The Preserver's Year

zcrat41

Hi - I have a quick question. I'm hoping to make lots of apple jam this weekend. But how do I stop them going brown whilst I'm peeling and coring all 2.5kg of them?! I tried a wee bit of lemon juice las time but it didn't really work.

Any ideas?

Thanks

ZC

squeaky

I often find that lemon juice in water doesn't always stop the browning completely - but I've also found that gently simmering the apple with some sugar before use (which you'll be doing anyway since you're making jam) makes the brown disappear.

D&DD

My mum swears by a dash of salt to keep things white but I use 1/4 cup lemon juice to 1 pint of water.
Mrs M heres the link for the mincemeat http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/nov/21/christmas-pudding-mince-pie-recipes

I've got the preserves book and she says you can substitute pretty much any fruit for the puree bit so far I've subbed the kilo of plums for apples and used pears in place of the russets (bramley apples both times)and its come out lovely..I just had a shock when I had to buy a new bottle of brandy after 25 years lol

Owl

Phew.... Over the last two weekends I have made:

2 batches of piccalilli
A batch of Christmas Chutney
Millions of pickled onions
Pickled cauliflower
Mustard with ale/cider/wine/whiskey

My kitchen smells of vinegar!! lol

Sunnyday

Owl wrote: »

Phew.... Over the last two weekends I have made:

2 batches of piccalilli
A batch of Christmas Chutney
Millions of pickled onions
Pickled cauliflower
Mustard with ale/cider/wine/whiskey

My kitchen smells of vinegar!! lol

Lol my kitchen smells like that too

So far i`ve made -

Hugh`s hearty ale chutney
Date & apple chutney
Green tomato chutney
Pickled beetroot
Piccalilli
Plum jam

Next on my list is Marrow chutney and more date and apple i think.
I was going to make a spicy tomato chutney with the rest of the ripe tomatoes but DH has been going through them like a locust so i`m not sure if i have enough. I`ll weigh them tomorrow and then decide.

I only have enough elderberries for cordial this year, i usually make both cordial and wine so i`m a bit disappointed but i`ve just bottled 14 bottles of different wine so mustn`t be too greedy. Hopefully next week i can go rosehip hunting and make rosehip syrup

My cupboards and shelves are groaning and the freezer is packed full with produce from the garden so we`ve had a decent year. The excalibur has just been popped back into the cupboard to make space on the worktop so i may freeze the rest of the pointy peppers instead of drying them.

I love this time of year when everythings happening, makes it seem all warm and cosy even thought its freezing outside:D

SD

freyasmum

zcrat41 wrote: »

Hi - I have a quick question. I'm hoping to make lots of apple jam this weekend. But how do I stop them going brown whilst I'm peeling and coring all 2.5kg of them?! I tried a wee bit of lemon juice las time but it didn't really work.

Any ideas?

Thanks

ZC

Bit late now, I'd assume but for reference...

Pop a water soluble vitamin c tablet in the water whilst you're peeling the rest of the apples and they'll stay nice and frech. Just like magic

chalky_75

I thought you might be interested in this recipe -- It is gorgeous

AUBERGINE PICKLE

1 Kilo of aubergines
500g onions
whole head of garlic crushed
2 tsp brown mustard seeds
3/4 pint of wine vinegar.
3/4 kilo of brown sugar.
1 1/2 tsps of salt.
2 heaped tsps ground cumin
1 tsp made - up mustard

2 tsp curry powder ( Thelma uses the following instead )
2 tsp Garam Marsala
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground coriander
small amount of cayenne.

Thelma uses a pressure cooker.
Chop onions and aubergines into small pieces. ( Could use whizzer )
Cook in 1/2 pint of the vinegar until soft ( 20 mins in pressure cooker)
Add sugar.
Mix garlic and spices into the remaining 1/4 pint of vinegar and add to the pot.
Cook for further 20 - 30 mins, stirring until thick.

Bottle in sterilised jars and try and keep for a month before eating!!!

ampersand

Probably a silly question, given that I read with surprise here that Seville oranges freeze well[Yes, they did].
Does this apply to all citrus fruit? I bought a big bowl of limes for £1, but I'm not ready to marmalade them yet.

Justamum

ampersand wrote: »

Probably a silly question, given that I read with surprise here that Seville oranges freeze well[Yes, they did].
Does this apply to all citrus fruit? I bought a big bowl of limes for £1, but I'm not ready to marmalade them yet.

They should be fine. I've found that once they have been thawed out to be used they seem to have more juice in them than before. Probably the structure of the fruit has broken down somewhat in the freezing and has made more available. If you are going to cut them in half after thawing hold them over a bowl as you cut into them as the juice will just pour out of them!

ampersand

Merci Justamum - I peel them first and go into cerebral numbdom while I snip it all. I
wondered if the peel stayed peel-y, rather than falling apart?
I have orange peels frozen similarly, ready for Choc Orange Candied strips, but haven't thawed any to know how they behave.
Any further tips, please?