Jam

you can always try making marmalade, oranges are available fairly cheap. i would suggest looking on the bbc website www.bbc.co.uk/food and use the recipe finder, they're bound to have something. i know for berries it's just under the same amount of sugar as fruit, but i never made marmalade...

As pollyanna says, you've left it a bit late for jam I made raspberry jam with local rasps in July and that was expensive, same with strawbs even with a whole tray going cheap. Cheapest jam is when you use blackberries you've picked yourself, or something you've grown yourself.

However I do have a fantastically easy recipe for jam using tinned fruit. It's for Peach and Apricot Preserve and it's from a book called Quick and Easy Preserves by Simone Sekers, which is absolutely fab if you can get hold of a copy (it's out of print).

To make 4 medium sized jars you need
1 410g can of apricot halves in juice
1 410g can of peach slices in juice
825g of sugar-with-pectin (also called jam sugar, you must make sure it's the right kind or it won't set)
Grated rind of 1 lemon + juice of half the lemon

First put a saucer in the fridge for testing for a set later.
Empty the contents of the cans into the bowl of a food processor and process breifly until you have a fairly chunky puree. You could do this with a stick blender in a bowl.

Pour into a preserving pan for preference or a large saucepan.
Add the sugar, and the lemon juice and rind.
Let the sugar dissolve over a low heat.
Next bring the mixture to a rolling boil. This is why you need a large pan as a full rolling boil is quite fierce and climbs up the pan (!).
Boil for exactly 4 minutes.

Take off the heat and drip a little of the jam onto your cold saucer, leave for a minute and then push the jam with your finger. If it wrinkles and seems firm it has set. If it hasn't set, return the pan to the heat and boil for another 2 mins. Keep testing until it sets.
Leave the jam to settle for 15 mins, stir before potting to distribute the fruit evenly.
Then pot into warm, dry sterilised jars. Cover the top of the jam with a wax disc and screw on the lid or cover with a cellophane circle.

To sterilise jars, wash in hot soapy water, rinse and dry in the oven at 100 degrees.

This jam is delicious. The book also recommends trying it with other tinned fruit 'such as black cherries with cinnamon, or pineapple with grated lime rind and juice.'

We are in the same situation money wise this christmas so I decided on hampers. I made this a few weeks ago as a total marmalade novice. It was really easy.

5 large lemons
2 sweet oranges
1 Grapefruit
4 cups / 880 ml water
4 ¼ cup / 34oz / 1kg Sugar

Using vegetable peeler, remove the rind in strips from all fruit. Cut strips thinner depending on how chunky you like your marmalade.
Cut fruit in half lengthways. Push inside-out – you will now be able to peel the flesh of the fruit away from the white pith (pick out the pips as you go). Place the flesh of the fruit and all juice in the bowl with the rind.
Add the water to the lemon peel and flesh. Cover and refrigerate 3 to 4 hours.
After at least 3 / 4 hours (ideally overnight) place the mixture in a pan. For a couple of minutes heat lemon mixture to boiling over high heat, stirring frequently. Then reduce heat to low; cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lemon mixture is very soft, about 1 hour.
Add sugar to the mixture and increase heat to medium-high; stir until sugar dissolves (sugar must dissolve fully before boiling or you will get crystals of sugar and the marmalade won't set properly).
Then heat to boiling. Boil uncovered, stirring frequently. Takes about 45 minutes. Shorter times will give you a lighter marmalade while longer will result in a darker richer flavour.
Spoon marmalade into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch space at top of jars.
Put on lids. Wipe jar rims clean. When cool label jars; store in cool, dry place will keep for up to 12 months

Found the following recipe on this site:


http://www.cottageliving.com/cottage/food/article/0,21135,1539392,00.html


thought that it was interesting as it uses a slow cooker and does not require any sieving

Crock Pot Apple Butter
If you want to make your own apple butter, we tested a crock pot apple butter recipe that rivals the real thing.
By Kim SunŽe

MAKES: 6 cups
PREP: 30 minutes
COOK: 8-10 hours
6 lbs apples, peeled and diced (About 8-10 large apples)
3-4 cups sugar, depending on sweetness of apples
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt

Put apples in crock pot, add sugar and spices, cover, and cook on high 8-10 hours. Stir occasionally, removing lid during the last 1/2 hour.

If you're using apples with a firm flesh, they may not cook down to a smooth texture. Puree chunky apple butter in a food processor or blender until smooth.

NOTE: Golden Delicious and Macintosh apples work well for apple butter, but experiment with different varieties according to your own taste.

If you have a food mill or don't mind sieving then this recipe is good:

4 lb. apples
3/4 pint dry cider
1 lb. soft light brown sugar (approx - see below)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon allspice

Wash and quarter (but do not peel) the apples, and place with the cider in a large saucepan. Cook, covered, until the apples are soft, then puree them (by sieving or putting through a food mill). Measure the puree and allow 1 oz. sugar for every 4 fl. oz. puree. Return the puree to the saucepan with the measured amount of sugar and the spices and boil slowly, stirring frequently, until very thick (about an hour). When a small amount on a saucer holds its shape if turned upside-down, it is cooked. Spoon, while still hot, into sterilised jars and seal. N.b. - instead of stirring in the saucepan, you can thicken the sweetened puree by cooking uncovered in a slow oven with just the occasional stir.

Easy way to sterilize jars:

Put on oven as low as you can.
Rinse clean glass jars with boiling water.
Dry jars in the warm oven.

Placing the hot jars on a wooden board to fill then with hot preserve will ensure that there is no chance of a jar cracking.

Put lids on when the jars are hot (best) or cold. Never cover jars when they are warm, this is the way to encourage mould.

Apple butter is a nice spread to use like jam, but is also quite pleasant with cold meat.