savoury peach jam......

I was literally at a loss a few days ago. I have been canning for many weeks now and on this day in particular I had nothing to preserve. I felt empty about that. Odd isn't it? Well for me not so much I can say. There is something very pioneer about my love for preserving and this woman, on that day, was pining to place yet something else on my root cellar shelves. I was browsing online and came across a recipe for a savoury peach jam and it filled the bill perfectly. It included shallots and sage and I already had shallots on hand and the sage was a short trip away to the community garden site. Needless to say my heart was happy and off I went to gather my ingredients. Peaches are in full swing here and I had already put up peach jam and peach halves. I like working with peaches as they are easy to pit and peel so I knew this wouldn't be too intensive for my day. I picked much more sage than needed but I had also planned to dry some of it and so it went into the herb dryer that I recently purchased. The sage was beautiful and its aroma reminded me of the stuffing that I make each year at Christmas. This peach jam will work perfectly with roast turkey!

The recipe is simple in that all the ingredients except the sage are simmered together in a pot until it becomes thick and then the sage is added. It is not intended to 'set' like a jam, in fact I think it's more like a chutney type sauce. Here you can see all the beautiful bits of deliciousness coming together. 

The end result is this gorgeous mix of sweet and savoury flavours that will delight the palate! We sampled it the next evening with a platter of cheese and meats and it was wonderful! I will be happy to share the recipe with you all........

Savoury Peach Jam with Shallots & Sage

2 pounds peaches

3/4 cup minced shallots

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon minced fresh sage

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes-optional ( I didn't use them)

Pit and peal the peaches. I poach the peach halves to remove the skin more easily. Finely mince the fruit. Combine the fruit in a saucepan with the shallots, sugar and the vinegar. Place the pan on a burner over medium-high heat and cook stirring regularly until the fruit is quite soft and the jam not watery looking. This could take 15-20 minutes depending on the water content of the fruit. Keep a close eye on it as mine began to stick on the bottom.

When the jam is looking thick and spreadable, stir in the sage, salt and red chili if using.

This jam can be used immediately and will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. For longer storage it can be funneled into clean, hot jars and processed in a boiling wager bath canner for 15 minutes.

Makes approximately 3 cups.

Enjoy!!

Of note ~ the recipe is credited to Table Matters

Have a great day! 

Maggie

catching up.....

I feel as though I need to do some serious catching up with my blog and hopefully in the next week or so I can do just that. It is a busy time of year right now with all the fruits and vegetables coming into peak harvest season and I love to do a bit of canning. This has kept me away from the blog and busy for the last several weeks. I don't go overboard with it but I love to walk down to my root cellar with jars in arms and line the shelves with natural goodness that has come from the earth and will grace our table in winter. There must be a pioneer woman inside of me that is manifesting herself in my current life and she helps me get back to my roots of living a simple life. That has been a common thread vision that has been a part of my being for as many years as I can remember. To live a life of simplicity and to live happily and quietly with myself and others. Preserving helps me to do that.

I still have some canning on my list of things to do before the harvest is over and then I hope to get back to more regular posting. After the canning season is done I will be gathering my energies to reestablish my Reiki practice once again. I am excited about this and will write more about that as things progress.

For now though I must close the laptop and get myself ready to head off to work. Yes, that paying job that allows me to live the life that makes me happy. So, we will come together again here soon and we will chat and reflect on many things. Until next time........

Blessings,

Maggie

Spicy Honey Mustard

I've been busy with canning for the last several weeks and have not been posting any blogs so I thought I should catch up a bit. My latest canning project was this Spicy Honey Mustard that I found the recipe for in my favourite and most used canning book this summer. I have shared the book previously in my blog but it bears sharing again. Food In Jars is the name and it's a great one to have in your library of recipe books! It's been my go-to book for the season.

I decided to make the mustard recipe and see how we would like it. I think it's a great way to have total control of what goes into my mustard and know that it doesn't have any hidden ingredients.

Here's the recipe for anyone that wants to give it a try!

Spicy Honey Mustard

1 cup dry mustard

1 cup cider vinegar

1/3 cup honey

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Prepare a boiling water bath and sterilize 4 quarter-pint jars. Place lids in a small saucepan, cover them with water and simmer over very low heat.

Combine all ingredients in a small pot. Whisk to blend and bring to a simmer over medium heat for 5-6 minutes. When the mustard is thoroughly heated through, ladle it into the prepared jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Wipe the rims, apply the lids and rings and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

By making your own mustard you can design it to your own tastes and make it milder or even spicier if you like. That's the beauty of making your own! I think these 4 jars will probably last us for the winter season and if not then I will just make us another batch. 

Enjoy! 

Maggie

new to me.....I love them!

my favourite new thing! 

Ok, so maybe this isn't new to you but I just discovered these Bernardin lids for my canning jars once they are opened and in the refrigerator! I think they are a splendid idea! I went to get some more lids and rings last week and came across these on the shelf too! It's just so much easier to get into what you have in the jar rather than dealing with the 2 piece lid & ring. And what makes it even better is that they are BPA free!

Ok, so that's my news for the day! Lol.....until tomorrow folks!

Blessings,
Maggie

Garlic scapes.....pickled!

Garlic scapes are relatively new to me. It was only a couple of years ago that I was introduced to them at our local farmers market. I love how they curl themselves into a spiral and then it ends with the flower bud wrapped in what looks like tissue paper. Nature has such an interesting way of presenting itself! I love it! So, I have sautéed garlic scapes, but apart from that I really didn't know what to do with them. We have a huge plot of garlic at our community garden plot and I managed to get my hands on some scapes this year. I was looking in my new canning book, Food In Jars, and I found this garlic scape pickle recipe! I just had to try it and so yesterday I set out to pickle my garlic scapes. I think that they look great just in the jars, let alone how great they will taste when we open the first jar! Once I open them up and have a taste I will let you know how good they are! 

 I hope that you might be inspired to look for some garlic scapes in your local area. Please shop locally. It's really important for your local economy and keeps the world healthier in a lot of ways. 

It's my last post of the week and I need to shut things down now. The morning hours come early and I have to work one more day before having a few days off. 

Good night all.......

Maggie

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Preserving goodness......

The last couple of days have been filled with strawberries at our house. It has been a rainy season here and the strawberry harvest is small so I was very lucky to be able to get a flat of organic strawberries from Cathy my farmer friend. The fact that they were knowingly grown with love and then turned into sweet, sweet jam is just the best ever! I used a new recipe this year from a great cookbook by Marisa McClellan, who writes the Food in Jars canning blog. I have a real sensitivity to sugar and I used a mix of both organic sugar and agave hoping that it would give me a tasty jam and create a good set. By making my own jam I don't have to worry about us eating anything other than what I stirred into the fruit myself. All the goodness of homemade jam in the jar! I managed to put up 15 half-pint jars from two batches. I can't wait until the snow starts to fly and we can taste the sweetness of a June strawberry!

By all means if you are interested check out the Food in Jars blog at http://www.foodinjars.com

If you've never canned before Marisa's book is a great place to start!

Have a great day!

Maggie