My sister sent me a recipe for home canned cheese whiz. The recipe uses Velveta Cheese, evaporated milk, butter, and milk. You cook together in a double boiler. Then put in pint jars and process in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes. Now for my question... Is this safe? I have canned vegetables and meat but never milk or cheese. Have any of you had any experience with a recipe like this? Thanks so much. Susan

-- Susan (mdefran@cei.net), February 21, 2000

Answers

Susan, canning dairy products isn't approved by the feds. There are a lot of recipes out there for canning butter and cheese preparations, but I have decided I won't take that risk. What I don't know is just how large that risk is. There are always scaremongers agitating against home canning who throw up the stats of food poisonings, but it turns out that virtually none of the cases were caused by home canned foods.

What worries me most about this recipe is that it is so "solid". I'm just not convinced that you can heat the product evenly and to the correct temperature for the correct length of time. I also know that there are people who are using this recipe and not having any problems.

There are lots of recipes I come across that use ingredients or methods that are not approved by the feds. Some of them I'd really like to use, and I know people have at least in the past used them safely, but to me it isn't worth the risk.

Velveeta will keep a very long time if sealed in the original package. If you are thinking of the cheese whiz stuff as something to carry when travelling, a package of velveta at room temp will be much the same. Perhaps you could make a relatively small batch of the recipe and pack it into food-safe crocks or other containers and keep it under refrigeration. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), February 21, 2000.

It would scare me, too--especially since it just uses a boiling water bath, and not pressure canning. I know some folks do can dairy products, but DO be careful, alright?

-- Leann Banta (thelionandlamb@hotmail.com), February 21, 2000.

Susan,

If you properly follow the directions, butter can be safely canned, but you don't end up with a product that's a lot like fresh butter.

Liquid milk can be pressure canned safely but you won't end up with a product much worth the having which is why you can't find directions for doing it.

Cheese, on the other hand, cannot be safely canned, even using a pressure canner. The ingredients you mention above don't have sufficient acidity in them to safely boiling water bath can them. The problem with pressure canning is that the product has too much density to achieve any certainty in heat flow inside of the container to make sure then entire contents came up to the appropriate temperature level for the correct length of time. You could extend the heating time to make sure but then the product would be so badly overcooked as to be useless.

I think you'd be better off to try to store the above ingredients seperately, which can be safely done, and then make them into "cheeze whiz" as you need it.

..........Alan.

The Providence Cooperative - free preparedness & survivalism FAQ's

http://www.providenceco-op.com

-- A.T. Hagan (athagan@netscape.net), February 22, 2000.

It did not take much to convince me that this is not safe. I was almost certain a boiling water bath was not enough. I will just make it as we need it. But was glad to hear what others had to say about it. Thanks Susan

-- Susan (mdefran@cei.net), February 22, 2000.