improved cooking methods and in many ways how to use old fashioned methods in an ever changing modern world. 

We eat a rather healthy diet by avoiding food preservatives, artificial food additives, HFCS, excess sugar and salt.  We eat hormone free meats, free range chickens and eggs and rely heavily on locally grown produce as well as grow our own.  It is little wonder that about 90% of the baked goods we consume are home made from scratch, including most breads.  There is always room for improvement in healthy cooking. 

Let's face it, cookies are not as healthy of a snack choice as a carrot stick but they are certainly a lot healthier than some snack choices.  Home baked cookies are healthier for you than the chemically laden mass produced cookies.  I've been making the very same peanut butter cookie recipe from the 1969 Betty Crocker's Cookbook.  The recipe calls for either butter or margarine.  I use butter as we do not use margarine in our home.  I substituted organic additive free unbleached flour for the all-purpose flour and organic granulated sugar for the white granulated sugar.   I substituted Kraft light 25% less fat smooth peanut butter for regular peanut butter and reduced the salt (I only use sea salt) because there is salt in the peanut butter.  The cookies tasted the same as always!  The next batch I am going to use homemade peanut butter.  If that works well, I will have reduced the fat in the cookies by a fair amount.  I also want to try making the cookies with spelt, an ancient grain that is healthier.

Mass produced peanut butter is not as healthy for you as the food industry would have you believe.  It is laden with fat and sugar giving it a smoother texture than homemade peanut butter.  It doesn't separate like homemade peanut butter because vegetable oil is added to prevent separation.  It also contains corn dextrin, something of concern to those with a corn allergy or insensitivity.  We are not huge consumers of  peanut butter at under a purchased 1kg jar per year for cookies if that and about half of that in homemade peanut butter.    I'm hoping homemade peanut butter will work in these cookies just as well!

Banana bread is wonderful for breakfast or snacking and it travels well for lunches.  It is my frugal standby for using up over ripe bananas.  I have been making this same banana bread recipe since our newlywed days.  It is handwritten in my very first cooking journal, overwritten with copious modifications to the recipe it has become today.  I have experimented using whole wheat flour in place of all purpose flour which gives the loaf a denser, grainier texture but is still quite good.  The combination that works well for texture is 1 c of unbleached flour and ¾ whole wheat flour, both healthier than all-purpose flour.  I use sea salt rather than iodized salt, organic sugar rather than regular white sugar an butter instead of shortening.  Recently, I have been making this bread with organic bananas that have just recently become available at our local Walmart.  The organic bananas are currently 10¢ per pound more expensive than regular (57¢ per lb) and I doubt they will go on sale the way regular bananas do but time will tell.  Aside of trying this recipe using spelt in place of the unbleached flour, it is about as healthy as it is going to get.

It is surprising how a few simple and inexpensive changes can make a recipe healthier without affecting the taste.  These changes are part of moving towards a healthier diet while still enjoying the comforts of your favourite dishes.  I have found pretty much any organic substitutes without a problem for its non-organic equivalent.  Canola oil (GMO) can be substituted with an non-GMO light tasting oil.  Cane syrup is a good substitution for corn syrup.  Whole wheat pasta and pastas enriched with vegetables pretty much have the same colour and texture as plain pastas although there may be a colour difference.  Through trial and error, it is surprisingly rather easy to find healthier ingredients for your favourite reciepes.