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Tag Archives: preserve

Vanilla Peach Butter

11 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by createdforjoy in Cook

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Tags

biscuits, bread, butter, canning, cobbler, cook, cream cheese, fruit, ginger, jam, peach, preserve, scones, spread, vanilla, vanilla bean

peachbutter

Peaches are one of my favorite fruits, and they are in season here in the southern U.S., ripe and plentiful. When our local market had a spectacular one-day sale on them, guess who came home with a case? Eighty plump, juicy little beauties, to be blanched, peeled, pitted, and chopped, then transformed into double batches of Spiced Peach Chutney and Vanilla Peach Butter.

Unlike more labor-intensive chutney, peach butter contains very few ingredients. And have no fear, you don’t need a crate full of fruit to make this recipe; in fact, it only requires twelve cups, or about 4-1/2 pounds. The result is a spoonable preserve, packed with sweet, tangy flavor. The addition of vanilla bean and ginger result in a scent and taste much like peach cobbler, minus all that pesky pastry work.

Vanilla Peach Butter would be beautiful swirled into a coffee cake, and it is destined to be best friends with Ginger Scones. However, so far, we have finished off an entire jar by spooning it on to chunks of whole wheat bread spread thick with cream cheese, or heaping it on to plain biscuits. Sometimes, the simplest ways are the best. :)

peachbutter

Vanilla Peach Butter
makes six half-pint jars

12 c. peeled and chopped peaches (see recipe notes for quick peeling technique)
2 c. granulated sugar
juice and zest of a lemon
2″-piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 vanilla beans or 1 Tbsp. vanilla bean paste

six half-pint glass jars with bands and lids
probe cooking or candy-making thermometer
canning supplies as specified in recipe, including pan, tongs, and wide-mouth funnel
immersion or traditional blender (see these recipe notes for more about immersion blenders)

In a large, wide-bottomed pot over high heat, combine peaches, sugar, lemon juice and zest, and grated ginger. If using whole vanilla beans, split them length-wise with a sharp paring knife, and add them now. Bring fruit mixture to a boil and cook for 10-12 minutes, until peaches soften and release their juices and vanilla beans empty their seeds. Remove from heat, cool, and then refrigerate overnight, or up to three days. (If using vanilla bean paste, stir it into the peaches before refrigerating.) This rest period gives time for the vanilla and ginger flavor to develop and infuse the peaches.

If you used whole vanilla beans, remove the pods now. Puree peach mixture until no chunks remain, either by blending in traditional blender, or returning peaches to large, wide-bottomed pot and using an immersion blender. Turn on medium-high heat, attach cooking thermometer, and simmer gently until fruit reaches 215F, stirring occasionally. The mixture should have thickened and reduced by about half. (Watch the heat, as fruit butters scorch easily.)

If you’ve made my recipe for Caramel Apple Butter, this routine is exactly the same. (For canning, I use a 21 1/2-quart water-bath canning pan and rack, available for less than $20. I also use a set of silicone-lined jar tongs and a wide-mouth funnel, available individually or as part of a set.) While the peach butter reduces, use the water-bath canning pan to immerse six half-pint jars in water and heat for ten minutes. This heats the jars enough that the hot peach butter won’t crack the glass. Remove them and place upside-down on a clean dish towel to dry. Just before filling the jars, dip the lids and bands in the water long enough to soften the adhesive — less than a minute will do it.

Once the peach butter reaches 215F and is reduced by half, use a wide-mouth funnel to fill the heated, dried jars, leaving 1/2″ of space at the top of each jar. Screw on the bands and lids, then process your jars by immersing in boiling water bath for ten minutes. Remove the sealed, processed jars to allow them to cool. When the lids make a popping sound, you know they’re sealed tight. Unopened jars of peach butter can be stored at room temperature for up to six months, but they should be refrigerated after opening. If a jar doesn’t seal after processing and cooling, the peach butter is fine, but it should only be kept in the refrigerator.

peachbutter

Recipe Notes:
To quickly peel your peaches without losing any fruit or juice, the easy answer is blanching. Blanching is the process of briefly dipping fruit or vegetables into boiling water, then immediately immersing in ice water. The application of heat and cold loosens the skins so they are easily removed. And if your peaches are less than ripe, an extra minute in the boiling water can help sweeten and soften them.

To blanch your peaches, first use a paring knife to slice an “x” in the bottom of each peach. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, and immerse peaches in water for one minute. Remove the fruit to a large bowl of ice water and allow to soak another minute or two. The peach skin will be loose and easily peeled from the fruit. (So easily in fact, that young children can do it. Never turn down willing help in the kitchen. ;)

One last note regarding peach butter vs. peach jam: the primary difference between fruit butters and jam or preserves is the amount of sugar and the addition of pectin. Fruit butter contains a fraction of the sugar of jam and no added pectin to thicken it. The result is a preserve that is more suited to spooning than spreading, but one that maintains more pure, concentrated fruit flavor and less added sugar. While not the case with all fruits, I prefer peach butter to peach jam every time because I can still detect the true taste and texture of the ripe fruit.

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Caramel Apple Butter

08 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by createdforjoy in Cook, Read

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

apple, apple butter, canning, caramel, cinnamon, clove, cook, gift, Mother's Day, nutmeg, Pink Lady, preserve, read, recipe, spice

applebuttermain

Making apple butter has become a fun Mother’s Day tradition for me, a yummy homemade gift to share not only with Mom, but also with several close friends who consistently bless me in my own beautiful, complicated parenting journey. This year I decided to spice things up a little bit by making a variation of one of my all-time favorite flavors, caramel apple.

The inspiration for this recipe came from one in Paul Virant’s fantastic cookbook, The Preservation Kitchen. His Caramel Apple Jam is a savory shredded apple preserve, flavored with thyme and black pepper, but it begins the same way: by making a deep amber, intensely apple caramel. There we parted ways, as I added chopped apples, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg, then reduced and blended the mixture into tangy, sweet fruit butter.

Caramel Apple Butter contains the same amount of sugar and apple juice as traditional apple butter, but the caramelization process brings out the warmth of both. The results are thick and velvety, equally at home slathered on a ginger scone or a grilled turkey and cheese sandwich. I love apple butter on pancakes or cheddar biscuits, and it makes a beautiful sauce for roasted pork loin when added to the pan juices with a bit of grainy mustard.

A note: this cooking process is not one that lends itself to multi-tasking; although not complex, it requires some time and attention. Because making caramel involves hot sugar, this also isn’t a good time to invite little ones into the kitchen. Canning preserves is an ideal late Sunday afternoon activity, just right for when the house is quiet, everyone is absorbed in their own tasks, and the kitchen is otherwise empty. I love this hour of productive peace, with nothing more urgent to do than stir caramel and enjoy the fragrance of warm apples. Because I am a kitchen romantic, I also like to think that a little of my calm and focus seeps into what I am cooking, and what mom couldn’t use more of those?

applebutter02

Caramel Apple Butter
makes 8 calm and focused half-pint jars

12 sweet-tart apples, preferably Pink Lady, peeled, cored, and chopped into 1/2″ chunks (can substitute Cripp’s Pink, Honeycrisp, Ambrosia, or Fuji apples)
2 1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. water
4 c. whole-pressed, unsweetened apple juice or cider (I like Simply Apple or Mott’s Natural)
1 tsp. kosher or coarse sea salt or 1/2 tsp. fine salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

8 half-pint jars with metal bands and rubber-sealed lids (like these)
canning supplies as specified in recipe, including pan, tongs, and funnel

Use a large, deep, wide-bottomed pan, preferably with rounded sides. Stir together sugar and water until sugar resembles wet sand, then cook over medium-high heat until sugar begins to melt, about 6-8 minutes. Do not stir or swirl pan during this stage, just watch. (Movement will cause the sugar to crystallize further and make big lumps. Trust me on this one: don’t leave the kitchen because it’s important you start stirring as soon as it begins to melt, but be your best, most patient self until then and don’t touch! :)

The sugar will turn crispy and crackly, then finally begin to ooze into a pale brown syrup at the edges. Once this happens, begin stirring with a wooden spoon, and continue to stir as the sugar melts completely. Once all the granules are dissolved, allow sugar to caramelize another 5-7 minutes, until it’s deep, dark amber in color and smells rich and nutty. Do not taste or touch it, as hot sugar burns are very painful.

Once the sugar is caramelized, remove it from the heat and stand back a bit as you pour in the apple juice. Once your caramel geyser quits bubbling and frothing enough to safely approach, return it to the heat and stir. The caramel will have crystallized into a solid lump in the bottom of the pan, but patient stirring will help it dissolve again. Continue stirring constantly as the apple juice caramel simmers and reduces by half, about fifteen minutes. Add the salt and ground spices and stir another minute or two to thoroughly combine.

Once the spiced apple caramel has thickened, it’s time to add the fruit. (Quick tip: For practicality’s sake, I often peel, core, and chop the apples the night before, toss them with the juice of a lemon, and then refrigerate until ready to use.) Stir in the apples and cover until it comes to a boil, then simmer uncovered for 30-40 minutes, until apples are very tender and liquid has further reduced.

While apples are cooking, use a water-bath canning pan to immerse eight half-pint jars in water and heat for ten minutes. (I use a 21 1/2-quart pan and rack, available for less than $20. I also use a set of silicone-lined jar tongs and a wide-mouth funnel, available individually or as part of a set.) This heats the jars enough that the hot apple butter won’t crack the glass.

When the apples are finished cooking/reducing, turn off the heat, and use an immersion blender on its highest setting to process the preserves until completely smooth. (As I explain in these recipe notes, I love my inexpensive immersion blender. If you don’t have one, you can process your apple butter in batches in a traditional blender.)

Once blended smooth, use a funnel to fill heated, dried jars, leaving 1/2″ of space at the top of each jar. Screw on the bands and lids, then process your jars by immersing in boiling water bath for ten minutes. Remove the sealed, processed jars to allow them to cool. When the lids make a popping sound, you know they’re sealed tight. Unopened jars of apple butter can be stored at room temperature for up to six months, but they should be refrigerated after opening. If a jar doesn’t seal after processing and cooling, the apple butter is fine, but it should only be kept in the refrigerator.

applebutter01

P.S. — If you want a little more apple butter inspiration, check out my recipe for Apple Butter Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting. Yum! :)

Origami Photo Cube

10 Friday Feb 2012

Posted by createdforjoy in Make, Read

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

art, cube, make, memories, nostalgia, origami, paper craft, photo, preserve, read, recycle, valentine

cubemain

Remember the ubiquitous 1970s acrylic photo cube? It had a clear plastic outer layer and a spongy cube in the center, between which you could slide five of your favorite snapshots for fashionable, easy display. My grandparents had one in their living room, and I remember twirling it from one side to the next to look at the pictures over and over again, as if they might change on the next turn.

My favorite photo in the cube was of my grandpa and I: he resplendent in a silvery blue leisure suit, I perched on his lap in my favorite Snoopy shirt. He was a gentle, charming man with brilliant white hair and thick-rimmed glasses, and I was a preschooler with blonde ringlets and a ready, crooked smile. He loved to tell cheesy jokes, and I loved to hear them… we were a good match.

Twenty years later, at his passing, I found the same photo cube sitting on the side table. The colors in the picture were faded to shades of green and umber, but he was still there, with the same smiling, twinkling eyes. I wish I had kept that photo cube; I wish I had known things like that would matter so much more some day.

I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic when I saw a photo cube project in Trash Origami. Unlike the original, this one is made entirely of paper, but it is the same concept. In the origami version, the inner structure of the cube is formed from six photo-size pieces of thick paper — I opted for cardstock scraps, but you could easily use old postcards. A few simple folds layer them together without any adhesive.

cube05

The cube’s outer layer is made from folded photographs which serve to lock the structure in place. I used 4″x6″ prints from our visit to a San Diego botanical garden this fall. I thought it would make for a welcome bright spot in the midst of my husband’s thoroughly taupe cubicle. I love the variety of textures and colors the plants provide, but the cube could just as easily display snapshots of a new baby, honeymoon pics of the newlyweds, or photos of you and your sweetheart for a custom valentine.

Best of all, it could even preserve a moment of laughter shared between grandfather and granddaughter. And although some day soon the clothes in the pictures and the technology used to capture them will again be obsolete, the memories never will. These jokes are for you, Daddy R.E. :)

Two atoms are walking along when one suddenly says to the other, “I’ve just lost one of my electrons!”
“Are you sure?” asks his buddy.
“Yes,” replies the first atom. “I’m positive.”

How do you make a Venetian blind?
Poke him in the eye.

What do you call a fish without eyes?
A fsh.

cube06

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