Yes folks, the new year is here, and in Chicago anyway, that means we have a few more months to enjoy the bounty from last summer and begin to look forward to spring. Seed catalogues are out this month and many of our farmers are thinking about what and how they want to plant. This means it is time to start thinking about next year’s pantry as you continue to empty the goodies from last year.

The Glass Rooster will be planning some new classes this year and has again partnered with Logan Square Kitchen to make sure that your skill set and confidence level in preserving the freshest that the Midwest has to offer is also at its peak! So this means…. more classes, new class tracks and expanded opportunities for those with special recipes that deserve to be ‘shared’. You may even become that entrepreneur with the latest and greatest flavor that we might find on Chicago’s store shelves!

So get ready my fellow foodies, get in touch, like us on facebook at facebook/theGlassRooster.com and let’s make 2012 a year of new friends, new skills, new opportunities and new beginnings.

To preserving the bounty
~    Laura McLaughlin, Founder

I also have to take this opportunity to let all of you gentlemen out there know…..what can be more impressive than knowing how to use the food you preserve yourself to impress that special someone! I think that could be a ‘wow’ moment and make for some great dinner conversation.

If you are wanting a Saturday class for your own home-based class, let us know as these too are filling up!

With kitchen space newly acquired, we have finally begun to offer community based classes at Logan Square Kitchen. The classes will kick off at the kitchen space on August 13, 2011 and are designed to encourage beginning canners to develop the confidence to stock a great pantry. However, we are still offering home-based classes for those who want a more intimate and smaller setting.

Participants will be in the kitchen, learning firsthand how to preserve a Midwest favorite, the tomato. Along with the hands-on portion, there will also be an informational session that will cover a variety of topics including food borne illnesses.

“There is this real sense of empowerment when you have the knowledge to can your own food” says Laura McLaughlin, founder of The Glass Rooster, “It is creating this sense of accomplishment in my clients that I find so rewarding.”

Each person will leave the class with take home materials to help them remember what they have learned and a jar of produce made that day. They will also go home with the knowledge and confidence to be able to preserve the best the season has to offer.

The August 13 class starts at 1 pm at Logan Square Kitchen. The class is $65 per person and class space is limited. A non-refundable deposit is required to reserve a spot in the Canning 101 course.

We are ready to start stocking our pantries! Please watch of an initial email this week regarding our schedule for classes! We will be teaching some daytime classes at Kitchen Chicago and some evening classes at Logan Square Kitchen. If you are not on our email list and would like to be included in this initial mailing please contact us at info@theGlassRooster.com.
We will be updating this site this week regarding the structure of our classes and will still be offering home-based classes for those who are able to host a class and those lucky enough to have your own gardens! I know it seems like we may be late, but the produce for this area is really just starting to come in! We will be teaching all the way through October! Looking forward to hearing from you all and more than that, to meeting you face to face!

• 21 qt canner with canning rack (holds 7 quarts, 9 pints)
• Jar lifter
• Jars, lids and rings
•Bubble Remover
•Magnetic lid wand
•“Canning” towels (I get mine from Sam’s or Costco and get the least expensive, white “bundle” they have. I do this for dish cloths, hand towel and the small bath towel size. They wash and bleach well and are easy to toss if needed!)

We are still getting calls for classes and are looking forward to seeing everyone again this Spring. We would like to know what you want from The Glass Rooster…..please send us any class suggestions you may have as well as any recipes you would like to share with the canning community! I plan on putting up my chili recipe but it will only have the ingredients as it has always been “a little of this and a little of that!!” kind of dish! Happy Holiday’s all!

Hello all! We have exhausted most of our tomatoes for the season for our 101 course, but because there are still so many out there that have the desire to learn we have developed a great class with apples! Not only will you learn the process of preserving your own seasonal produce at home, you will have some of this year’s finest apples to use for a tasty apple crisp, a nutritious addition for oatmeal or my favorite, warmed up straight from the jar with a dollop of ice cream! We only have a few dates open in October so please contact us as soon as you have an idea when you would like to schedule so we can save your date! We will teach as long as our farmers have great apples or through the end of November, whichever comes first!!