its fruit season!

hello jammers!
its fruit season again and im excited about the possibilities!
im thinking of making a cherry jam (YUM) and maybe nectarine too :)
also, am definitely going to investigate this mustard fruits further, i might use maggie beers recipe
look forward to my tales of jam production coming soon!

what next?

the question is, what to preserve next?
im thinking of making apricot jam using dried apricots
tis the season after all for using dried fruit
i am also interested in making mustard fruits...
but i cant find a recipe anywhere! if anyone knows of one let me know :)
happy jamming

Tasty Sage Jelly

i did the taste test and its good!
im so glad :) we had some roast pork and the sage jelly went with it really well.
it didn't quite set firm, but it is still quite a good texture. the sage flavour wasnt too strong, it complimented the sweet and sharp jelly better than i expected
yay!

Mint, Sage and Rosemary - Herb Jelly

i finally made my jelly! it turned out so pretty! i havent tasted it yet properly, but i will soon. i am thinking of using it mainly with roast meat, like duck would go really well with sage, and am also thinking of using it like a glaze, especially the rosemary, on a roast lamb. oh, and some of the mint jelly is destined as gift to my boyfriends family :)

it was really fun. and a bit intimidating - but thats how first times usually are

i adapted a recipe from Sue Ruchels book - Windfalls

for this recipe you can pretty much substitute any herbs you like!

Basic Herb Jelly Recipe

2kg apples, halved

water to cover

1-1 and 1/2 cups of white vinegar

3/4 cup of sugar per cup of fruit extract
2 cups of herbs (of your choice

1. place apples in a large pot and cover with water.
2. boil until the apples are soft, but try not to let them get mushy
3. add between 1 and 1 and a half cups of vinegar depending on the sweetness of your apples
4. strain the cooked apples through a jelly bag (you can use muslin strung up between the legs of an upturned stool - this step may take hours - up to overnight depending on your patience) into a very large bowl
5. measure the resulting liquid and add the appropriate
amount of sugar and stir on low heat until dissolved
6. bring to a hard boil until it reaches set - it will go a golden colour and bubble up quite high, so be prepeared with a large pot
7. add the herbs about 5 minutes before bottling so the heat helps to extract the flavour

i was a bit worried during the cooking that my apple extract was cloudy, but it cooked really clear. i was so excited when it became clearer and clearer and more golden as i cooked

herb jelly!

tomorrow is the big day!
im making sage jelly and mint jelly (maybe thyme, maybe rosemary)
how exciting!
i found some really cute jars today at the shops (the reject shop actually lol)
i am also procrastinating and not doing uni work... but at least i will be being productive :)
hope it goes well!

more cupcakes

i also made some really good orange cupcakes for my boyfriend's nephew's 2nd birthday party!

i thought i'd put a photo up because they were so pretty and yum...

jammy cupcake adventures!

last weekend i was having a baking kind of day, so me and my sister decided to make some experimental jam drop cupcakes!
we used a normal butter cake recipe and nice rasberry jam (sadly, i didnt make it, but im sure when rasberry season comes around i will!). we also made some chocolate jammy cupcakes in the same way but with a tablespoon or so of cocoa in the batter...
they turned out very tasty

Jam Drop Cupcakes

250g Butter
250g castor sugar
4 eggs
250g self raising flour
vanilla
rasberry jam (or whatever jam takes your fancy!)

cream the butter, sugar and vanilla
add the eggs and beat in one at a time
add flour and mix until combined
drop a tablespoon full into cupcake cases
make an indent and spoon about one teaspoon of jam into the top of the cakes

cook in a moderate oven for 15 minutes
mmmmmm tasty

tough rinds?

has anyone else made lime marmalade and had the rinds turn out a little tough? mine were, but as the marmalade gets older they are softening. i have a theory that its something to do with the sugar - maybe the lime mix was a bit hot when i dissolved the sugar and it partially candied the peels? any ideas?
happy preserving!
here is the recipe i followed for Awesome Lime Marmalade

lime marmalade

and some photos of my lime marmalade!

tastes so good i ate it with a spoon after. im so proud of my efforts!

Piccalilly...

a photo of my piccalilly! looks tasty huh
just needs some nice ham...
Piccalilly recipe

Foodie Blogroll

Hi everyone!
i just joined the foodie blogroll. its easy to join and the more members the merrier! so if you have a foodie blog why not?
http://www.leftoverqueen.com/the-foodie-blogroll
happy pickling!

ridiculously expensive marmalade

just randomly i found this article! would anyone really want to spend five thousand pounds on marmalade? apparently they do
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/09/22/nmarmalade22.xml

mint jelly

my next adventure into preserves is going to be herb jellies! i think mint and sage. i love herbs! i use fresh herbs in my cooking almost always. i especially love going out to the garden and collecting little bunches of different herbs - rosemary, sage, thyme (i especially love thyme), lemongrass, mint - whats not to like? herbs are fragrant and punchy and add so much to food!

Shame theres not much fruit in season at the moment. i'd really like to get into making fruity sweet jams. i am doing my best to use fruits in season; i feel like this is one of the main reasons to make preserve in the first place - being able to use fruits and veggies that were kept at their best for use when there is not as much fruit or veg around.

anyway, all i have to do before making my next batch is to find some jars! anyone know of a good place to find/buy jars for jams? if you do drop me a line :)

Piccalilly

this is a great recipe for piccalilly, makes about 12 x 450g jars (thanks Rick Stein)

INGREDIENTS
450g Salt
4½ Litres Boiling Water
2 medium Cauliflowers Broken Into Small Florets
450g Pickling Onions Peeled And Halved - or quartered if they are a bit bigger
450g Topped And Tailed Runner Beans (Sides Peeled Away And Cut Diagonally Into 2cm Pieces)
½ large Halved Lengthways Cucumber (Seeds Removed And Then Into 1cm Chunks)
225g Topped And Tailed Zucchini (Cut Into 1cm Chunks)
275g Caster Sugar
1½ Litres Distilled Malt Vinegar (Plus Extra 5 Tbsp)
2 Crushed Garlic Cloves
½ Grated Nutmeg
½ teaspoon Ground Allspice
50g Plain Flour
25g Powder Mustard
25g Tumeric Powder
15g Ground Ginger
½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Method
1. Mix the salt with the boiling water.
2. Leave to cool, divide between two large bowls and add the cauliflower and onions to one bowl and the runner beans, cucumber and courgettes to the other.
3. Cover with a plate to keep the vegetables submerged and leave for 12-24 hours.
4. Drain the vegetables and rinse them well, still keeping them separate.
5. Put the sugar, garlic and 1.5 litres (2 pints 13fl oz) of vinegar into a large pan.
6. Bring to the boil, add the cauliflower, onions, allspice and nutmeg and cook for just three minutes.
7. Add the beans and the cucumber and cook for a further 4-5 minutes - you want the vegetables to be just cooked, still a bit crunchy
8. Lift out of the vinegar with a large spider or sieve into a large bowl and set aside.
9. Mix the flour, mustard, turmeric and ginger powder with the rest of the vinegar and enough water to make a smooth paste.
10. Add a little of the hot vinegar mixture, stir into the rest left in the pan and bring to the boil, stirring.
11. Simmer for 10 minutes.
12. Stir the sauce into the vegetables, spoon into warm sterilised jars and seal with vinegar proof lids

Awesome Lime Marmalade

1 kg limes
1.5 litres water
1.75 kg sugar

Wash the limes, fresh firm limes are best, and slice as thinly as you can. Soak the limes in a non reactive bowl with the water overnight.
Transfer the limes and water to a large saucepan, bring to the boil and simmer gently, covered, until the lime skins are very soft (for about 1 hour). When the lime skins become soft take off the heat and add the sugar and stir until it dissolves.
Once the sugar has dissolved (you may need to put back on the heat, but dont boil before it dissolves!) bring the mixture to the boil, and boil rapidly for about 20 minutes. the marmalade will froth a lot. once the mixture stops frothing start testing for set! The best way to test whether the marmalade is set is the crinkle test - drop some marmalade onto a cold plate and allow to cool (you can put it in the freezer for a minute or so). push the edge of the cooled marmalade and if it crinkles the marmalade is ready to bottle! scoop into sterilised jars and seal
Ta Da! lime marmalade!

note: pectin (which makes the jam set and is naturally found in fruit) can break down if the marmalade is boiled too much after the setting point is reached.

welcome.. to my jammy world

i like making jam. its my new hobby. one day i will have a jammy empire... or a market stall... or something. and i say jam, but what i really mean is anything preserved and kept in a jar. so far i have had two jammy adventures- lime marmalade, and piccalilly! my lime marmalade came out beautifully; tangy and sweet and a pale gold colour. perfect for toast. and piccalilly is like mustard pickles and very very tasty, a bit pungent, and a deep turmeric yellow - perfect with ham. Apparently it's also good on cheese sandwiches (i'm not good at dairy so i havent tried it!) .
Actually i really enjoy cooking, especially baking. i think i like creating things in general, and the added bonus about baking and making preserves is that i find the process very satisfying, and relaxing. i make cupcakes when im feeling stressed (it doesnt hurt that i get to eat them too!)
i hope you enjoy reading and trying my recipes, i aim to put photos and recipes up, as well as reviews on recipe books. happy marmalade!