Okay, I'll admit it, I'm not much of a canner. In fact, I only do freezer jam because I can't bear to eat the store stuff. You die-hard canners probably knew about this product years ago, but I just discovered it last summer and will never go back to those bulky glass jars again. This handy alternative is made by Ball Canning Co. and sells at WalMart during the summer months. I've been using them for a year now and think they're perfect for my needs.
I had many issues with the traditional glass jars. First off, they are fragile. I usually send my kids down to the basement freezer to retrieve jam for me and when I used the heavy glass version I was always a little nervous about the results. I also hated storing the empty glass jars in my cupboards. They're bulky and take up way too much of my limited cupboard space. Additionally, the rings usually wandered off with my kids over time so that by the time I was ready to can again I had no tops to work with.
These lightweight, dishwasher-friendly, plastic jars solved all those problems. They can be dropped over and over again and the tops won't pop open (the lids are the twist-on type). They empty ones stack neatly in the back of my cupboard and double as cups when I've avoided the dishes for too long. The lids have a little well that allows for easy stacking when full. I can usually stack them 4 high in my freezer which saves me a lot of much needed shelf space.
The only drawback I've found is that they only come in this smaller size. I wrote to Ball to request a larger version and they said they were working on it. Regardless, I think the small version is a great solution for now. Just thought I'd pass it on.
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