Eat This: Pickled Peppers

Each year I grow herbs and peppers in my backyard in containers.  This year, I planted two tiny little jalapeño pepper plants I bought from the Home Depot back in March.  I think I paid $1.50 for each and by September they are 3.5 feet tall and producing lots of peppers.

I leave them on the plant until they turn red and then harvest and keep in the refrigerator until I have enough. I think they taste better than the green peppers, maybe more mellow?  For this recipe, I used a few large green jalapeños from the market to add some color.  These are definitely not like my Cowboy candy.  These are pickles. Great on a sandwich or as a, well, pickle!

Check em out.

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.

Eat This: Fresh Blueberry Jam

Hello.  My name is Marc and I am a canning and preserving addict.  

I admit it.  Don't want to change it. Enjoy doing it and sharing with friends and neighbors.  Today I made fresh blueberry jam.  The blueberries came from a local farm here in North Texas and bought at the local Farmer's Market.  I water processed the results and it turned out great!  Next time I think I will do some spicy version, maybe a Jalapeño or other pepper infused variety.

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.

Eat This: Peach Apricot Ginger Jam

Peach Apricot Ginger Jam

I love the fresh fruit taste of the Spring.  I went to the Farmer's Market and brought back some beautiful peaches, grown here in the DFW area. I knew I wanted something special, so I am paring them with dried Turkish apricots and ginger. Sweet and spicy with the ginger.  It's delicious.  This is a lower sugar recipe as well. The original called for 7 cups of sugar. I used 2 1/2.  The use of Low-No Sugar Pectin has changed the way preserving works!  Try this.

Eat This: Gingered Sweet Pickled Jalapenos aka "Cowboy Candy"

 
I made candied jalapenos aka "Cowboy Candy" here in the past.  Click HERE for the original recipe with step-by-step instructions.  I ate or gave away my stock so it was time to make more. I wanted to change it up a little and this time, adding a layer of flavor so I added fresh ginger to the recipe.  I love the Asian ginger influence mixed with the Texas taste of the jalapenos.  I cooked fresh ginger, about a 3" long piece, peeled and chopped, in with the vinegar, sugar and spice mixture.  I strained it all before adding the jalapeños.

Preservation II: Clementine-Ginger-Habanero Marmalade

Oh yes baby.  Delicious: Clementine-Ginger-Habanero Marmalade.

I enjoyed making the Orange-Ginger Marmalade so much I decided to take on a new batch.  This time, I used Clementines.  They're sweet, seedless and full of flavor.  To give it a kick, I added ginger, this time in the form of candied ginger and three, yes THREE habanero peppers.  Surprise!  It was a little heat way back on your throat, but not "hot".  Turned out to be delicious.  And here's how it happened...

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.

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.