Sunday 7 September 2008
We're Jammin'!
This weekend there was a culinary first in my kitchen - I made Jam!! Blackberry and apple jam, the blackberries i picked myself on my walks with George and the apples were from the tree in my parents back garden. I got the recepie from the National Trust book : Jams, Preserves and Edible Gifts. The main problem I had was getting the jam jars I hadnt thought ahead enough to save old jam jars up - I had a peanut butter jar and an old chilli saice jar (I did wash them thoroughly!). Luckily mum to the rescue and she also lent me a heavy pased pan to boil it up in and a tin funnel thing to pour the hot jam into the jars. The Jam itself was easy enough to make the main faff is the jars - you have to sterelise them first (I had no idea about this but you just put some water in them and heat it in the microwave until the water boils) and then as you are making the jam you have to rinse the jars under the hot tap and dry them in the oven. They have to be hot when you pour the hot jam in incase they shatter. I used the blackberries, apples and silver spoon preserving jam. Cooked the blackberries and apples in water until they went pulpy then put the whole lot in the heavey based pan and stir in the sugar off the heat until dissolved. Then boiled rapidly for 6 mins before doing the set test (sauced kept in the freezer until chilled then put a blob of jam on and leave to cool before pushing it with you finger to make sure it has set). Wasnt quite done so couple more mins boiling and then another test this time it was ready. I thought this bit would be hard but its easy to tell when its ready! Used a jug to scoop it out then through th funnel into the jars. Wasted a lot on the first attempt as i spilt some. Made six jars in all and felt self righteous for making own jam :-) Had lots of idea on what use it for mainly cakes - version of bakewell and victoria sponge! With the left over blackberrys and apples made a crumble :-P
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2 comments:
Am so impressed! It does look hard to make! Am mostly sad that I won't be able to try any, or any bakewell tart or Victoria sponge! I really miss picking blackberries on walks. Can you pick blueberries at the U-Pick place in Evesham? If so, my wish for a summer day would be to pick them, then have you teach me how to make jam with blueberries and lavender. Then we could make a nice picnic and go to an out door concert (preferably without rain) where the man in front of us would pass out only to be ingored by his friends and family!!! :-)
Ha ha! I had forgotten about that man passing out - yes the perfect end to a perfect day :-) I've never been to the u-pick at evesham! I think i will though. I am going to have to get you the national trust book as i think it has a recepie for blueberry jam! Am going to send you some of my jam I am sure it wouldnt cost that much to post and it keeps for like a year or something. Hopefully it wont break in transit :-) I had a jam sarnie for my lunch was pretty good (if i do say so myself :-)
Blueberry and lavender jam! I think you are on to something esp if we made up the sugar that you use for jam into lavender sugar and then made the jam! Am so going to try that.
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