Jane Doe
102 South Novato Blvd
Novato, CA 94947
October 2, 2014
Novato High School
625 Arthur St
Novato, CA 94947
Dear Senior Project Committee Members,
For my senior project I intend to
learn how to preserve food through learning to can. This is a skill that I have no experience in
and would like to be able to preserve a variety of foods. Although I know how to cook and I have
experience in using the dehydrator to preserve fruits, canning is a skill that
has made me nervous.
Learning to can will be a multistep
process. First I am going to read Ball’s Complete Book of Home Preserving
to understand the steps and basics of the canning process. I will be working with my mentor on multiple
weekends to can progressively more challenging foods. The first thing we will can will be jam as it
is the easiest. On following weekends I
will learn to can salsa, apple butter and pickles. All of these will use the water bath method. Finally I will learn the more challenging
aspects of canning using the pressure canning method. My final two goals will be to can vegetable
stock and beef stew.
Each weekend that my mentor and I
work together I will be documenting our process with photos and videos. After each session I will create entries to
my blog to share what I have learned with others. My blog will be both a resource for others
learning to can as well as a place for me to reflect on my progress, failures
and successes.
My mentor will be my neighbor, Jill
Smith. She is a retired nurse who has forty
years of canning experience. Jill has
even entered some of her preserves and pickles into the county fair and won
several blue ribbons. As she has the
canning equipment, and I do not, we will be canning in her kitchen. Jill can be
reached at 555-555-5555 or emailed at jillsmith@gmail.com.
I am very excited to be learning
how to preserve food though canning. I
hope that I will be able to give my creations as gifts to friends and family as
well as keep practicing and experimenting each year. Someday I hope to have a garden and being
able to preserve my own foods will be both meaningful and helpful way to
preserve my harvests.
Sincerely,
Jane Doe
___________________ ___________________
Student Signature Parent
Signature
I
understand that I am a mentor for the Novato High student and that I am
expected to serve on the judging panel for the NHS Senior Project Presentations
on May 18th or
19th.
___________________
Mentor Signature