The Preserver's Year

Winged_one

I just made Redcurrant jelly to Darina Allen's recipe last night - it made lovely red glowing pots and I think it has set ok. It only took 8 minutes boiling once the sugar melted. I still have another 750g redcurrants in the fridge to use up, and another 2kg or so on the bushes.

Hopefully I'll get enough gooseberries to make a batch of that jam too - if I have enough pots left as well!!

katholicos

I made chutney today using my own home grown onions (first year of veg growing and loving it!). This is the first time i have made up my own recipe and it doesn't taste half bad even if i do say so myself!

Patchwork_Quilt

Hi gailey - I make marmalade in the Spring, when Seville oranges are in season, but it can be made any time. As for preserving the apple sauce, you need to look up sterilsing methods. It involves making the sauce, bottling it and then simmering the sealed bottles for a specified time but the temperatures and timings are exact. Food From Your Garden has just been reprinted by the Reader's Digest, so that might be worth having a look at, as the first edition has lots about preserving in the back section.

gailey_2

Thanks for advice not even keen on marmalade but want to make nice conserve sets for xmas presents.

Would love to make homemade foodhamper with lots of preserves hopefully quite cheaply.

been saving all old jars from currys, pasta sauces ect.
have seen jam lids in pound shop

will use white sticky labels and checked cloth for decoration.

Hoping to make 6-8jars each jam flavour for us to last year and rest as presents plus hubby loves his chutneys and pickles so need to get involved more with that as loved doing it last year.

mmm might opt for frezing apple sauce then as would use for homemade tarts and crumbles.

Savannah02K

Hello, appreciate you experienced preservers will prob know all that's on this site but for us newbies, I've just found this great site,

www.jamworld.co.uk

Got loads and loads of useful info on there covering everything from pectin levels to sterilising jars etc. Really well worth a visit.

Fishcake_Random

Last night I made 5 jars of cherries in brandy. Some for us, but most for pressys. Got some odd looks in Tesco walking around with a litre of brandy in one hand and pushing my 3 month old in her buggy with the other. That got some tuts I can assure you lol. They look beautifull this morning though.
I'm going to check out the local price of cucumbers for bread and butter pickles as well. And I have 2 bags of manderins from the reduced section I wouldnt mind trying something with. Any ideas?
x x x

gailey_2

Fishcake_Random wrote: »

Last night I made 5 jars of cherries in brandy. Some for us, but most for pressys. Got some odd looks in Tesco walking around with a litre of brandy in one hand and pushing my 3 month old in her buggy with the other. That got some tuts I can assure you lol. They look beautifull this morning though.
I'm going to check out the local price of cucumbers for bread and butter pickles as well. And I have 2 bags of manderins from the reduced section I wouldnt mind trying something with. Any ideas?
x x x

You made me chucke at looks from others I have baby in buggy too.
Plus tonnes of cherries and thourght about cherry brandy how did you make it.
Wondering how long it keep as thinking xmas presents as ikea sells the nice slom bottles/jars with stoppers would look lush with checked ribbon and bows.

Fishcake_Random

It was really easy, just steralised the jars, popped the stalks and pips out of the cherries.
Put a layer of cherries in your container and then a smoothering of sugar. Then cherrys, then suger etc till your jar is 3/4 filled then cover it all in brandy and seal.
For the first few days you need them in easy reach as you need to turn them once or twice a day till all the suger granules have disolved, then put them out the way somewhere dark and cool and wait 3 months.
The longer you wait the more boozey they will be and if they arent opened will last a few years. But I wouldnt even like to imagine how potent they'd be at that point lol.

You can gift them as they are or drain some and cover them in some melted choc etc.
x x x x

gailey_2

sounds fab as nice and easy plus cheap.
What type of sugar
any specific weight in sugar or just visually what you can see.
roughly how many cherries.
leave stones in
what size /type jar did you use I like look of clasp lids as gifts.

Fishcake_Random

I just used everyday sugar that you use in tea, "granulated"?
I just did all mine by eye, no weight involved if it isnt to sweet enough after its 3 months you can stir more in.
I brought 2 big punnets of cherrys and that made 3 iceland pasta sauce jars and 2 smaller jars.
You can leave stones in but I choose not to, its all down to preference lol.
My 2 smaller jars are small kilner jars but my 3 big jars are icelands own brand pasta sauce jars.

H2H just dont eat to many while making it lol
x x x x