Apricot Red Currant Jam

 What to do with a couple of leftover pounds of beautiful fresh apricots?  I have been growing red currants in my backyard garden for a few years now.  Is this jam worthy of my spending an hour carefully picking the four cups of tiny red currants I needed.  I can tell you now that it was well worth the effort.  This is an unusual jam- apricot pieces floating in a red currant “jelly”, beautiful to look at.  

To make approx 7 x 250 ml jars

Ingredients:

2.2 lbs    fresh apricots, washed pitted and chopped to make 5 cups 

4 cups    stemmed red currants, rinsed *

Zest and juice of one lemon (I added about a tbsp of lemon juice as well) Remove the zest in one large strip.

7 cups     sugar

Directions:

Prepare the jars for cannning and keep hot until ready to use. Combine the chopped apricots and the red currants (see below if you want a seedless mixture) with the lemon zest and juice in a large deep canning pot.  Bring to a boil.

Maintaining the boil, gradually stir in the sugar, continue stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.  Boil vigorously about 15 minutes or until the mixture reaches the gel stage (220 degrees on the instant read thermometer).  Remove from the heat and skim any foam.

Ladle the hot jam into hot jars to 5cm of the top of the jar.  Remove air bubbles and adjust head space if needed.  Wipe the jar rim and screw on the lids..

Process 10 minutes in the steam canner (or boiling water bath).  Carefully remove the lid after 10 minutes, turn off the heat.  Let the jars sit in the pot for about 10 minutes before removing and cooling.

*red currants have seeds which some people find objectionable in jams.  To make a seedless jam, bring the prepared red currants to a boil, cook and mash until tender, about 5 minutes. Pour the mixture through a fine cloth-lined sieve.  Use the back of a spoon and squeeze the cloth to force as much of the mixture as possible through the sieve.  

WANNA PLSY?  I made the same recipe but substituted black currants for the red.

Prepared Horseradish (basic horseradish relish)

This “relish” can be used in the Beet and Horseradish Chutney recipe.  Or, you can leave in the fridge and serve with meats, charcuterie boards etc.  It will begin to lose its potency after about two months.

Please be aware that freshly grated horseradish will bring tears to your eyes and fire to your nose and throat.  Protect yourself by wearing glasses and avoiding the wafting scents coming at you from the grated pieces.

To make approx. 2 x 250 ml jars

Ingredients

2 cups    freshly grated horseradish

1 cup      vinegar

1/2 tsp    canning salt

1/4 tsp    Powdered ascorbic acid (I used the equivalent in vitamin c capsules)

Directions:

Wash the horseradish roots thoroughly and peel off the outer skin.  The peeled roots can be grated in a food processor processor or minced finely in a Vitamix blender (I used my Vitamix).  Cut the roots into smaller pieces before processing or blending.  I used an Vitamix - add the pieces to the blender along with the vinegar and other ingredients.  I added additional vinegar to reach the creamy consistency I was looking for.

Ladle into canning jars, add lids and store in the refrigerator.

Beet and Horseradish Chutney

Finally, a beet chutney to fall in love with! I had fresh from my garden beets and fresh made prepared horseradish (from the neighbour’s garden) and a request for beet chutney.  This recipe is based on one from BBC Food, with major “tweets”.

Makes approx. 8 x 250 ml jars

Ingredients

1.5 lbs    raw beets, trimmed, but not peeled

 Zest from 2 unwaxed lemons

100 ml    lemon juice

150 ml    apple cider vinegar

1            red onion, finely diced

2 large    cooking apples, finely diced

200 gr    Granulated sugar

2             Star anise (place in a cheesecloth “package”) 

1/2 cup    raisins (or to taste)

175 ml.    prepared horseradish (Basic horseradish relish recipe)

Directions: '

Wash & trim the beets, but do not peel.  Place the beets in a large pot filled with cold water to cover.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for approximately 45 minutes, until just tender when pierced with a fork.  Remove from heat and leave to cool enough to be able to handle them- remove the skins by lightly rubbing them.  Cut the beets into 1/2 inch cubes and set aside.

Place the lemon zest and lemon juice, vinegar, red onion, apple, raisins, star anise package in a large saucepan.  Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples soften to a purée consistency.  Add the diced beets and return to a simmer for a few minutes until the beets are warmed.  Add prepared horseradish.  

Sprinkle in the sugar, stir until dissolved.  Taste and adjust the quantity of horseradish if needed.  Cook approximately 30 minutes or until the mixture is thick, glossy and jam like.  Remove from heat.

Spoon the chutney into prepared jars.  Leave 1/4-inch headspace and gently tap the jars on the work surface to knock out any air pockets.  Seal immediately with the two-piece lids.

Process in a steamer canner for 15 minutes.  Carefully remove the cover of the canner and let the jars sit in the canner for approximately five minutes.

Ataulfo Mango Chutney

A friend kindly brought me a case of very ripe Ataulfo mangos.  “Can we make a delicious chutney with these treasures?”. The two of us got to work, chopping, measuring and mixing.  Here is the recipe…

Makes approximately 6 x 250 ml jars

Ingredients:

4 cups     peeled, pitted and chopped mangoes, about 6-7 

1 cup       Coarsely chopped onion

3/4 cup    golden raisins

1/4 cup    lime, peeled, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup    lemon, peeled, seeded and chopped

3 cloves    garlic, minced

1 cup        dark brown sugar

1 cup        apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup     Ginger root, grated (I substituted chopped candied ginger)

1/2 cup     molasses

1 tbsp        mustard seed

2 tbsp        cilantro, finely chopped

1 tsp each. Dried red pepper flakes, ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp each. Ground cloves, ground allspice

Directions

Combine all the ingredients, except the cilantro, in a large saucepan.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes.  Add cilantro and continue cooking 10 additional minutes.

Ladle hot chutney into hot jars to within 1/2 inch of the rim.  Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace.  Wipe the jar rims, center the lids rim.  Screw the bands and place in the steam canner.  Process for 10 minutes.  Remove the lid carefully and allow the jars to rest about five minutes.

Lemon Jelly

In 2025, I experimented with “stacking” two jellies into one jar.  The lemon jelly turned out to be more dense than the black current jelly so it went into the jar first, topped with a candied lemon slice, then topped with the black current jelly.  Voila, it worked.  Many thanks to my food science savvy expert for providing his expertise.

Ingredients

3/4 cup         lemon juice

1 tbsp           lemon peel

1 1/2 cups    water

4 1/4 cups.   Sugar

1 package    liquid fruit pectin

Directions:

Combine lemon peel with lemon juice and water.  Let stand 10 minutes, strain to remove the peel.  Add more lemon juice to measure 2 cups of the mixture.  In a Dutch over, combine the 2 cups of lemon juice mixture and the sugar.  Cook over high heat, stirring into a boil than cannot be stirred down.  Quickly stir in the pectin.  Return to a boil and boil for one minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Quickly skim off foam with a metal spoon.  Ladle into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace.  Wipe jar rims, affix lids and process in a steam canner for 10 minutes.

Whole Grain Roasted Beet Mustard

 I have been blessed with a great beet harvest this year (2025) and been gifted with many as well.  Let’s call it the year of the beet.  The following recipe is from a book titled Preservation Pantry.  

This mustard is a great deep red beet colour and features the earthiness of the beets and the heat of the mustard.  Enjoy!

To make 6 x 250ml jars

Ingredients

2 lbs     beets (about 5 medium)

2 tbsp    extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp + 1 tsp kosher salt, divided

8           Medium garlic cloves, peeled

8 tbsp    Mustard seeds

1/3 cup    mustard powder

1 cup      balsamic vinegar, divided

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Slice the raw beets in half from stem to top.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Arrange the beets cut-side up on the paper and drizzle with olive oil.  Rub the oil into the skins, flip the beets and rub the other side.  Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp of salt.  Roast until slightly brown, about 25 minutes.  Turn the beets over, sprinkle with  1/2 tsp salt, add the garlic and roast another 25 minutes, until fork-tender.

While the beets are roasting, soak the mustard seeds in a medium bowl with 4 cups of cold water for 10 minutes.  Drain the water and set the seeds to the side, on a towel.  In a  small bowl, whisk together the mustard powder with 1/2 cup of water until smooth.

When the beets are done and cool enough to handle cut into 2-inch chunks.  In a large, nonreactive saucepan, place the roasted beets, roasted garlic, soaked mustard seeds, 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar, 1/2 cup water, mustard powder mixture and the remaining tablespoon of salt.  Bring to a boil over high heat for about two minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid sticking.  Turn the heat off and let sit five minutes.  

Place the contents in a food processor and pulse 15 times, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula.  Run on high for 4 minutes and slowly drizzle in the remaining 1/2 cups of balsamic vinegar.  

Fill the jars, remembering to press out air pockets.  Wipe the rims and secure the lids.  Place in the steam canner and process for 10 minutes.  

Blueberry Jam

 When I saw the beautiful box of local organic blueberries, I knew I just had to bring them home with me…to my kitchen… to make delicious blueberry jam!  They did not disappoint.  This recipe is from Marisa McClellan- I highly recommend her recipes.

To make 6 x 250ml jars

Ingredients

6 cups        smashed blueberries (you’ll need 8-10 cups of unsquashed berries to get the 6 cups of smashed)

4 cups        sugar

3 tbsp        pectin powder (classic)

Zest and juice of one lemon

1 tsp        cinnamon

1/2 tsp    grated nutmeg

Directions

Pour the smashed blueberries into a low, wide, non-reactive pot.  Measure out the sugar and whisk in the powdered pectin.  Add them to the fruit and stir to combine.

Once the sugar is almost all dissolved, place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Cook at a controlled boil for 10-15 minutes, until the fruit begins to look thick and any foam is beginning to subside.

Add cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest and juice and let jam continue to cook until it reaches 220 degrees on an instant read thermometer.  

Remove the jam from the heat and funnel into prepared jars.  Wipe rims, apply lids and rings and process in a steam canner (or boiling water bath canner) for 10 minutes.  When the time is up, carefully remove the lid from the steam canner and let the jars sit in the canner for about 10 minutes.  

Mint Jelly

 Ahhh! Fresh mint, the gift that keeps on giving everywhere in the garden.  It’s persistent… What better way to curb it than turning it into mint jelly.  Fresh mint jelly, perfect for gift giving or serving with your favourite lamb roast.  

The last time in tried buying it in a store, the only jar of “mint” jelly contained no mint, just “flavouring”,  Go figure.  Once you try this mint jelly, you will never want to be without it.  Thanks to Canadian Living for this recipe.

To make approximately 5 250 ml jars.

Ingredients

2 cups  lightly packed fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

1 pkg    Powdered fruit pectin

4 cups   Sugar

Directions

In a saucepan, combine mint with 3 1/2 cups of water.  Bring to a boil over high heat, gently mashing with a wooden spoon.  Remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 15 minutes.

Pour the mint mixture into a damp jelly bag suspended over a large glass measuring bowl.  Let drip without squeezing the bag, until the mint infusion measures 3 cups, about 2 hours.

In a large pot, stir together the mint infusions, vinegar and pectin.  Bring to boil over high heat, stirring often.  Gradually stir in the sugar, return to full rolling boil over high heat, stirring often.  Boil hard, stirring constantly for one minute,

Remove from heat.  Stir and skim off any foam for 5 minutes.  Fill hot 250 ml jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.  Wipe the jar rims clean, place clean lids on the jars and tighten.  Place in a steam canner for 10 minutes (when the dial reached the green line).  Remove the lid carefully, leave the jars in the uncovered canner for another five minutes.

I AM PLAYING:  I had a few extra ingredients in the kitchen: candied lemon peel, a fresh lime and a hot pepper.  Oh a bottle of tequila flavoured with hyacinth and grapefruit. So, added the candied peel from a whole lemon, thinly sliced lime and hot pepper. These were added after the final boil.   The tequila was added to make the mint infusion come to 3 1/2 cups at the same time as the vinegar a pectin. 

Triple Fruit Jelly

 What to do with a couple of pounds of gorgeous red currents and sun ripened sour cherries, expertly grown by my neighbour, just steps from my house?  I decided to add strawberries and make a triple fruit jelly.  

This recipe is loosely based on a Four Fruit Jelly provided by French Master Preserver, Ginette Mathieu in her book “Conserving, Salting, Smoking, Pickling.

Makes 9 250 ml jars

Ingredients

1 3/4 lbs    red currants, stemmed and rinsed

1 3/4 lbs    Sour cherries, stemmed and rinsed

1 3/4 lbs    Strawberries, hulled and rinsed

1 tbsp        bottled lemon juice

7 cups        Sugar

57gr        Certo fruit crystals

Directions

Place all the fruit in the top compartment of the steamer juicer.  Steam for approximately one hour- this should provide you with about 7 cups of juice.  I don’t press on the fruit while they steam to keep the juice as clear as possible.  Alternatively, you could place all the fruit in a saucepan, add one cup of water and bring to a boil.  When the fruit has softened (about 5 minutes), remove from heat and place in a jelly bag to hang over a large bowl to collect the juices.

Place the fruit juice in a large preserving pan, along with the lemon juice and certo.  Bring to a boil and add the sugar gradually while stirring often.  When it reaches a full boil, begin using your instant read thermometer - the gel point is reached at 220 degrees.  Or, you can place a few small plates in the freezer and place a spoonful of the hot jelly on it to test for doneness- it should gel.  Keep testing until it is ready.

Ladle into 250 ml jars, clean the rims and top with the two piece lids.  Place the filled jars into the steam canner and steam for 10 minutes once the dial reached the “green” zone.  At the ten minute mark, remove the lid carefully to avoid burning yourself, turn off the heat and let the jars rest in the canner for five minutes.  Remove from the canner and let sit until the jars are cooled.

Strawberry Honey Butter

 Time to begin canning season 2025.  First up is an amazing strawberry honey butter from the Ball Canning book.  The ingredients are all local, within minutes of home: Strawberries are grown at Kiwan Farms and the honey is from the Henri Dignard Farm in Embrun, just a short distance from Ottawa. 

This butter is sweetened with 3/4 cup of honey and the same amount of sugar.  It’s perfect on biscuits or breads…

Makes approximately 3 250ml jars.

Ingredients

3 lbs         washed and hulled ripe strawberries

3/4 cup     Honey

3/4 cup     Sugar

1 tbsp       Lemon juice

2 tsp         Vanilla

1/4 tsp      Salt

Directions

Purée strawberries in the bowl of a food processor.  Combine strawberry purée with the remaining ingredients in a deep pot set over medium heat.  Bring the mixture to a boil stirring frequently to prevent scorching.  Lower the heat and simmer until the mixture is very thick, about 60 - 90 minutes, stirring frequently.  The strawberry butter is ready when it holds its shape on a spoon.

Ladle the hot butter into hot clean jars, leaving a 1/3 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles, wipe the jar rims and place the lid on the jars.  Place jars in the steam canner and process for 10 minutes.  At the end of the 10 minutes, carefully remove the lid on the pot, turn off the heat and let the jars sit in the canner for about 5-10 minutes.

** I made two batches instead of doubling this recipe.  If you double, you risk over cooking the strawberry purée.  

Enjoy!

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