Its about time !!

So, its been nearly a year since the last post, and what a year its been. Having had a baby boy just 8 weeks ago, I decided it was time to gather some fruit. Firstly, it was plums, and then blackberries and elderberries.

I made two lots of plum jam with a mixture of locally picked plums. Having stoned the plums (not an easy job) I then put them in a large pan with about 4 tablespoons of water and boiled gently until the flesh was pulpy. I started with about 3lb fruit and then added 3lb of sugar. I gently heated the mix (stirring all the time) until the sugar had dissolved. I then increased the heat and boiled the fruit and sugar until setting point was reached (this took about 10 minutes). In the meantime, I had some clean jars and lids in the oven sterilizing.

I then potted the jam into the jars and sealed. This was yummy with the scones I made on Sunday.

Bit of an experiment

I still have a load of plums and again I made some jam, but just to make it a bit more interesting, I added a chili to the mix !

I used a basic jam recipe 3lb fruit and 3lb sugar, but I also added a chilli which I pierced with a knife to release some of the heat. Before the sugar was added I tasted the tart fruit pulp and it was very hot with the heat of the chilli, but once I added the sugar, it seemed to take some of the heat away. I passed the mixture through a sieve to remove the chilli and its seeds after it had been boiled with the fruit. Don't want any nasty surprises!

When I was putting the jam into jars and I tasted it, I noticed there was a little heat from the chilli but not too much, I may leave this jam to mature for a while before using.

Now, what other combination's could I use .........