Guess Who's Going "Back To School"?

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(Edited)

Last night we happened to see this online pamphlet about how the Michigan State University is offering free online course on aspects of food preservation; I immediately headed over to see which ones interested me.


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While there are eight courses being offered, I chose not to sign up for all of them. But there were five that I thought I could benefit from.

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Courses I Chose & Why


  • Introduction To Home Food Preservation- While I have been canning for quite a few years already, I thought a refresher course would be good for me. Sometimes as we do our regular tasks and chores we may become lazy, forget certain steps and try to cut corners. I figured this intro course would be perfect to remind me of my errors and shortcuts and how they could/would possibly put my canned goods in a risk factor to our health.
  • Blanching And Freezing- This is one preservation category that I have used in the past, but would like a more formal training. I usually just Google what I want to blanch and freeze (ie. fresh green beans) and there are times when you look at different websites or forums and get conflicting information.
  • Pressure Canning- While I am fairly new to this type of preservation method, I want to know all the safety risks. I want to learn the do's-and-don't's. And perhaps this class will help stifle some of my fears of the pressure canner.
  • Dehydrating- Yes I have three dehydrators. Yes I use them almost non-stop from May through November, but I figure it can't hurt to have some more knowledge. Perhaps knowing more will be a gateway for me to dehydrate more food items and build my dry pantry even more.
  • Preserving Meat- Yes, I have dehydrated meat (jerky) and we have a smoker in which I will make spareribs, smoked salmon and even full pork butts for pulled-pork sandwiches and more, but I figured it would be nice to learn other techniques (ie. curing, salting).

Under normal circumstances, these courses cost money (anywhere from $10 and up), but when I saw they were free, I knew I had to take advantage of them.

There's also some gardening courses that I have been watching for years, but never wanted to spend the money to attend them. The classes are still listed in the MSU Extension website (for a small fee) and don't start until late summer and into early autumn, but perhaps with the way we are under shelter-in-place orders (now extended until June 12 as of yesterday), the extension office will offer these as well for a much reduced cost or even free.

Make sure to check your own state's extension office to see if they are offering any classes or courses similar to what I have here in Michigan.

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6 comments
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Good to get some more ...👍 You are master in many but getting a degree will definately a welcome lockdown break👌

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What a great plan! I agree that a refresher every now and again is a good thing.

I took an intermediate motorcycle course a few years ago (after I had been riding for over 40 years) to save some money on insurance. I got two safety tips that I have incorporated into my everyday riding. Worth the cost just for them.

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Wow i'm excited for you! Do you think it's applicable as well if i register too. Is it only within USA?

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This is awesome @goldendawne! It never hurts to have a refresher or learn something new. Keeping one's mind active is what keeps us young!

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Very cool! These sound like they would be very useful for you.

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Ag extensions are a wealth of information. Thanks!

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