The Preserver's Year

helcat26

Damsons are ready to pick now. Lucky me there is a tree in one of my local parks and no-one seemed to know what it was. Watched the fruit being allowed to fall for a while then thought might as well pick them.

Damson jam is lovely and does not need too much pectin- bit of a bore skimming off the stones.

But here is an alternative:

Pickled Damsons
This old family recipe is traditionally served with cheese and cold meats.

4lbs Damsons
2.5lbs lump sugar
1.5 pints vinegar
24 cloves

Wipe the damsons clean and use a fork to !!!!! them twice. Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar and then add the damsons and cloves . Leave for 24 hours. Boil the damsons for 30 minutes and then put in sterile jars.

thriftlady_2

misskool wrote: »

Does anyone stone and skin plums before making jam from them?

I stone them but don't skin. I stoned 3lbs of damsons the other day for chutney. It took at least an hour and was very fiddly, but it will be so worth it. No-one will want to eat it if they have to spit out stones, and fishing them out after cooking is just as fiddly.

lillythecat

We have a glut of small damsons and I was thinking of making some damson gin. I was wondering if I could make it with a sugar substitute (like splenda) instead of sugar? Has anyone tried this?

thriftlady_2

lillythecat wrote: »

We have a glut of small damsons and I was thinking of making some damson gin. I was wondering if I could make it with a sugar substitute (like splenda) instead of sugar? Has anyone tried this?

I wouldn't, unless you want to ruin both your damsons and your gin_pale_

helyg

misskool wrote: »

Does anyone stone and skin plums before making jam from them?

I stone them but I don't skin them. Actually I tell a lie, my 7 year old son stones them as he enjoys doing it! Very strange...

oliveoyl

misskool wrote: »

:j :j OH went picking and got me some elderberries. Except (sssshhhhhhh), I have no idea what to do with them! Help meeeee

Picked some more brambles so contemplating freezing some more and have plums from the plum tree and the 2 apple trees are now suspiciously ripening. Busy busy weekend here.

Last year I made a spiced elderberry and bramble vodka which was good... I went a bit overboard on the cloves so it had a definite 'winter warmer' feel to it.

I haven't got a recipe as such... I just made it up as I went along, but the ingredients were elderberries, brambles, lemon juice + rind, fresh ginger, cinnamon stick, cloves, sugar and vodka. I boiled everything up for about 10 mins, left it to cool and infuse for a few hours then strained the liquid off and bottled it. Goes very well with hot lemonade.

If you kept the spices separate you could use the strained fruit to make some jam with a little kick.

oliveoyl

You can make Pontack Sauce with elderberries... if you're patient... it's supposed to be better when left to mature for 7 years! I might make some this year but I doubt it will last 7 years.

Chris25

Janine2225 wrote: »

I dont know whether its best to post this here on on a seperate thread but figured this was a good a place as any.
Might sound like a silly question but can I make marmalade from satsumas/clementines?
Many thanks.

http://www.billingtons.co.uk/home/recipes/13/clemintine-marmalade says here you can use any citrus, just give them a good scrub.

The nicest marmalade I've ever made was clementine & coriander from an old Woman's Weekly/Woman & Home recipe - it tasted incredibly juicy & citrussy, it absolutely bursts with. I shall check whether I can find the recipe - I may have posted it on here a few years back.

mrssnowy_2

misskool wrote: »

Does anyone stone and skin plums before making jam from them?

I was given 5lbs plums for jam,but as I had just made rhubarb and blackcurrant(11 big pots),blackcurrant(10 pots)and 6 pots of plum jam,I lost the will to live:D.
Threw all plums in preserving pan boiled till soft,allowed to cool then went in with me hands and squeezed all the stones out-strange sensation but easier than stoning all the small little blighters.Made good jam to.:rotfl:
Have now run out of sugar,Aldis here I come_well next week anyway.
Is there going to be a sugar shortage?Haven't heard much about it recently.
Hoping for cheap cauli soon as would like to make picallilli.
mrss

mrssnowy_2

thriftmonster wrote: »

There is a good Mary Berry recipe where you add the simmered peel of 12 satsumas (saved in the freezer as trhe family eat them) to a can of Mamade - it makes a nice easy marmelade.

Theres a recipe for Misers marmalade in WI recipe book which uses saved citrus peel-popped in a bag in the freezer,boiled up with lemons and sugar,always great flavour and colour no matter what is slung in.