Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Golden Plum Chutney and Gooseberry Jam in WINE

 Today: 33 Celsius ( 91 F)......good day to can plums and gooseberries. way hot outside. Way cool inside....air conditioning.. Ahhhhhhhhhh.  Haven't canned in a couple of years.  I don't really measure, I jsut read the recipe to get the general idea and then go with it. So I added wine to the mix. A splash here, a splash there....about a cup and  a half per batch. Potent.
 A large pot of cut up golden plums, two cups raisins, a dash of ginger, pinch salt, 1 1/2 cups wine, 4 cups brown sugar, 2 chopped onions, 3 cups white vinegar. Boil till very pulpy. Ladle into hot, sterilized jars. Then re-boil about 15 minutes in a stock pot or canner. Easy. Just time consuming.
 Turns out dark and rich. If it is too strong with the vinegar, just add a touch of brown sugar to the jar when you open it to serve. Good with anything on your dinner plate.
 My rake for hauling at tree branches so I could get all the plums.
 Bo likes the rake. It smells of plums, trees, leaves, and had a few spiders running up and down the handle.....
 GOOSEBERRY JAM  ( with wine of course)
 A huge bowl of gooseberries, wash and de-destem both ends. A tedious task. I recommend watching Seinfeld whilst de-stemming.........
 Didn't have enough gooseberries  from my bushes, so bought more at market. They were so fat and healthy.Here is the wine I used.Slosh a goodly amount into the large pot they will cook in. Add 6 cups sugar, and a good slosh of lemon juice. Boil till lyou hnave to skim off the pink foam. Then add 2 pouches of liquid pectin. Stir and cook another minute. Then ladle into sterilzed jars and boil 15 minutes to seal.
 WONDERFUL stuff! The alcohol will burn off and live a crisp, tart juicy berry taste. Never rtasted gooseberry jam before this. Yummy. ( and that is NOT the wine talking....)
                   It is now just after 9pm and it is sill about 29 Celsius.....sizzle. But all is cool inside......

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