Kitchen Jam

I love mustard. And I have ready access to mustard seed in quantity in the ethnic food aisle at my local Wegmans, health food and Asian grocery stores. So as I finished a jar of roasted garlic gourmet mustard, I began to wonder if I could make mustard at home.

On the web, I found several resources including these:
Making Mustard at Home from the folks at www.apinchof.com

Instructions for canning mustard (scroll to bottom))

And out of a myriad of mustard recipes, I chose this simple proportional wine mustard recipe which I found in a collection of mustard recipes at www.marthastewart.com:
recipes

Mustard-making is a multi-day proposition. The seeds need to soak, and the flavor needs time to age, develop and mellow.
I’ve got a cup and a half of mixed mustard seeds soaking, some in red wine and some in sherry in my refrigerator; updates in 24 hours when the soaking is finished and my mustard develops!

The NY State Fair website was down for the count for several weeks after the fair ended on September 7, 2009. This delayed posting of the official results. Then I went camping for six days. So my apologies to all that it’s taken me awhile to get the official canning, preserving and jam competition results from my own New York State Fair.

The canning and preserving competition at the NY State Fair is held in two separate divisions: Culinary, hosted at the Art & Home Center, features tasted competions in canning, pickling, relishes and jams. The Flower division, hosted at the Horticulture Building, features pickling and canning competitions for items which are judged on appearance but not tasted.

The mother-daughter team of Janet Bender and Elizabeth Shepard tag-teamed their way through the Flowers canning division, earning three 1st, four 2nd and one 3rd place in the five classes in that division. Janet also earned a 1st in the Culinary division with her canned fruit. Be sure to check my blog for Kathy Wood’s Grand Prize winning Red Pepper Relish. Now, without further ado, here are the rest of the official results:

From the Culinary Competitions, published on the NY State Fair website on September 15, 2009:
(note: a ‘record’ equals an entry, so 33 records = 33 entries judged)

Culinary – A – Canned Foods, 33 records

01 – Chili Sauces – 5 records
1 – Kathy Wood Fabius NY
2 – Margie S. Milligan North Syracuse NY
3 – Joan C. Archambeau Syracuse NY

02 – Vegetable Relishes – 4 records
1 – Kathy Wood Fabius NY < – 2009 Culinary Grand Competition 1st Place! (recipe)
2 – Carol J. Martin Syracuse NY
3 – Stephen R. Booth Antwerp NY

03 – Chutney – 2 records
1 – Geri Belotti Kirkville NY
2 – John Gross Syracuse NY

04 – Dill Pickles – 7 records
1 – James Kluga Rochester NY
2 – Paul Meier Liverpool NY
3 – Tamara K. Place Mottville NY

05 – Sweet Pickles – 6 records
1 -John Gross Syracuse NY
2 – James Kluga Rochester NY
3 – Stephen R. Booth Antwerp NY

06 – Canned Fruit/Pickled Fruit – 5 records
1 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY
2 – Daniel Bianchi Phoenix NY
3 – Maryann Bianchi Phoenix NY

07 – Canned or Pickled Vegetables (no tomatoes) – 4 records
1 – Mary Jane Kovachi Buffalo NY
2 – Kathy Wood Fabius NY

Culinary – B – Jams & Jellies, 86 records

01 – Sweet Jelly – 20 records
1 -Yvonne Bakowski Warners NY
2 – Margaret Tourville E. Syracuse NY
3 – Nancy J. Warner Solvay NY

02 – Savory Jelly – 7 records
1 – Helen Lyons Camillus NY
2 – James Kluga Rochester NY

03 – Jam or Marmalade – 16 records
1 – Rosemary Tomasetti Cicero NY
2 – Aracely Hernandez Syracuse NY
3 – Donna Nichols E. Syracuse NY

05 – Freezer jam (does not need to be processed in boiling water bath)
1 – Joan C. Archambeau Syracuse NY
2 – Pat Steer East Syracuse NY < – shameless brag!
3 – Helen Lyons Camillus NY

From the Flower Show, Canning and Preserving Entries:

Garden Fruits and Vegetables CC, 19 records

139 – Canned Vegetables- 1 quart – 3 records
3 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY (no 1st or 2nd place award)

141 – Canned Pickles- 1 quart – 5 records
1 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY
2 – Elizabeth Shepard Chittenango NY
3 – Anthony Hemingway Liverpool NY

142 – Canned Vegetables- 1 pint – 3 records
1 – Cynthia Pfaff New Woodstock NY
2 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY

143 – Canned Fruits- 1 pint – 3 records
1 – Elizabeth Shepard Chittenango NY
2 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY
3 – Cynthia Pfaff New Woodstock NY

144 – Canned Pickles- 1 pint – 3 records
1 – Janet Bender Kirkville NY
2 – Elizabeth Shepard Chittenango NY
3 – Cynthia Pfaff New Woodstock NY

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The first vegetarian cookbook I ever received as a gift came from my uncle Will – a copy of Anna Thomas‘ 1972 Vegetarian Epicure. I was two years into college, and like grad student Thomas, my cooking was mostly vegetarian. My copy of VE was part kitchen bible and encyclopedia and part novel – I read it cover to cover, for both knowledge and fun. I memorized several of the recipes (potato peel broth, asparagus brisee, savory baked garbanzo beans) and improvised and evolved them to make them my own. That dog-eared copy of VE anchors my kitchen bookshelf. I’m eagerly awaiting my copy of Thomas’ newest book, Love Soup, where she’s turned her masterful kitchen touch to one of my favorite foods – soup.

Italian prune plums (with a little help from Azahar)

Why all this love for a vegetarian cookbook that doesn’t include a single recipe for jam? Mainly because the author, Anna Thomas, is also the inspiration for the plum jam recipe I made today for Linsey Cake’s Summer-in-a-bottle Can-a-rama contest.

While searching for a small-batch recipe for those tiny end-of-summer stone fruits called Italian prune-plums, I stumbled on this improvisation on a prune-plum jam recipe insipired by — Anna Thomas. It must have appeared in VE2 or on her website, because it’s not in my copy of VE. But Thomas brings simplicity and bright summer goodness to this brilliant red plum jam, and like all of her recipes, the ingredients are the stars.

Prune Plum Jam (with a little help from Azahar)

The recipe which inspired me appears on Bryanna’s Vegan Feast Kitchen blog, and is her adaptation of Thomas’ recipe. Like Bryanna, I also boiled my plums and ran them through the food mill. I also added splashes of balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, lemon zest and a teaspoon of grated ginger to the recipe.

Bryanna quotes Thomas:“This is made from the plums that become prunes when they are dried. In some markets I’ve seen them called prunes, and in others Italian plums, or prune plums, but they are the very small plums with the egg-like shape and the dusky purple skin.” Anna Thomas

ITALIAN PRUNE-PLUM JAM
(inspired by recipes from Anna Thomas and Bryanna)

2 1/2 lbs small dark plums or Italian prune plums (about 20)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3/4 cups sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon grated ginger root

• Wash and stem the plums. Cut in half, discarding the pits, and put the plums and balsamic vinegar in a medium-sized saucepan.
• Bring to a boil over medium heat, and cook about five minutes or just until the plum puree start to split from the skins. Put the plums through a fine food mill to separate all the skins from the puree.
• Measure the puree, adding water if needed to make 3 cups. Return the puree to the saucepan, along with the lemon juice, zest, grated ginger and sugar. Stir thoroughly until the sugar dissolves.
• Continue to stir over medium heat. Keep the jam at a steady boil for 15 minutes (skim off any foam that rises) until the jam reaches the jellying point (212 degrees.) You can also dip a metal spoon into the jam, place it in the freezer for three minutes, and test for consistency that way.
• Ladle the jam into clean half-pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Place lids and rings on the jars.
• To process: seal the jars and process in a boiling water bath according to USDA directions.
• To freeze: seal the bands and lids on the jars, and allow to cool to room temperature. Jam will keep it in the refrigerator for up to three weeks, and in the freezer for up to one year.

Yields about 4 cups

This post is part of the 1st Annual Can-a-rama Summer in a Bottle Challenge at Cake and Commerce.

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Okay, I’ll say it out loud — one of the foods that eased me through every chemo regimen was watermelon. Winter, summer, fall, spring; whether on oxaliplatin (nothing cold) or Folfiri (everything tasted like aluminum foil) — there was one food that always tasted like food, kept me hydrated and got me over the hump between days 2 and 5 in infusion weeks…watermelon. And Taco Bell tacos (but that’s another post in another blog!)

The last of the fresh local watermelon is now in central New York supermarkets — and I thought I’d try to make watermelon jam to save a bit of summer. The recipe I tried is from an Indian foods blog written by Chandrika and called AkshayaPatra. Chandrika’s recipe makes a very small batch, although it can easily be doubled. Just remember that jam recipes are proportional: for each 2 lbs. of fruit pulp, you’ll need 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice.

I used what Wegmans calls a ‘personal watermelon’ — a perfect dark green sphere less than 8″ diameter, seedless and organic. The jam is thick, brilliant red. This recipe makes about 1 cup (the watermelon will cook down quite a bit.)

Watermelon Jam

2lbs watermelon pulp (remove pulp from rind and seed the chunks)

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 teaspoon lime zest (zest from about half a lime)

• Remove the watermelon pulp from the ring and cut it into chunks. Seed the melon if seeds are present.
• Mix the cinnamon and sugar together, and stir into the melon pulp.
• Stir the lime juice, zest and sugar-cinnamon into the melon. Simmer about 15 minutes until the sugar has dissolved in the juice. To help break down the melon pulp, mash it in the saucepan with an immersion blender.
• Continue to to simmer the melon-sugar mixture until it thickens and easily coats the back of a metal spoon. You can also test the jam for consistency using a spoonful of jam placed onto a very cold (frozen) plate.
• Ladle the hot jam into sterilized jam jars and process 15 minutes in a boiling water bath canner according to USDA directions for canning. Alternately, allow the jam to cool in the containers and store in refrigerator for up to two weeks, or freezer for up to a year.

Makes about 1 cup or two half-cup containers of jam.

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