Canning & Preserving Your Garden Bounty: Billings Backyard Workshop 

In the cold of winter, a delicious taste of summer will warm your heart and soothe your belly. In the Billings Backyard workshop “Canning & Preserving Your Garden Bounty” on Saturday, September 24 from 10:00AM – 11:30AM, participants can learn how to capture peak freshness of fruits and vegetables from the garden to treasure year-round. 

For home gardeners with a surplus harvest, or for those want to select fresh ingredients from the local farmer’s market, this workshop will explore various ways to preserve produce for future enjoyment. Chef Emery Gray will take participants through methods of canning and safely preserving food through drying and freezing of herbs and late-season harvest.  Participants will have the chance to observe the preservation of applesauce using the water bath method of canning.  The session will be followed by a 30-minute Q & A. This workshop is part of the Billings Backyard Series, designed to teach sustainable living skills for adults.   

Emery Gray Bio 

Farm to Table Manager at Billings Farm & Museum and former Pastry Chef de Partie at the Woodstock Inn and Resort, Chef Emery Gray had a passion for food at a very young age. Seeing the way that people connected through the growing, sharing and cooking of food, inspired her to make a career in the kitchen. She attended The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, earning her Associates Degree in Baking and Pastry Arts and her Bachelor’s in Business Management. Traveling the country and the world has translated into a deep appreciation for sustainability of local food systems, and all types of outdoor pursuits year-round.  

Billings Backyard is a series of workshops designed to teach sustainable living skills to adult participants and is underwritten by a generous grant from the SpringRiver Private Foundation Trust.  Each workshop includes hands-on demonstrations and concrete steps for incorporating these skills into everyday life.  All sessions are $15/person, $10/member. Registration and course details are at billingsfarm.org/billings-backyard/   

Past Billings Backyard Workshops are available for purchase including topics in gardening, pickling, canning & preserving, fermenting and more.  billingsfarm.org/billings-backyard/