Heaven on a piece of toast - Pink Lady Apple and Strawberry Jam

My good friend Caroline from Fox Drink Water popped over on the weekend with her family for a morning of jam making! I was attempting to show them my skills and in the process nearly burnt the goods! but all was not lost.... it was rescued just in the nick of time. One more second and it would have made very fancy worm fodder.....

Over the next couple of posts I'll be sharing a few of my recipes that I tried out on Caroline and the fam. Two I am still perfecting and one I am very pleased with. My idea was to have a High Tea without boring old sandwiches, meat or eggs. I wanted it to be relatively easy too as we were meant to be concentrating on the jam! Caroline brought her absolutely delicious pumpkin scones that went down a treat!!!

The combination of Pink Lady Apple and Strawberry was something Caroline wanted to try (I think it is heaven on a piece of toast) and really you could use any apple that was in season. You could also use raspberries in place of strawberries if you like. I hope you give it a go!

Oh, and the absolutely gorgeous Jam and Toast holder will be for sale in our Etsy shop some time in the future.....watch that space!

ingredients

3kg pink lady apples, Peeled,cored, quarted and sliced (You should have approx 1.8 to 2kg once they have been peeled and cored)
500g strawberries, hulled and sliced in half
just under 1/4 cup lemon juice
some lemon zest if you like ( I popped in about a teaspoon)
2 cups or so of water
800g white sugar

how to make your pink lady apple and strawberry jam

Grab a large pot with a lid and as you cut your apple slices, throw them in. Throw in the strawberries and add your lemon juice, zest if using and water. Pop the lid on and and place over a high heat. Once it's boiling, turn it down to a very gentle simmer, stir occasionally, pop the lid back on and let the fruit very slowly soften. When the fruit looks very, very soft (the apple pieces should mostly look like mush with some pieces kind of holding their shape)Keep the lid off, add the sugar and turn up the heat. It shouldn't be long now till your jam is ready. Pop a few saucers in the fridge and every now and then grab one out and pop a teaspoon of jam. It shouldn't weep and when tilted the jam should stay and not be too runny. You can also push your finger through it (be careful it will be hot) if it wrinkles it's ready! Careful not to burn your jam as it can turn on you. Turn the heat down a little if you're unsure.

The sterilisation process

Wash your jars and keep them in hot soapy water in the sink until ready to use then rinse in hot water (don't dry them) and then place in the microwave, one at a time, for 1 minute. Have the lids in a saucepan of water on the stove on a rolling boil.

When ready, ladle into your jars right up to the top, pop your lids on tightly and then you can do one of two things: You can place them into a saucepan of cold water, ensuring the jars are well covered then bring to the boil and boil for 20mins to create a vacuum. After 20 mins, turn off heat and allow to cool in the water. Check jars that a vacuum was created.
OR
Once you've filled the jars turn them upside down until they have completely cooled. The old women of Tuscany use this trick which does work really well too however if using this method I would keep the jam in the fridge once it had cooled down.

Keep boiled jars in a dark, cool cupboard. They should keep for up to 1 year.

I heart lemon and passionfruit marmalade

After making the Tangello and Clove Marmalade it got me thinking about other citrus fruits; what other combinations would work? My thoughts turned to lemons. The juice is used a lot in jams but you don't see it used as the core ingredient very often. So then I thought about what would "go" with lemons. I'd need to add a lot of sugar, I knew that, but I didn't want that to be the sole flavour of the marmalade. Wondering around the fruit market I spyed some rather beautiful looking passionfruit. Of course!

I am sooooo happy with the way this marmalade turned out. My Hubby loves it too!


This recipe makes 2 small jars or approximately 500ml.

ingredients

2 eureka lemons (they have no seeds. If you can't find them then you will need to remove seeds as you slice), cut in half lengthways, then thinly slice
750ml water
3 cups white sugar
2 passionfruit, cut in half and scraped, juice and seeds kept


how to make your lemon and passionfruit marmalade

When you have sliced your lemons pop them into a plastic container. Add the water and leave overnight (Approx 8 hours) or if you don't mind the texture of the rind then soak for about 3 hours. I have to say I like it both ways!

When ready to use pop the mix into a large heavy based saucepan and bring to the boil. Then simmer on a highish heat for 20 minutes. Now add the passionfruit pulp and 3 cups of white sugar. Bring to the boil then have on a mid simmer for about 20 - 30 minutes for the mix that you only soaked for 3 hours or if you soaked it overnight then it will only need simmering for about 10 - 15 minutes.

Wash your jars and keep them in hot soapy water in the sink until ready to use then rinse in hot water (don't dry them) and then place in the mcrowave, one at a time, for 1 minute. Have the lids in a saucepan of water on the stove on a rolling boil.

You will have to watch that your marmalade doesn't catch on the bottom and burn. Stir it every now and then to check it and pop some small plates into the fridge. When you think it may be ready or you are unsure just test some jam on a cold saucer. If it's ready it should thicken up, gel and wrinkle when you push your finger through it. When ready, ladle into your jars right up to the top, pop your lids on tightly and then you can do one of two things: You can place them into a saucepan of water, ensuring the jars are well covered then bring to the boil and boil for 20mins to create a vacuum. Check jars that a vacuum was created. OR
Once you've filled the jars turn them upside down until they have completely cooled. The old women of Tuscany use this trick which does work really well too however if using this method I would keep the marmalade in the fridge once it had cooled down.

Beautiful with croissants. That tart taste cuts through the butter perfectly.

Dreams are funny - Tangello and Clove Marmalade

Since making the Quince jam I've thought a lot about what jam I would like to create. Many combinations have bounced around my brain, knowing some of them will have to wait until Summer when the ingredients are at their peak. A while ago I attempted a Rhubarb jam based on a Donna Hay recipe, except, that I completely burnt the bottom of the pan and it took me a week of scrubbing and soaking to get it back to normal. So maybe the universe was trying to tell me something - get over the rhubarb fixation and move on, Freak! I put jam making on the....back burner as it were.

Until......

Apparently Stephenie Meyer had a dream about a vampire named Edward and a human called Bella, thus 'Twilight' was created and I remember reading somewhere that the melody to the song, 'Yesterday' came to Paul McCartney in a dream. Well, a little while ago I had a dream that I had another baby. As my Husband held her in the Hospital and I watched with that after-birth exhaustion he asked me, "What shall we call her?" I responded with, "Tessa". After teling my Husband that morning and laughing it off and thinking about if for the day it finally came to me that the Quince jam that I made belonged to a recipe by Tessa Kiros. Ok,Ok, so maybe the dream didn't mean anything but it made me start thinking about my next jam adventure and this is what I came up with.


ingredients

3 Tangellos (790g approx)
200g dried apricots (The best you can afford)
1.25 litres water
4 whole cloves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
6 cups white sugar

How to make your Tangello and clove marmalade

You will need to start this the night before. Wash your tangellos under hot water (leave the skin on)then cut in half and then cut thin slices from each half. Place in a very large plastic bowl. Chop up 200g apricots roughly and throw them in the bowl too along with 1.25 litres of water. Throw in 4 cloves, cover bowl with plastic and leave in a cool spot overnight.

The next day pull out the cloves and discard then pour the remaining mix into a large heavy based saucepan with the lemon juice. Bring to the boil. Once boilng, reduce to a simmer and simmer for 45minutes. Stir every now and then to make sure everything is ok. Once your 45minutes are up add your 6 cups sugar, stir and bring to the boil.Once boiling boil for approx 40 mins. Now, I can't stress enough you are going to have to watch over this delicious goo like a hawk otherwise you will be scrubbing and soaking that pot for a week! I ain't kidding. Once you've brought it back to the boil keep it boiling or at least a high simmer but you will definately need to lower the heat over the 40 mins otherwise it will cook too fast, thus making a lovely black mess in your pot. An easy guide is if the mix is bubbling up the saucepan the temperature is too high. Keep it so that you can see the fruit bubbling in the mix. By the end of the 40mins the heat should be on your lowest setting but the marmalade will still be simmering away and when you pop it on a plate - it should start to look like a gell or wrinkle when you push your finger through it. Turn off the heat and now you are ready to ladle into jars.

When you are up to the last 40 mins make sure you get your jars ready. Give them a good wash in the sink with hot and soapy water just before the 40 mins are up. Pop the lids to the jars in a saucepan filled with water that is on a rolling boil. Boil until ready to use. When the jam is ready, rinse your jars in hot water, place in the microwave, 1 at a time for 1 minute each. Take out of the microwave with gloves or a heavy t-towel and place next to the jam. Using a very clean spoon ladle contents into the jar, all the way to the top. Using tongs grab your lid and then carefully, without burning yourself, screw the lid tightly. When you have filled all your jars with your yummy contents grab your other big saucepan (or wash the one you just used) fill it with cold water, place your filled jars in the water making sure they are well covered and bring to the boil. Once boiling, boil for 20 mins. Turn off the heat and allow to cool in the water. Check the lids on each bottle to ensure that a vaccuum has been created. Label jars and keep in a cool place for up to 6 months.

Enjoy!