Roasted Red Pepper Spicy Jelly - Rrrrrrr Rrrrrr

There is so much to love about this Roasted Red Pepper Jelly. It's just so versatile. It's sweet, like you'd expect from a jelly, but it also has a kick of spice, a tweak of tang and the earthiness of roasted bell peppers. And, just look at that color. Those sexy red velvet belles, comfortable and proud in every size and shape, come with their very own flirty curl top. They have a very seductive nature, which fits in well with the theme for today's Lets Lunch bunch (my online virtual lunch buddies.)This month's theme is Seduction and it just happens to fall on the date of 11/11/11. How powerful, passionate and perfect is that?

Blue Cheese Meat Balls
kissed with warm
Roasted Red Pepper Spicy Jelly

Today's theme was chosen as a celebration of a new book written by one of our Lets Lunch buddies, Mina Kahn. Check out her steamy romance novel - The Djinn's Dilemma. Then, have fun with all the links below (and also on twitter with #LetsLunch) to see all the great recipes with Seduction as the theme.

I roasted these fresh peppers in the oven on a sheet pan at 400F for about 20 minutes. I covered them in plastic wrap, individually, for about 10 minutes. After that, I opened them up, seeded, chopped and pureed them in a blender.Sometimes these multi-lobed beauties are under-rated considering they contains tons of vitamin C, antioxidants and fiber. The red bell pepper does not contain the same ingredients as hot peppers, in fact it's usually a bit sweet and crunchy and blends well with many other vegetables, or just with a simple garnish.A luscious spoonful of Roasted Red Pepper Jelly (which is spiced up a bit with red pepper flakes) gives a nice little kick to a toasted goat cheese covered crostini, garnished with black sesame seeds. It makes a nice ruby accompaniment to chicken and can give a regular hamburger a reputation among your friends. Served with eggs, the whole plate looks like a party.Don't forget to check out these Lets Lunch Bunch Seduction themes:

Mina Kahn - Smokin' Seafood Soup (and a new book!)
Joe Yonan - Sword Fish Stew for Seduction
His With Hers - Seduce me Apple Cider Donuts
Hapa Mama - Spaghetti for Adults Only
Monday Morning Cooking Club - Seduction Food - Pavlova
Spicebox Travels - Way To A Man's Heart Stew

RECIPE: Roasted Red Pepper Jelly

1 1/2 cups (about 3-4 ) Roasted Peppers Puree
1 cup White Vinegar
1/2 cup Rice Wine Vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
2 cups Sugar
1 Pkt. liquid fruit pectin (3 oz.)

1) In a large deep pot: Heat Roasted Pepper Puree, vinegars, red pepper flakes and sugar over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar.

2) Increase heat and bring to a boil for about 10 minutes.

3) Add pectin, bring to a boil, stirring for only 1 minute and remove from heat.

4) Pour into sterilized jars 1/4 inch from the top, and seal. Boil in hot water bath for 10 minutes, remove and let cool for 24 hours. You may also pour into sterilized jars, seal, allow to cool and keep in refrigerator for several weeks, or freezer for several months.

Here's to the magic of 11.11.11 until the next 100 years~

Persimmon & Dried Cherries w/ Brandy Conserve

For the past year I have been a part of a very fun and challenging monthly posting called TigressCanJam. This month's product to use was Dried Fruit, and it may have been one of my favorites.

Fuyu Persimmon & Dried Cherries w/Brandy

I fell in love (okay, maybe even obsessed) with Fuyu Persimmons a while back when I made a Persimmon Rum Raisin Bread Pudding. What can I tell ya, I'm a sucker for a misunderstood fruit (don't even go there.)

To a lot of people, the Persimmon means that oddly orange colored tomato-size thing that supposed to turn your mouth inside-out if you eat it before it's ripe. But, that is only half the story - meaning the other half is that there are TWO kinds of persimmons and the FUYU doesn't fool-you.The Fuyu can be eaten while it's firm (sliced in salads, baked in breads and muffins, made into jam, eaten raw like an apple), AND when it's soft (baked in puddings, ice cream, candy, cheese and on meats.)
The other Persimmon (and I'm not saying that with an attitude, just a fact) is called the Hachiya. The Hachiya Persimmon can really make the inside of your cheeks squeek if you eat it too soon, but if you wait until it's as soft as pudding, it tastes like a pear and a pumpkin got together and made butter. The FUYU (my fav) looks like a little pin cushion with the dark orange glow of a winter sunset. Then, when you cook these babies down with a little sugar, throw in some dried (oh, yes - oh, yes) CHERRIES - then (hold me back) a good glug of BRANDY; How could you not want to eat this by the spoonful right out of the jar? Yeah, so...maybe that's what I did - I'm not saying.
RECIPE: Persimmon & Dried Cherries with Brandy Conserve
(inspired by Ball Preserving)

5 cups (2.8 lbs) Fuyu Persimmons (peeled and chopped)
2/3 cup (4oz.) Dried Cherries
5 cups (1 lb 14oz) Sugar
3 Tbls. Lemon Juice
2 packets of Liquid natural pectin
1/4 cup Brandy

1) In a large sauce pan bring the persimmons, cherries, sugar and lemon juice to a slow simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring often. This will break down the persimmons just a bit and dissolve the sugar.

2) Turn the heat up and bring to a rolling boil for 3 minutes, then stir in the 2 packets of pectin.

3) Return to boiling for 1 minute. Remove from heat and quickly skim, then pour in the Brandy and stir well.

4) Pour into hot, sterilized jars, seal and process in a water bath for 10 minutes.

5) Remove and cool for 24 hours, undisturbed.

Conserve is less jelled than jams or jellies and makes great toppings for pancakes, crepes, meats and on cheese plates.

A huge Thank You to Tigress Can/Jam and her creative ideas and talented work.

Thank you guys for stopping by and I know you "can", so let me know when you do. :D

Peach & Blueberry Ginger Jam - Video Interview

One of my earliest memories of growing up next to my Grandparent's farm in North Carolina is how the kitchen felt when G-Ma was canning. The air was moist, the windows were fogged over, you had to talk over the rattling of jars in the giant boiling water pots, there was sugar on the floor that had spilled from the scoops, and there were women laughing - lots of laughing.

Peach & Blueberry Ginger Jam

The September 2010 Daring Cooks’ challenge was hosted by John of Eat4Fun. John chose to challenge The Daring Cooks to learn about food preservation, mainly in the form of canning and freezing. He challenged everyone to make a recipe and preserve it. John’s source for food preservation information was from The National Center for Home Food Preservation.

IRONICALLY: This month's Tigress Can/Jam challenge was Stone Fruit as chosen by Hip Girl's Guide. So, rather than have double posts - I doubled up on a post.

The choices of stone-fruits are numerous at this time of the season in California. I'm also keen on using combinations and my little blueberry plant is giving me her last jewels, so I paired those with golden freestone peaches.

Our host for Daring Cooks, John, gave us the option of using one of our own recipes if canning and preserving were already in our wheel-house. It's not only familiar to me - it's like home. So, for this post, I'll add a little video that I had the honor of being in for an interview about Boutique foods in Southern California. I'll add the recipe that I used that day for Peach & Blueberry Ginger Jam. I have many jams on my site also, and I hope you'll take a look if anything appeals to you.



RECIPE: PEACH & BLUEBERRY GINGER JAM

2lbs Peaches (peeled and sliced)
1lb Blueberries
32oz. organic sugar
2Tbls. minced fresh ginger
2 lemons (juice and zest)
2 cinnamon sticks (*optional and to be removed before putting jam in jars)

1) In a large pot add: peaches, blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and zest (and cinnamon sticks). Stir to combine.
2) Macerate (let sit, covered for flavors to mix) in refrigerator overnight or at least 8 hours
3) When ready to continue, add ginger to pot and heat on Med., stirring to dissolve sugar for about 10 minutes.
4) Remove the cinnamon sticks, and increase heat. Stir now and then.
5) Heat til liquid from jam runs off a wooden spoon slowly, rather than a single stream. This may take about 25 minutes depending on amount cooking. (You can also check by putting a small ceramic plate in the freezer before starting your jam, then check the jam set by spooning a bit of the jam on the cold plate. If the jam doesn't run, and has a bit of a rise to it - the jam is ready. You can also check by temperature - jam sets around 219-223F. )

If you are canning the jam, follow the safety rules for home canning in a hot water bath (easy and conveniently found here.)

If you are making this for consumption within a few weeks, you can pour jam into clean containers, let cool, cover and keep in refrigerator.

Anybody can jam, so get your jam on!

Cucumber Pickles; Dill with it. **Double Post** Watermelon Rind Pickles

Here's a big surprise: I couldn't make up my mind. There were so many gorgeous cucurbits at the Farmer's Market, that...what? Cucurbits. You know. Cucurbits. Yeah, I had to be told what they were, too. Cucurbits are the vine grown cucumbers, squashes, melons and such. They make amazing jams...and pickles!

Cucumber Dills w/Cumin,Pepper & Mustard Seeds Watermelon Rind Pickles w/ Garam Masala & Jalapeno

At the beginning of the year I joined a group started by Tigress Can Jam/Pickle. She has an amazing site that is packed with her bright personality and intelligent recipes. Each month, our group participates in canning and what we can (the product) is chosen by a host. This month it was chosen by Laundry Etc.

Each one of us have the choice of how we handle the product: jam, pickles, relish, chutneys, etc.. as long as we follow certain guidelines which include the US recommended hot water bath canning process. Like most things, once you get the hang of it - following the process is a cinch.
I'm in charge of making many jars of pickles for my daughter's upcoming wedding, so "cucurbits" in the form of cucumbers were very timely and I'm half-way through the batch size I need for the wedding.

And, watermelon? Well, I'm a southern girl who grew up eating watermelon outside where you could drip it all over you and save the seeds for a spitting contest. True to the South, nothing goes to waste so pickling the rind was a given.
I actually had never pickled rind myself, so once I figured out that watermelon is one of those...Cucurbits, I had to give it a try.
I used several recipes to help me with the safety and correct ratio for vinegar, etc. then changed up the spices and flavoring to suit my whimsy.

Now YOU know what a cucurbit means, too (or maybe you were already vine-savvy). Sometime today, throw that word around a little and see how many people give ya that blank stare. Then send them to my post and I'll help them get out of that pickle.

Cucumber Dills w/Cumin, Pepper & Mustard Seeds
(adapted from "Jam it, Pickle It, Cure It" by Karen Solomon)

3 lbs. Pickling Cucumbers (washed, dried, sliced into wedges)

In a non-reactive saucepan, heat 2 cups Vinegar with 6 cups water and 6 tsps. salt to boiling.

Pack your sterilized jars with the Cucumber wedges and an even distribution of these spices:
9 cloves of garlic, crushed
3 cinnamon stick (broken into pieces as needed)
6 Tbls Mixed Mustard seeds
6 Tbls. Dill seeds
8 Tbls. Black Peppercorns
2 Tbls. Cumin seeds
6 tsps. salt

Leave 1 inch head space.
Pour the hot vinegar mix into the jars covering the wedges fully and leaving 1/2 inch head space. Process in a hot-water bath for 10 minutes. Remove, cool and store in a cool dry place.


Watermelon Rind Pickles w/Garam Masala & Jalapeno
(inspired by "Jellies, Jams & Chutneys" by Thane Prince and Whole Foods Recipes)


The Rind of 1 med. watermelon (remove the green with a peeler, scrape off all pink, cut into small cubes) *You should have 1lb. of cubed rinds

For the Brine - Mix the following in a glass bowl with lid:
4 Tb salt
24 oz. Water
Place the rind cubes into the brine, cover and leave in refrigerator for 2 days.
After 2 days: Drain the rind, rinse with cold water several times and drain.
Hold to the side.

In a deep saucepan, add and bring to a boil:
4 cups of water
2 cups Cider Vinegar
9 oz. brown sugar
4" cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala ground spice mix
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger minced
1/2 lemon zest
1 tsp chopped Jalapeno Pepper

Once this is boiling, add the rind into the saucepan and stir to mix.
Lower the heat and simmer for 45 minutes or until the rind is tender and translucent.

Remove from stove and pack your sterilized jars with the rinds, then pour in the pickling liquid to cover.
Keep at least 1/4 inch space available at the top of each jar.
Seal properly and place in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Remove and cool on rack without moving for 12 hours.
Keep in a dry, cool area.
If you aren't comfortable with canning: fill your glass containers, cool, cover and keep in the refrigerator for several weeks.

Red Onion & Pineapple Relish - I can, you can, we all can!

I was never one to relish Relish. However, it's the little things that can make an ordinary dish something amazing and a little bit of this spicy/sweet/tangy relish does exactly that. Imagine a spoon of this beside your scrambled eggs, or dabbed beside a chicken breast. Saute a simple piece of fish, then add a dollop of this and now you've got layers of flavor on flavor.

Red Onion & Pineapple Relish

The ways to use this relish are unending: on a baked potato, mixed in with cooked carrots, add zing to pork tenderloin or can you even imagine how great it would taste on a hamburger? If you don't usually "can" stuff, then just make this and put it in a cute container (or just a bowl), wrap it up and keep it in the refrigerator. It's good for a couple weeks.

This month the item for the TigressCanJam event is Alliums: onions, ramps, leeks, garlic, etc. I still have a bag of Farmer's Market onions and 2 giant stalks of fennel because I had planned on using them for my "can-can-canning" this month. Then, I came across a recipe that mixed a pungent ruby red onion with one of my favorite fruits, sweet juicy pineapple, and I was in love.

This is a fragrant couple of hours in the kitchen, folks, but when it's done you'll have a hard time not eating little spoonfuls of it all by itself (not that I did that or anything.)

Quote from ME: "This works, yeah, this definitely works. I better "can" this before there's none left."
I hope you make this, and then come back and tell me your ideas of other ways to use it, ok?
Red Onion & Pineapple Relish
(adapted from Jellies, Jams & Chutneys - Thane Prince)

1/2 Pineapple, trimmed and roughly chopped
2 Med. Red Onions, chopped
3 small red chiles, chopped fine (can be seeded, but the kick is nice)
2 garlic cloves chopped fine
1 Tbls. fresh thyme leaves
5 oz. sugar
1 cup white wine vinegar
dash of salt

Put all ingredients into a large pot (not aluminum), and bring to boil. Stir often to dissolve sugar. Simmer the relish over med. heat for about 20 minutes until it's thickened. Ladle the relish into hot sterilized jars, cover and precede to water bath canning for 10 minutes.
(Or ladle into clean bowl/containers - cover and keep in refrigerator for 2 weeks).

Orange & Pinot Jelly; YES I CAN!

I did it. I did it, again. I joined another monthly challenge. But who can blame me with this one? It's the brain child of Tigress Can Jam and every month we will be hot water canning or jamming a pre-chosen ingredient. To kick off 2010, the ingredient is CITRUS. Since I've made a lot of marmalade, and because I'm possessed with wanting to push my own envelope I chose to try something new. And let's face it; wine? Even if the jelly didn't work I could have a blast drinking the leftovers! However: the jelly not only worked, it's so unusual and tummy warming without being too sweet - I've eaten it by the spoonful.

ORANGE & PINOT NOIR JELLY

I grew up watching my Grandmother can and jam, but as a kid didn't pay much attention to the how, just the rewards. The impressions that stayed are: boiling water making the windows steam over in the kitchen, jars and jars sitting on muslin (lining the table, window sills and counters), sugar bags with cups inside for easy access, lemons squeezed by her farm hands until nothing remained but dry yellow shells, the smell of hot fruit and the music of the lids as they pinged to an air-tight hug. Canning and jamming is a time honored tradition that is centuries old and yet has returned to be a truly hip and happening culinary art form.

If you haven't tried making jam yet, it might be because you've fallen for the fear tactics, as the famous and talented sugar artist, June Taylor, explained in a workshop I took with her in Berkley, CA last year.

June Taylor Jams and Preserved Fruits are famously delicious. If you ever have the chance to take a workshop with her, you'll find her to be generous with her vast knowledge, completely passionate about her craft and inspiring. (After two of her seasonal workshops, I started selling my own creations.)

As June expressed: Some where in the 1950's American home cooks were convinced (mostly by the expanding "convenience food" processing companies) that it was a waste of time for people to cook at home when they could buy it, zap it, or reheat it in a few minutes. The idea of actually PRESERVING it yourself was old fashion and could kill you if not done by a large corporation. It created a generation of folks who felt embarrassed to actually cook or preserve daily food.

Thankfully, we are rediscovering how important fresh seasonal food is for our families and our communities, and how easy and modern it is to extend our seasons and talents by creating our own jars of treats and savories. Instead of eating those tasteless dollar jars of "almost fruit" jams; Learn the easy basics, and like anything else; you CAN make your own.
RECIPE: ORANGE & PINOT NOIR JELLY
(adapted from Mes Confitures, by the world reknown Christine Ferber, and using skills and techniques taught by June Taylor)

6 Large Oranges (making about 2 cups juice)
Zest from those oranges
5 Granny Smith Apples
6 cups Sugar
1 cup Pinot Noir
1 lemon (juiced)
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp. ground clove
1 tsp. ground cardamom

Cut apples into quarters, cover with water and boil for about 20-30 minutes.
Pour soft apples and the juice through a cheesecloth or jam bag and press on the bag to get all the juice. Let the juice sit in the refrigerator over night so the sediment can settle. The next day, filter again through cheese cloth and save juice.

Zest the Oranges and boil them in water to cover for 10 minutes, drain and save. Then, squeeze juice from Oranges and filter through a cheesecloth, saving the seeds and pulp in the cheesecloth.
In a large pan, preferably a preserving pan, add the orange juice, the juice from one lemon, the apple juice, the zest, cinnamon stick, cardamon, cloves, sugar, and the tied-up cheese cloth full of seeds and orange pulp.

Bring this to a boil, skim, and keep boiling for about 12 minutes while stirring now and then. Remove the cheese cloth and cinnamon stick. Pour in the Pinot Noir and continue boiling until the temp reaches about 220F.

[Or check for your set using this method: Keep a small plate in the freezer. When checking the set, spoon a small bit onto the cold plate and if it has a "shoulder" to it (a bit of a rise), or you can drag a finger through the mixture leaving a clear path, you're good to go for a loose gell. Remove the preserving pan from the heat while you check this.

Pour your jelly into prepared jars, place them in readied water bath, boil for 10 minutes, carefully remove and wait to hear the song-of-pings when the tops close tight on your success.
This jelly is amazing on toast and muffins or bread, but also adds quite a zing to cheeses and meats.
Hope you'll try this; and let me know so I can admire you.

Quote from my adorable daughter: "I didn't think I'd like this, I don't like marmalade and seeing the zest made me think ewww, but it's not marmalade it's just really delicious jelly and I can taste the wine and it doesn't have that "way too sweet" thing going on. I love it! "