Apricot Habanero Jam

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Saturday I was headed to the Big Orange Box store for the 3rd time for a yard project when I drove past a house at the end of the street with a sign that said "Free apricots" with a ladder all ready to go in the yard-sweet!  I stopped by and knocked on the door and the gentleman who lived there was happy to have the fruit go to a good home.   It was great to chat with him while I picked about 2 grocery bags of apricots.

I knew I was going to make some jam, but I wanted something more interesting than usual.  Some searching around the internet and I saw that adding in peppers was popular.  That sounded great.  I've done jalapeno jelly before and it was tasty.  I pulled out my Ball Canning book (the blue one) and saw that the recipe for regular apricot jam didn't call for pectin. Hmmm, I haven't done that before, so I hedged my bets and used 1 package of liquid pectin during the last 1 minute of cooking. Just in case.

Ingredients
8 cups apricot puree (about 12 cups of whole fruit...maybe 5 pounds?)
6 cups sugar
3 habanero peppers
1 teaspoon butter
1 pouch liquid pectin (optional...the recipe didn't call for it)

I washed the apricots in the sink and then used my fingers to split them in 1/2 and pull out the pits.  I then pureed (chunky) the fruit in my food processor.
 

I removed the seeds from the peppers and tossed them in the processor along with about 1 cup of the fruit puree.


Mix the fruit and sugar in  a large pot (I used my 8 quart dutch oven) and bring to a boil on medium heat.  Stir occasionally and cook until reduced about half (took about 25 minutes for me).  The color goes from the light, bright color to a dark caramel-ly color.  I also used a  thermometer to check when it got to about 220 degrees.  For the last minute of cooking, I added 1 pouch of liquid pectin and boiled for one minute, then filled my sterilized jars (makes about 5 pints) and processed in a water bath for 15 minutes.

Tastes great.  It does have a kick, but the cooking tones it down from when I tasted the raw puree.  Serve with cream cheese on crackers or as a side for pork or chicken.  Could be a tasty replacement for cranberry sauce on a sandwich. My mom suggested it as a dipping sauce for fried cream cheese wontons.  Hmmm, a trip to the store for won ton wrappers may be in order tonight.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

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I love fresh strawberries. I've tried several locations and types of plants and not succeeded in growing them until I finally planted them in my front yard! I have too much shade everywhere else, so I created a patch along my driveway. This is year 3 with my plants (year 1 was bare-root, June-bearing plants from Gurney's), year 2 gave me just enough berries to eat with my cereal, but this year, ah, I've had enough to make pie, to snack on, to serve with shortcake and today, freezer jam! I'm still getting more berries, so maybe strawberry ice cream is next! I may even make more jam and put it away for Christmas gifts for friends!

When making freezer jam, it is so much faster and easier than cooked jam (and as a bonus it doesn't heat up the kitchen) and I prefer the fresh berry taste of freezer jam. You can use whatever brand of pectin that you prefer, but just be sure to follow the package instructions EXACTLY. I usually treat recipes as general guidelines, but not with jam. I measure, I level, I time...everything.

Ingredients

1 pkg Sure Jell pectin

1 quart fresh strawberries

4 cups sugar

1. Wash the berries, cut off the stems and any icky parts and slice up the berries.

2. Use a potato masher or fork to crush the berries (use a wide bottom bowl or pan and only mash up 1 cup of berries at a time). You will need 2 cups of crushed berries when you are done.

3. Pour the berries into a large mixing bowl.

4. Carefully measure 4 cups of granulated sugar into a separate bowl (use a knife to level off the sugar exactly).

5. Pour the measured sugar into the berries and mix it up. Set the timer and let the berry mix sit for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

6. Now mix the Sure Jell with 3/4 C. of water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Stir constantly.

7. Pour the hot pectin into the berries while stirring. Stir for 3 minutes to make sure all the sugar gets dissolved.

8. Pour the jam into five 1 C. containers suitable for the freezer (I used 1/2 C. mini-plastic containers since I only need a small jar of jam at any given time).

9. Leave the containers of jam on the counter for 24 hours to set, then refrigerate or freeze.

*These directions are based on using the Sure Jell brand pectin, your directions may vary if you use a different brand.

Poppy Seed Danish

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Did you see the new Martha Stewart magazine this month with all the craft/recipe projects on the theme of poppies? I was visiting my cousin in Phoenix and one afternoon we decided to give the Poppy Seed Danish recipe a whirl. We made a few changes, but they sure were tasty!

For the original recipe (and magazine perfect pictures) MarthaStewart.com

Ingredients

• FOR THE DOUGH
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 stick unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces, plus more for bowl
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (one 1/4-ounce envelope) active dry yeast
• 3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface and hands
• Salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon heavy cream, for egg wash
• FOR THE FILLING
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
• 1/3 cup cherry preserves (I used raspberry since that is what we had)
• FOR THE GLAZE
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream

Directions

1. Make the dough: Warm milk, butter, and granulated sugar in a small saucepan over a low heat until mixture reaches 120 degrees on a candy thermometer. (Butter will not melt completely.) Pour warm milk mixture over yeast in the bowl of a mixer; whisk to combine. Cover with 2 cups flour and 1 teaspoon salt (do not stir). Let stand for 5 minutes.

1. Using the dough-hook attachment, mix dough on medium speed, scraping down sides of bowl, until a sticky dough forms. Mix in eggs, 1 at a time. Reduce speed to low, and mix in 1 1/2 cups flour. (If dough is too sticky, mix in an additional 1/2 cup flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.) Continue to mix until dough is smooth and pulls away from sides of bowl, about 5 minutes more.
   
2. Using floured hands, turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough into a ball, and transfer to a large buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place until dough is doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
   
3. Return dough to lightly floured surface, and punch down. Reshape into a ball. Let stand, covered, for 10 minutes.
   
4. Meanwhile, make the filling: Beat cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg yolk. Add poppy seeds, and beat until evenly distributed.
   
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface into a 18-inch square. Trim edges using a sharp paring knife to form a 15-inch square. (If dough seems too warm or too elastic, refrigerate or freeze for 10 minutes.) Cut dough into 12 5-inch squares, and divide between 2 baking sheets. (this is a change from the original recipe. It called for getting only 9 danishes, but the dough was too thick, so I rolled it out thinner and ended up with more danishes...bonus!)
   
6. Cut a 2-inch line from the 4 corners of each square into the center. Spread a heaping tablespoon filling onto each. Dollop centers with a heaping teaspoon preserves. Fold the 2 top corners into the center of each square. Repeat with remaining corners to form petals. Brush petals with egg wash. Bake until deep golden brown, 16 to 18 minutes. Let cool slightly.
   
7. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Mix together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap until ready to use. (If glaze gets stiff, add more milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency is achieved.)
   
8. Drizzle Danishes with glaze, and let stand for 10 minutes.
   

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

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Most people either love or hate cranberry sauce on their Thanksgiving plate. I fall into the category of "love it"--providing that the cranberries are homemade! I suppose I grew up spoiled with a mom who is a great cook and does all of the Thanksgiving meal from scratch. For me the difference between that can of cranberry jelly and the homemade is about the same as the difference between fresh peas and canned peas--so different that one is edible and the other is not really food at all. So...if you haven't been a fan in the past, give homemade cranberries a chance!

Ingredients:

1 bag cranberries

1 c. sugar

1 c. water (not quite full)

In a pot put the water and sugar (I tend to use just a bit less water, like a Tablespoon or 2 less) and bring to a boil. Dump in the cranberries. Bring the mix to a boil and then turn the heat down to medium. The concoction will get bubbly and foamy--let boil for 10 minutes (set the timer). Stir it up every couple of minutes so it doesn't scortch.

If you like the chunky cranberry sauce (and I don't) you can be done now. If you want the clear jelly you need to dump the mix into a fine strainer over a bowl and push the mix through the strainer with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. If you are going to make the clear jelly, be ready to strain as soon as you take it off the stove--cranberries have a lot of pectin and it will set up rather quickly. Once its all strained put it in a jar or container and refrigerate it.

That's it! Now you have delicious cranberry sauce for your turkey!