blackberry-white nectarine jam

A few weeks ago, we went blackberry picking with a friend. We didn't have a tremendous amount of time, so our berry haul was slightly small, but the berries were at the perfect height of ripeness. I had planned to make Blackberry-Apricot Jam, but we were a little past apricot season here. There were some lovely white nectarines, though, so I used them instead. I also halved the recipe to accommodate my slightly smaller quantity of berries.

Using a food-mill (this is the one I got) to make the blackberry puree was surprisingly fast and easy. I am basically in love with the food mill now, and pretty much want to use it for everything.

blackberry-white nectarine jam

• 2 C nectarine puree
• 2 C blackberry pulp
• 2 C sugar
  
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1 packet liquid pectin (half a box)

In a large saucepan, combine fruit and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, watching and stirring to avoid boiling over. Add cinnamon and lemon zest/juice and stir some more. After the mixture begins to thicken (perhaps 5-10 minutes longer), add the pectin and allow to boild vigorously for at least five more minutes.

Process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes.

yield: 5 half-pint jars

just can't stop jammin'

Even though I promised myself I'd focus mainly on pickles for the can jam, there's a recipe for sweet carrot preserves in one of my cookbooks that I've wanted to try for some time. I only made one minor modification - I used half a vanilla bean, too, because what I had in mind has more richness than the recipe looked like it would have. It's a very small batch recipe, so I think I might experiment with it some more in the future - I think next time I might use brown sugar instead of the white, as I'm picturing a very rich and flavorful jam. This batch was almost there, but not quite.

Angel's Hair
adapted from Sensational Preserves

• 10 oz carrots, peeled and grated to yield about 1 1/2 C
• 1 1/4 C sugar
• 1 large lemon
• 3 white cardamom pods, split
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split

In a medium sauce pan, mix the carrots and sugar together. Add the cardamom and vanilla bean. Cut the lemon peel into thin strips, squeeze the juice from the lemon, and put both the peel and the juice into the pot, too.

Heat gently, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved, then boil for 10 minutes or so until very thick. Skim with a slotted spoon.

Spoon the jam into warm, clean, dry jars and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

yield: about 1 half-pint jar

your house will smell amazing!

Although this year I've resolved to "put up" more pickles and whole fruits, I still have a lot of jams and sweet preserves from last year (and a few from the year before that, truth be told). I'm trying to use them in new ways. One I hadn't really thought of previously is in baking, but when I saw this recipe for Marmalade Gingerbread, I knew the Lemon-Ginger Marmalade I canned last winter would be perfect for it.

I brought a loaf with me to the Madrona Fiber Arts Winter Retreat (which I've gone to every year I've been in Washington); the gingerbread was a hit with my knitting buddies.

Marmalade Gingerbread
adapted from Sensational Preserves

• 1 1/4 C dark brown sugar
• 1 1/4 C skim milk
• 1/2 C butter, melted
• 1/2 C unsweetened applesauce *
  
• 2/3 C marmalade (any kind - each will be a bit different, obviously, but all should work, including store-bought) *
  
• 3 C all-purpose flour
• 4 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 Tbsp ground ginger
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 7 pieces preserved ginger in syrup, chopped *
  
• 2/3 C plump raisins

Preheat oven to 310F. Prepare two loaf pans (I use baking spray with flour) and set aside.

Mix the milk and sugar together until sugar is dissolved. Add melted butter, marmalade, and applesauce, stirring until marmalade dissolves. In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients together and form a well in the center. Mix the marmalade mixture into the dry ingredients, stirring to make a smooth batter. Stir in the eggs. Stir in the chopped ginger and raisins.

Pour into your prepared pans and bake for 60-90 minutes, until risen and firm to the touch in the center. Leave to cool in the pan.

Store in an airtight container. From the recipe's headnotes: "This gingerbread is best kept for a couple of days before being eaten."

makes 2 full-sized loaves

* If you have some home-canned versions of these, this would be a great recipe to use them in.

hot buttery lemon!

I had a very full night of cooking this evening: when I read Heidi's post about her freezer-clearing Ribollita, I was inspired to clear out my own freezer. Although the soup itself's a post for another day (we haven't eaten it yet), the recipe has quite a lot of waiting while things simmer for 10 or 15 minutes.

We had a big bag of clementines that needed to get used up - I used to be able to eat a pound or so of them at a sitting, but apparently I am getting old, so now even one gives me heartburn. (... perhaps because I used to eat them in 1-pound increments).

Anyway, I decided to use my simmering time productively, and started cutting them into quarters. I'm trying to make fewer very sweet preserves this year, and I love pickles (really, anything vinegary), so when I was looking for a recipe for the Can Jam I had bookmarked this recipe for pickled oranges, too. Since I had surplus clementines, that turned into pickled clementines instead. I changed the spices somewhat, and decided to add a vanilla bean. It smells good, but since these pickles are supposed to mature for two months before you eat them, it'll be a while before I know whether this was a good experiment or not.

Pickled Clementine Quarters
adapted from Sensational Preserves

• 2 lbs clementines (or so - enough to make about 8 C cut-up fruit)
• 2 1/4 C sugar
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 thumb-sized hunk ginger, peeled and chopped
• 5-in piece cinnamon stick
• 1 Tbsp allspice berries
• 1 whole star anise
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split
• 2 1/2 C white wine vinegar

Wash clementines thoroughly and quarter them if they are small (mine were tiny) or cut into wedges if they are larger. Put them into an oven-safe pot and add water to cover. Simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the peels are tender.

Meanwhile, make the brine: heat the sugar with the spices and vinegar, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat to a simmer; simmer for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 275F.

Drain the clementines, discarding the cooking liquid. Put the fruit back in your oven-safe pot and pour the brine over it. Cover and cook in the hot oven for an hour, until the peels are translucent. (NOTE: mine never got translucent - I hope it doesn't matter too much!)

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the oranges to your prepared jars (warm, clean, etc.). I really packed 'em in there, being careful to distribute the spices amongst the jars. Boil the vinegar on the stove for an additional 10 minutes (keep the jars with the fruit in the off but still-warm oven). Pour the brine over the fruit to cover. Rotate the jars to expel any air bubbles.

Process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes. Store in a cool, dark, dry place for 2 months before eating.

makes 3-4 pints

Also, since I was already zesting a lemon for the soup, I decided to juice it, plus half of a somewhat-elderly red grapefruit I had sitting around, and make a quick batch of grapefruit curd. It's delicious (who can resist any kind of citrus curd??), but not quite as grapefruity as I might have liked.

Microwave Grapefruit Curd
adapted from the Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving

• 1 lemon, juiced
  
• 1/2 grapefruit, juiced
• 1/4 C butter
• 3/4 C granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
  

Put the lemon juice and however much of the grapefruit juice it takes to make 1/2 C liquid total into a 4-C container. Add the sugar and butter and microwave on 100% power for ~2 minutes until the butter is melted. Whisk until the sugar dissolves.

SLOWLY add the hot buttery lemon mixture to the eggs, whisking constantly so that the egg doesn't begin to cook. After you've added all the hot liquid to the eggs, microwave for another 1-3 minutes on 50% power, stirring every 30 seconds. Keep going until the mixture has visibly thickened, but don't allow it to come to a boil. Pour into a clean, dry jar and enjoy! (Keeps for several weeks in the fridge, apparently, if you don't eat it first.)

makes about 1 3/4 C curd

change of plans

The thing with menus is that, even with a weekly menu in-hand, you still need to be flexible. Originally, tonight's dinner was intended to be two separate meals, one vegetarian (later in the week) and a Thai chicken stir-fry from Cook's Illustrated we wanted to try out. Unfortunately, the co-op only had Anaheim peppers, which seemed like a terrible substitute for Thai chilis. And the chicken should probably get used before Wed., which is the next night we're making dinner. So, we had instead:

Monday: Chicken with Peach Chutney; roasted brussels sprouts; rutabaga & potato mash

We have lots of left-overs. I learned something new today, too - while I was pondering the rutabaga, I looked in one of my British cookbooks. Turns out that our rutabagas are their "swedes." Good to know.

Chicken: pound skinless, boneless breasts into cutlets; sprinkle with salt & pepper; heat some oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet and brown the breasts. Remove the chicken from the pan & deglaze with a little chicken stock. Add chutney and chicken; simmer until sauce is heated through.

Brussels sprouts: halve, toss with salt, pepper, and oil; roast, tightly covered with foil, in a 450F oven for 10 minutes; remove the foil and roast for another 10-20 minutes.

Root veggie mash: peel and cut into chunks; cover with water and cook at a hard simmer/low boil until tender; drain and mash with butter, salt, and pepper to taste.

Cold-Soother Jelly

This jelly combines citrus with a generous dollop of ginger and is sweetened with honey instead of sugar, for the ultimate in sore throat/stuffy nose soothing. It's the perfect thing for your toast the morning you wake up and notice an odd scratchy feeling at the back of your throat. Or when you have the flu. Or a cold. Or just want a little citrusy pick-me-up.

I made this jelly as part of Tigress' Can Jam, an event that challenges food bloggers to can a specific seasonal ingredient once a month. One of my resolutions is to space out my canning projects so they don't make me mildly insane a few weekends a year, and the Can Jam is a great way to keep myself honest and inspired. The process of picking this recipe led me to a few other seasonal canning treats, too, so expect to see some pickled oranges here soon.

Since this was my first time making jelly, I picked a recipe that doesn't call for a jelly bag. (I think you don't need one because there isn't whole fruit to be separated out). I'm really happy with how it turned out - it's nicely balanced, so that you can taste the flavors of the ginger, lemon, and honey about equally. It is especially lovely on scones or English muffins.

If you wanted to really dote on someone when they were sick, you could bring them a few trashy magazines, some tissues, and a loaf of bread with this jam.

Cold-Soother Jelly
adapted from The Food Lover's Guide to Canning

• 1/2 C fresh-squeezed lemon juice (from about 2 large lemons)
  
• 1/4 C fresh-squeezed lime juice (from about 2 medium limes)
  
• 2 C honey
• 1/4 C crystallized ginger, minced
  
• 3 oz liquid pectin

Combine the juices and honey in a large pan over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the ginger, stir, and bring back to a boil. Once you've achieved a vigorous boil, stir in the pectin. Continue boiling for exactly one minute after the mixture has returned to a vigorous boil. Remove from heat immediately, stirring for a few minutes to keep the ginger pieces from sinking to the bottom. Ladle into sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 in headspace, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 5 minutes.

3-4 half-pint jars

Update: I added a photo of the jelly; yes, I've just been eating it with a spoon!