Foody gifts

nicki_2

*I see a visit to ebay coming on .... :D:rotfl:*

I've got instuctions for making :

• Jam (raspberry, blackcurrent, plum and gooseberry),
• Jelly (blackberry & Apple, Mint),
• Marmalade (thick serville orange),
• bottling (oven and water methods - recipes : blackcurrents, gooseberries, pears, plums, raspberries, rhubarb, tomatoes in their own liquid, apple pulp),
• Chutney (apple, tomato),
• Pickles (onions or shallots, piccalilli, tomato sauce),
• Salting (nuts, runner/french beans) and
• Drying of herbs

all in a book I've only just got this week - so I haven't tried anything yet They can't be too difficult to do as its an old Domestic science book designed to be used by girls in school.

If you want any just ask and I'll type them up as these books seem to be very hard to get ahold of (and they will acknowledged to the authors).

I suspect I will be doing foody gifts again this year as they were very popular last year :A I might try my hand at the drying of herbs if I can get ahold of some nice containers ...*off to ebay*

Lillibet_2

I asked a couple of weeks about about doing peppers & asparagus in oil etc, the general advice seemed to be not to as it's too risky, unless you have all the "canning" equipment.


I do make flavoured cooking oils though :

Rosemary & Garlic -
Oilve oil
Whole sprigs of rosemary
Peeled blanched garlic cloves (MUST be blanched to prevent nasty bacteria growing, only takes a minute in boiling water, pat dry & ready to go into oil)

Lemon & Peppercorn (Lovely with fish) -
Olive Oil
Unpeeled lemon wedges/slices, slightly dried in a very low oven for a couple of hours
whole mixed colour peppercorns

Chili -
Olive oil
Whole & half mixed colour chilies (half ones with seeds on show look nice for presentation)

I also thought I'd make Bouquet Garni to hang around the neck of the oils this year :
Dried parsley
Dried sage
choice of dried Roasemary/basil/peppercorns
Tied in muslin squares/rounds
Add a bayleaf to the tie for additional flavour & decoration

Being a bit dim, please can someone post idiot proof instructions for drying vine tomatoes please? How long will they keep for?

Nicki : Please could you post the fruit bottling instructions please? Thanks.

Cheers;)

nabowla

I've just had a quick look through my Tastes of Christmas book and there's lots of lovely piccies of HM liqueur fruits - e.g. cherries in vanilla brandy, pears in mulled wine etc. The finished products are stored in glass jars & would look lovely with a ribbon tied around the top. I'm sure that you'll be able to find plenty of recipes on the net and, if you've got the jars and access to free fruit, then it's quite a cheap pressie!

I also liked the idea of making boxes of home-made fudge, rich orange truffles etc. Even the boxes can be HM - just get a shoe box or similar, cover with christmas paper on the outside and kitchen foil on the inside, and tie with a ribbon once the lid's been put on top.

Mado

Sorry will have to wait nearer the time.
i'm quite partial to HM fudge and nougat since I invested in a sugar thermometer... ('t'was a bad idea!)

nicki_2

Lillibet wrote:

Nicki : Please could you post the fruit bottling instructions please? Thanks.

I'll have a look in the book tomorrow when I get a spare minute - very busy the past couple of days but I'll add it to my todo list

elona

Dried prunes put into a jar till it is half full - then top up with any left over wine - either red or white - a few days later they look like dark plums and taste great!

You could try this with other dried fruits as well.

Sarahsaver

I have loads of mint in my garden so I am just going to dry lots of it and make it into loose mint tea. Sage can also be used for tea. Bayleaves are usually well received. Easy peasy to grow, yet expensive to buy in relation to how abundant they are.
You could make 'cake mix' or 'bread mix' and put it in a nice tin - from poundland of course;)

nicki_2

Information taken from "Plan and Cook" by G. Cocker & B.V. Godfrey last printed in 1956

Jam-making

Jam should have a bright colour, a fruity flavour, and a well-set, but not too stiff, consistency. A good jam will keep well. The fruit contains pectin and acid. Pectin is a substance which, with the acid, helps to make the jam set and give it a good colour and flavour.

Equipment For Making Jam

1. A strong preserving-pan or large saucepan.
2. A large wooden spoon.
3. A large mixing-bowl, colander, plate, small jug.
4. Jam jars, jam covers, waxed circles, rubber bands, and labels.

General Method for Making All Jams

1. Read the recipe carefully especially double check the amount of sugar and fruit required. Buy a packet of jam covers: these generally include waxed circles, rubber bands, and labels. Estimate the number of jars required then wash the jars very thoroughly making sure you remove all traces of old label. Rinse in cold water, and leave upside-down to drain. It is better not to dry the inside of the jars with a cloth.
2. To estimate the approximate number of jars required multiply the amount of sugar in the recipe by 100/60; this allows 60% sugar content. The result gives the number of pounds of jam, e.g. 6lb sugar x 100/60 gives 10lb jam, therefore 10 jars will be required.
3. According to the kind of fruit you are using, prepare it accordingly.
   1. Gooseberries : Top and tail
   2. Raspberries and Strawberries: remove green hills and leaves
   3. Plums : take out the stalks
   4. Currants : use a fork to strip them off their stems
4. Any mouldy or bruised fruit pick out. Bad parts can often be cut out of larger fruits. Weigh the fruit, wash carefully in a large bowl of cold water, drain in a colander.

[font=&quot]□[font=&quot] [/font][/font]Raspberries are not usually washed but should be very clean.

1. With a butter paper, lightly grease the preserving-pan. Put the fruit in the preserving-pan, add the required amount of water (stated in the recipe). Bring slowly to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently. Stir occasionally but keep the wooden spoon on a plate when not in use. This first cooking without the sugar breaks up the fruit and draws out the pectin and the acid.
2. Continue cooking the fruit until it is broken up and thick and pulpy. The time of cooking varies with the fruit.
3. Weigh the sugar and put it into a dry bowl and stand it in a warm place.
4. Put the washed jam jars in a cool oven to become hot and quite dry. The jars must be warmed slowly to prevent cracking.
5. Once the fruit is a thick pulp take it off the heat. Add the sugar then replace over the heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Allow the jam to boil quickly but not until the sugar has dissolved. Boiling quickly gives a better flavour and colour, but it must not be allowed to splash too much.
6. After 10 minutes test for setting point. This can be done in several ways :
   1. Use a sugar thermometer or one which registers to 300 or more degrees Farehheit. Boil the jam until the thermometer reads 200 degrees F. Stand the thermometer in a jug of hot water before and after testing the jam. Do not allow the bulb of the thermometer to rest on the bottom of the pan.
   2. Wrinkle test. Put a little jam on a clean saucer, stand it in a cool place for a few minutes. Push the jam gently, and if ready it will wrinkle on the surface. It is better to remove the jam from the heat whilst testing in this way.
   3. Flake test. Dip the wooden spoon in the jam, hold up above a plate, and twist the spoon round to cook the jam a little. Hold the spoon sideways above the plate; most of the jam will run straight off, but if the jam is ready the last few drops will cling together, and form pointed flakes before falling. The flake test is very reliable, and is preferred by most people.
7. When the jam sets remove from the heat. If you are making Marmalade, Strawberry jam, or any other jam with large pieces of fruit it should be allowed to cool in the pan for several minutes; this helps to distribute the shreds of marmalade or the fruit evenly through each jar. Other jams can be poured into the jars straight away.
8. For best results close outside doors and avoid sudden draughts which might crack the hot jars. Stand the hot jars on a pastry board or wooden table. Lift the preserving-pan carefully on to a firm base near to the jars. Have ready a jug and a plate.
9. Use a tablespoon and remove any scum from the surface of the jam. It is wasteful to skim off too much, and most of the small air bubbles will disappear.
10. Dip the jug into the jam, holding the plate underneath to catch the drips, and fill the hot jars until the jam is level with the top; this is important as the jam shrinks on cooling. When the jam becomes too low to fill the jug, stand it on the plate and pour the jam into it from the preserving-pan. Scrape out the pan, the jug and the plate to fill the last jar.
11. Fit the waxed circles, wax side down, over the surface of the jam. The circle should lie flat. This is important as the waxed circle keeps out the air.
12. To clean the rim and sides of each jar use a clean cloth wrung out in hot water.
13. The jam should be covered at once or when it is quite cold. If it is to be covered when cold then protect it with clean muslin.
14. To cover the jam, follow the instructions on the packet of jam covers. Cellophane and parchment covers are moistened on the upper surface before covering. This makes them stretch so that they dry with a smooth tight surface. Rubber bands or soft white string are used to keep the covers in place.
15. When the jam is quite cold label with the kind of jam and the date. Try to keep all the labels level.
16. When the jam is quite ready store in a cool, dry, dark place. Best used before the next season's jam is made.

Jam Recipes

Raspberry Jam
As raspberries break up almost at once no water need be added, and the cooking time is reduced

• 6lbs raspberries
• 6lbs sugar

To make approximately 10lbs jam.

To make

Follow the general instructions for making jam with these special points:

1. Put the fruit in the pan and heat slowly until the juice begins to appear, then simmer until the fruit is broken down.
2. Boil with the sugar for only 5 minutes, and then test for setting point.

Blackcurrant Jam
Blackcurrants are rich in pectin and therefore need more sugar in proportion to fruit to make good jam. The skins of blackcurrants harden when the sugar is added, therefore the first cooking with the water, before adding the sugar, must be very thorough.

• 4lb blackcurrants
• 6lb sugar
• 3pt water

To make approximately 10lb jam.

To make
Follow the general instructions for making jam with the following special points:

1. The large amount of water allows the skins to soften and burst. Simmer the fruit and water together until all the currants have broken up and the water has been driven off to give a thick pulp. This takes at least 30 minutes.
2. Blackcurrant jam should set quite quickly once the sugar has dissolved. Test for setting after boiling for 5 minutes.

Plum Jam
Victoria plums and Golden plums make good jam. Greengages may also be used.

• 6lb plums
• 6lb sugar
• 1 pt water

To make approximately 10lb jam.

To make:
Follow the general instructions for making jam, but note the special points below:

1. A good flavour is obtained if a few of the stones from ripe plums are cracked, and the whole nut or kernel taken out and cooked with the jam.
2. Stones can be removed from some varieties of plums before beginning to cook. If the stones are difficult to remove when the fruit is cut in half it is better to cook them in the jam and to take out as many as possible as they rise to the surface. A small wire basket may be fixed to the inside edge of the preserving-pan to put the stones in; this allows any jam to drip back.

Gooseberry jam
Green gooseberries are used for jam. The colour of the jam varies with the ripeness and variety of the fruit. Boiling for a long time with the sugar gives a red gooseberry jam.

• 5lb gooseberries
• 6lb sugar
• 2pt water

To make approximately 10lb jam

To make
Follow the general instructions for making jam.

nicki_2

OH has just informed me that he can scan the info from the book into a word document at work for me so I'll put some more info up once he's done that (I will put it on the top of his priority list ) as it will save me sitting here for hours trying to type it all out

squeaky

Wow!

So... can you guess what my next question is going to be?

Edit: It's just occurred to me that if you're copying wholesale from a book then you are probably infringing copyright

I saw a comment by MSE Martin on this - I'll see if I can find it again.

The quote I had in mind referred to copying from other sites and doesn't mention books.

At the top of every page in the orange section is this:-

WARNING: This is an open forum, posts aren't endorsed by Moneysavingexpert.com, pls exercise caution when acting on any info. Posting links for personal gain is strictly prohibited, except in the 'referrers' section and any connection to a company being discussed must be revealed. Copying long text from elsewhere may breach copyright, so instead use short excerpts and a link. MoneySavingExpert.com asserts copyright on all comments posted on the boards.

Of course, copying from a book doesn't allow for brief quotes and a link, but the same idea ought to hold true. Copyright on books last for 70 years - how old is yours?