Savor The Summer: Garlic Ginger Pepper Jam

I love the taste of Summer from the fresh corn to the nice fiery hot Jalapenos I grow in the back yard.  I also like grilled meats and think that once in awhile you might like to have something sweet and hot on a freshly grilled chop.  Enter this jam.

Southern Style: Sweet & Savory Tomato Jam

FROM THIS ....

TO THIS ...

When sweet meets savory, delicious explosions happen. It's nature. Go with it.  I love Summer; tomatoes, sweet and delicious.  I want to save it for myself and to share with everyone I know.  I found a tomato jam recipe, but it didn't really fit the flavor profile I was looking for. So I did what anyone would do: I made up my own.  This is the result.  Try it.  The only thing it costs you is an afternoon.

Preservation: Orange-Ginger Marmalade

Orange-Ginger Marmalade

I tried canning in November of 2011 for the first time when I made Chili Piquin Jelly.  It turned out well and gave me some confidence to try new things.  Up to that time, preservation for me was the freezer.  It turns out, that if you follow directions, things work out pretty well!  Who knew?

Spicy Love: "Cowboy Candy" Sweet Jalapeno Pickles

3# of fresh jalapenos make the "candy"

I love spicy food. I love sweet food.  The perfect marriage of the two, in my humble opinion, is "Cowboy Candy" or sweet pickled jalapenos.  The original recipe called for cayenne pepper, but I substituted the subtle smoky flavor of Chipotle instead; and I added mustard seeds.  I like it.  I am new to canning and preserving and an enjoying the journey very much!

 "Cowboy Candy" Sweet and Spicy Jalapeno Pickles

 

The Yield: I got seven half-pint jars and five 4oz jars of pickles plus one half-pint of additional jalapeno syrup.  Hoard the syrup as it is delicious on grilled meats and as a glaze during cooking.

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds fresh jalapeno peppers
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 6 cups white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 2 teaspoons mustard seeds
• 3 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground Chipotle pepper

The first thing I do is sterilize my jars and lids... it's easy and just part of the "process" I am learning, and it is very important in order to preserve the peppers. Bacteria is not your friend in this case, so be sure you carefully sterilize your implements.

I usually have no problem handling peppers.  But I had a VERY TINY little scratch on my finger and these bad boys set me on fire; so you might want to wear gloves.   Remove the stems from all of the jalapeno peppers by slicing off of the stem-end along with the stem.  Discard the stems. Slice the peppers into 1/8-1/4 inch slices.  Set aside.

 

Mix together all the dry ingredients in a large, stainless steel pot.

Add the cider vinegar to the dry ingredients and bring to a boil.  Simmer for FIVE minutes.

Add the jalapenos and simmer for FOUR MINUTES.  Longer and they get overdone and too soft. Less and the peppers do not give up enough of their juices.

 

The setup: no cumbersome cookbook: this was all done online!

Fill the jars leaving 1/4" headspace for expansion during the water bath preservation process.

 

I strain the remaining syrup and return it to the pot. It needs a hard boil for SIX MINUTES.  Once done, ladle the hot syrup into the jars (remember: HEADSPACE. Don't fill too full!)  Use a stainless skewer or cooking chopstick and poke a few times in each jar to release any trapped air.

One of the bonuses of the whole process is the extra syrup.  It is spicy sweet and subtly hot. Use it to brush on chicken or chops or shrimp and grill.  It's wonderful.  Process this just as you do the pickles.

Water Processing the pickles.

Wipe the rims with a damp cloth and place the sterilized lids on the top. Add the rings and finger tighten them.  Place in the canning pot, cover with hot water with 2" water over the top.  Bring the water to a boil and process for 10 minutes for half pint jars, 15 minutes for pint sized jars.

 

Carefully remove the jars to a cooling rack and wait for it.. wait for it..... PING!  As they cool, the tops "SNAP!" and you can hear them.  This tells you they are sealed.  Let them cool for a full 24 hours before you remove the rings, wipe off excess water, replace the rings and label the spoils.  

Let these mellow for a week or two before you chow down (if you can wait that long!)  They get better in my opinion after you open them and then store in the fridge. The spicy, sweet hot and cold are awesome.  They are delicious on a sandwich, or some goat cheese on a flatbread with a crisp white wine.  Delicious.

Sunday Eats: Blueberry Walnut Coffee Cake

Blueberry Walnut Coffee Cake November 2012

Sometimes, the day is so perfect, the sunshine so right, I just want to celebrate. This morning in North Texas is one of those days.  I had some blueberries and walnuts and contemplated: waffles? No. Pancakes? No.  Maybe a simple coffee cake.  This was the result.

I looked around on the web and found a basic recipe using a biscuit mix (like Bisquick).   Here is the recipe:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease (butter works nicely) a deep dish pie pan.

2 Cups of biscuit mix (I used Bisquick)
2/3 c. Milk (any variety, I used 1% lowfat)
1 egg
1/3 Cup Sugar
2 Tablesoons Brown Sugar for topping
6 pats of butter for top (optional)
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 Cup Walnuts (either whole, which I used and cracked by hand, or chopped, your choice)
4 oz package fresh blueberries (or substitute any berry here - BlackBerries, Raspberries... Mmm)

Combine mix, sugar, cinnamon, milk and egg in a bowl. Mix with a fork until just incorporated. Fold in walnuts and blueberries. Evenly distribute in the pie plate and sprinkle the top with the brown sugar.  Optionally put pats of butter across the top for a richer, browner crust.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or intil a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Remove and let sit for 10 minutes to complete the cooking process (if you can wait!) Cut and serve.  Delicious. Refrigerate leftovers.  This is delicious toasted the next day too.

Delicious: Cowboy Candy

This delicious treat, a staple in many a Texas pantry, is so easy to make.  I got the basic recipe from
the blog "Foodie With Family".   It has been modified to my taste with a couple of additions that aren't staples.  Enjoy!

Photo: livinranchodelux.blogspot.com

Candied Jalapenos aka "Cowboy Candy"

Yield: About 9 half-pint jars of Candied Jalapenos plus additional jalapeno syrup (SAVE THE EXTRA!)

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds fresh, firm, jalapeno peppers, washed
• 2 cups cider vinegar
• 6 cups white granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (I like a nice curry powder instead)
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 3 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 2 teaspoons granulated onion
• 1 teaspoon ground Chipotle pepper (you will love the smoky with the sweet!)

Remove the stems from all of the jalapeno peppers; slice a small disc off of the stem-end along with the stem.  Discard the stems. Slice the peppers into uniform 1/8-1/4 inch rounds.  Set aside.
In a large stainless steel pot, bring cider vinegar, white sugar, turmeric, celery seed, granulated garlic, granulated onion and Chipotle pepper to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the pepper slices and simmer for exactly 4 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to transfer the peppers, loading into clean, sterile canning jars to within 1/4 inch of the upper rim of the jar.  Turn heat up under the pot with the syrup and bring to a full rolling boil.  Boil hard for 6 minutes.

Use a ladle to pour the boiling syrup into the jars over the jalapeno slices.  Insert a cooking chopstick to the bottom of the jar two or three times to release any trapped pockets of air.  Adjust the level of the syrup if necessary.  Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, damp paper towel and fix on new, two-piece lids to finger-tip tightness.

*If you have leftover syrup, and it is likely that you will, you may can it in half-pint or pint jars, too.  It’s wonderful brushed on meat on the grill or added to potato salad or, or, or…  In short, don’t toss it out!

Place jars in a canner, cover with water by 2-inches.  Bring the water to a full rolling boil.  When it reaches a full rolling boil, set the timer for 10 minutes for half-pints or 15 minutes for pints.  When timer goes off, use canning tongs to transfer the jars to a cooling rack.  Leave them to cool, undisturbed, for 24 hours.  When fully cooled, wipe them with a clean, damp washcloth then label.
Allow to mellow for at least two weeks, but preferably a month before eating.  Or not.

Texas Style Food: Chile Piquin Jelly

Years ago, my friend Steven told me about this tiny little wild pepper that his mother, Margaret, would use to make homemade salsa. I have been growing these little hot as hellfire little peppers for the past three seasons in containers on my patio.  On a whim, because I have never made jelly before this, I just decided to try to make them into jelly.  This is the odyssey - photos and all.

Start by sterilizing the jars - no nasty bacteria for this jelly!


I boiled them for 15 minutes and then let them stay on simmer to keep the jars warm. Jars should be hot when you fill them with the recently cooked jelly to avoid cracking.

These are the Chile Piquins I picked from my backyard. Don't let their tiny size fool you. These babies are HOT!


They are so small, it's impossible to open and get the seeds out which the recipe called for, so I left them whole. 

I finely chopped (1) red bell pepper and added the Chile Piquins (1/2c) in a small food processor and ground them to a paste. That got added to the sugar (5c) and apple cider(3c) vinegar. EDIT: I also used one pouch of store bought liquid pectin so that it would set up properly.  I omitted that from my first post!

It all gets barely boiled together to produce the most amazing, aromatic, deliciously sweet-hot flavor you have ever had!

I strained the jelly as it went into the jars, so no seeds made it in - with the exception of the last jar where I put all the seeds and pulp and processed it.  It should prove to be the hottest 6oz. of pure hellfire ever and was presented to my friend Steven because he was the inspiration for my jelly making afternoon.

Once its done, and after its been processed in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes, when you take the jars out and they sit on the counter... they have a little "PING!" as they seal.  And you know, you just KNOW, later that freshness is going to be ready for you to enjoy.


On a piece of rare red meat... used as a glaze on a roasted chicken... on a piece of roasted pork... paired with creme fraiche on pita chips... DELICIOUS. Have a very cold, very dry vodka martini, settle back... and enjoy it.