Peach and Apricot Jam

There are some smells in the world that can instantly make you feel happy and content. For me its the smell of the sea or freshly cut grass and a nice loaf of crusty bread baking in the oven. Today, I discovered a long lost scent that made me feel this way too - jam being made in a big pot on the stove top. Its the first time that I've ever attempted making jam and to be honest I'm not all that convinced that its perfection in a pot, but for a first attempt I'm pretty happy ;0)

A couple of years ago I came across a ready made jar of Peach and Apricot jam, these are pretty high on my most favourite summer fruits list so I had to give it a try, it would have been rude to ignore such a combination. It was OK, I ate the whole jar so it really couldn't have been that unremarkable, although I was never bowled over by the flavour and I declared that homemade would be much nicer with a far superior flavour. I think I may have lived to regret that statement!

When I was little (ish!) one of our family activites during summer was spending an afternoon at the 'Pick Your Own' Fruit Farms - back then the main attraction for my brother, cousin and myself was the massive train engine sat in the car park that we were allowed to play on after all the work had been done, or maybe it was the fact that for every strawberry we picked an equal, if not greater, quantity found its way into our mouths!!! Afterwards, our house would be filled with the smell of strawberries and apricots being bottled or turned into jam. I love that smell. Such a 'homey' and comforting scent.

My Mother made making jam look simple, and indeed on reading the various recipes I have managed to collect [read:hoard] they even sound fairly straight forward so I decided to give it a go. There are a few things I would do differently next time I think; I would chop the peaches much smaller, they just didn't want to play and hardly collapsed at all, which I think lead to my second problem of the mixture taking 20 minutes of rapid boiling time to get to setting point (and even then I think I was being optimistic, it didn't really wrinkle all that much in the wrinkle test!) which, in turn again, I'm pretty certain lead to the third problem of the colour being much darker than I would really have expected it to be, possibly over cooked it just a smidgen! Still, I have lived and learned and the proof will be in the eating.

I found this recipe at http://cakecrumbsandcooking.blogspot.com/.

Peach and Apricot Jam

900g ripe peaches and apricots, I chopped mine up chunky style which was fine for the apricots but the peaches need to be smaller, unless you like your jam extra lumpy

900g preserving sugar

100ml water

Place a small saucer int he freezer for the wrinkle test stage.

Place the fruit and sugar in a very large saucepan and add the water, to help the sugar dissolve. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.


Bring to a rolling boil, and boil for 10 mins. Stir it occasionally while it is boiling to prevent it sticking anywhere, note to the wise (thank you to cake crumbs and cooking for the head's up on this one!) the mixture really does start to bubble a lot more when it is stirred so use a long wooden spoon and an oven glove to protect yourself against any spitting jam.

After 10 mins test to see if the jam is set, take a spoonful of the mixture and place it on the saucer. Give it a moment to cool down ~ it is a lot like molten lava otherwise ~ and then push the edge of the jam blob with your finger, if the surface wrinkles then the jam is ready, if not put the saucer back in the freezer to chill and return the jam to a rolling boil for another 5 mins (I did this bit twice), and then retest.

Skim off the scum on the surface of the jam and pour into sterilised jars (I transferred the jam from the pot into a ceramic jug to make this process easier, otherwise use a jam funnel) and fill the jars as much as possible.

PS - I've just sent this over to Aimee at Under the High Chair for her Jam Swap!

Peach and Apricot Jam

It is no secret to anyone that Peach and Apricot jam is my all time favourite.  In my opinion there is nothing better than the sweet and tart mixture of the two fruits and when its presented in jam form, all condensed together with sugar .... summer on a slice of bread.

The first jam I ever attempted to make was a Peach and Apricot Jam last year.  For my first attempt I was pretty pleased with it but Mrs Bridges it wasn't!  Then I found this recipe and decided to give it another try.  I think this second attempt is probably the recipe that Mrs Bridges uses ;0)

My favourite way to have this jam is pretty simple, but decadent in its own right.  A nice thick slice of a rustic white loaf, good quality farm churned butter and a healthy dollop of jam smeared over the top and I'm like the cat that got the cream!

Peach and Apricot Jam
500g peaches, chopped coarsely
480g apricots, chopped coarsely
375ml water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
880g sugar, warmed

Combine the unpeeled fruit, stones and water in a large saucepan, simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes or until the fruit is soft and pulpy. Remove stones and discard. Stir in lemon juice. Test for pectin.

Add the sugar, stir over heat, without boiling, until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil; boil, uncovered, stirring, occasionally for about 20 minutes or until the jam jells when tested.

Pour hot jam into hot sterilised jars; seal while hot. Invert the jars until cold.

Makes 4 cups of jam
Nine MSN

Breakfast Club - Puffed Peach Pancake

How many of us take a cook book to bed to read?  Or is it just me?  The other night I pulled Bill Granger's 'Holiday' off the book shelf and trotted off to bed, its been a while since Bill and I caught up!  Flicking through the book I came to the recipe for the Puffed Apple Pancake which I make regularly for breakfast

throughout Autumn, when I noticed Bill's footnote "... It's also fabulous with peaches ..."

This was a bit of a light bulb moment for me!  Why have I not thought of this seasonal improvement myself!?!?!?! 

I stand by my original comments though, swapping the apples for peaches has not made it any prettier to photograph with my little point and shoot!  Clearly the ugly duckling of the breakfast world because it is a very tasty way to start the day.  If I had to choose though I think I probably prefer the apples to the peaches ~ it's a texture thing!

Puffed Peach Pancake
50g butter (I use frylite nowadays)
4-5 medium sized ripe peaches, cut into quarters
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tbsp lemon juice
90g plain flour
A pinch of salt
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1 tbsp vanilla caster sugar
4 eggs
185ml milk

Preheat the oven to 200C (220C for conventional ovens). Melt the butter in a 25cm frying pan with an ovenproof handle. Add the apples and cook for 5 mins over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, vanilla and lemon juice and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the butter has dissolved.

Mix the flour, salt, lemon zest and sugar together in a large bowl, make a well in the centre and slowly add the eggs and milk, whisking lightly to combine (don't worry too much about the lumps). Pour the batter evenly over the apples (it's fine if the apples show through). Put the pan in the oven and cook for 15 mins until puffed and golden. If your pan is shallow, place a baking tray underneath to catch any drips. Serve absolutely immediately with either yogurt, honey or maple syrup.

Serves 4
Bill Granger's 'Holiday'

Peach and Yoghurt Slice

Apricots, Raspberries and Peaches seem to be coming out my ears lately!  I can't resist picking up a punnet on my way home from work, they are with us for such a short period each year.  I have a feeling the Apricot Slice from last weekend will be the first in a long series to appear on this blog in the coming weeks.

For dinner tonight we had Giancarlo's Mushrooms followed by this very yummy Peach Slice.  I made a few changes to the original recipe which can be found at the Taste Website, my changes included replacing regular eggs with duck eggs (can you tell the Farm Shop was back at work today!) and I omitted the cinnamon, opting instead to keep a peach and vanilla flavour throughout.  With a scoop of ice cream on top and a state of bliss is achieved in one mouthful!

Peach and Yoghurt Slice
200g unsalted butter, at room temperature
215g vanilla caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 duck eggs, at room temperature
225g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
250ml Greek-style natural yoghurt (I used 0%)
2 (about 250g) peaches, halved, stones removed, thinly sliced
Icing sugar, to dust

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line the base and 2 long sides of a 20 x 30cm slice pan with non-stick baking paper, allowing the sides to overhang.
 
Use an electric beater to beat the butter, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
 
Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon into a bowl. Fold the flour mixture, alternately with the yoghurt, into the egg mixture until combined. Stir in two-thirds of the peach.
 

 
Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Arrange the remaining peach on top and press down slightly. Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes or until light golden and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
 
Set aside in pan for 5 minutes to cool then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with icing sugar. Cut into pieces.
 

Cuts into 16 slices
Adapted from Taste Website
 

Nigel's Peach and Blueberry Soured Cream Cobbler

My first ever experience of a Cobbler was a recipe by Momma Cherri that I had watched her make on Saturday Kitchen .... or maybe it was even as long ago as Saturday Cooks!  Her version was a peach cobbler using tinned peaches and lots (and lots!) of sugar and butter.  At the time it sounded wonderful to me so I stored the recipe away for a 'rainy' day.  Not long after that I started going out with Hubby and Momma Cherri's Peach Cobbler recipe was pulled out of the file for the auspicious honour of being the first dessert I ever made for him.    It wasn't terrible but it was very rich thanks to all that butter and overly sweet thanks to all that sugar.  Sadly I can't seem to locate the recipe on the net any longer and I probably threw my handwritten copy out after the enamel on my teeth pulled away but I would have loved to share it here for nostalgic reasons alone!

I was a bit disappointed not to have fallen head over heels for cobbler after this first recipe though.  I had grown up reading American novels and back in my more formative years all I wanted to do was up sticks and live in America.  I drove my family demented in my unquentiable thirst for American culture.  A cobbler seemed like such an exotic treat, an all American experience that was right up there with Apple Pie.  I adore Apple Pie ... so why not cobbler?

At this point I would like to highlight that some of my dearest friends in the world are American so I understand that the classics ought not to be messed with.  This next sentence is in no way intended to cause offence to anybody who lives Across The Big Pond!  Honestly!  But if you are likely to take offense at an Australian paying homage to an Englishman then it is best you stop reading now .... OK?

Sir Nigel has done it again!  He has tweaked the original and has developed a recipe that isn't sickly sweet, doesn't harden your arteries and uses the freshest produce available.  No sirree, you'll find no tinned peaches here!  There is a little butter though ... and a little sugar!  This is the kind of cobbler I imagined the taste of when I was a pimply teenager back in Tassie.  The all American exotic treat I had dreamed of!

Peach and Blueberry Soured Cream Cobbler
3 ripe peaches
350g blueberries
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp caster sugar (I used vanilla sugar)
1 tbsp plain flour
For the Cobbler Crust
150g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 heaped tbsp caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
80g cold unsalted butter, cubed
140-150ml soured cream

Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C.  To make the crust, blitz the flour, a pinch of salt, baking powder, sugar and butter in Betsy a food processor for a few seconds until the mixture resembles soft, fresh breadcrumbs.  Tip into a bowl.

Slice the peaches, removing the stones as you go and dropping the slices into an ovenproof dish.  Toss the peach slices with the blueberries, lemon juice, sugar and flour.  At this point it will look less than inviting, but don't worry.

Add the soured cream to the crumb mixture to create a soft dough.  Break up into walnut size pieces (about 12) and flatten them slightly.  Lay them evenly on top of the fruit.  Dust the rounds of dough with sugar, then bake in the oven for 25 mins until the cobbler is golden and the fruit is bubbling.

Serves 4
Delicious Mag. Aug 2010

I'll stop gushing now but please give this recipe a try!  You won't be dissappointed ;0)

Breakfast Club - Smug Pancakes with Peach and Rosewater Curd

After my disappointment of last weekends Pancakes I retired to the couch to catch up on some of my Sky+ viewing.  By pure chance I had recorded an episode of Nigella Express where she made pancakes for her daughter and friends, using a pancake mix she had already prepared.  This was a true light bulb moment for me!  And this morning the mix was put to the test ~ it passed in flying colours, so I have renamed them 'Smug Pancakes'

Smug Pancakes
For The Pancake Mix
600g flour
3 tbsp baking powder
2 tsp bicarb of soda
1 tsp salt
45g vanilla caster sugar

Mix all the ingredients together and store in a jar.

When ready to make the pancakes, proceed as below.

Make The Batter And The Pancakes
For each 150g pancake mix, add and whisk together
1 egg
250ml semi skimmed or full fat milk
15ml melted butter

Heat a flat griddle or pan with no oil.

Spoon drops of 1 1/2 - 2 tbsp of batter onto the hot griddle or into the pan and. when bubbles appear on the surface of the little pancakes, flip them over to make them golden brown on both sides.  a minute or so should do it.

Makes approx 15 pancakes
Nigella Express

These pancakes were soooooooooo good.  Really light and delicate.  If I'm being fussy then they were still a little on the flat side of fluffy, but they were a definite improvement on last weekends pancakes.  That said, I did make a couple of modifications which may have resulted in the finished product not being quite the same as they had been on the TV show.  I didn't add the melted butter, but only because I knew they were being served with curd, I figured there was enough butter on the offering already!  This did mean that the first two pancakes stuck fast to the non stick pan which is now soaking in the sink.  I ended up using fry lite in between batches to make sure they didn't stick.  Next time though I'll go whole hog and add the butter.  My batter seemed much runnier than Nigella's had on the show, so next time I think I'll cut back on the amount of milk.  I also added a bit more sugar than Nigella's recipe, I like sweet pancakes and the mix tasted a bit salty on first tasting.

This morning the pancakes were served with curd.  Passionfruit curd is a given these days ;0)
But with a couple of punnets of peaches in my fruit bowl needing to be eaten ASAP, I got to wondering about peach curd.  There were a few different recipes to choose from after a quick Internet search, all but one using lemon as one of the key ingredients.  My only problem with lemon in curds is that it can tend to overpower the flavour of the other ingredients, at the end of the day if I want to eat a curd that tastes like lemon then I'll make lemon curd!  The recipe below still uses lemon juice but in much less quantities than the others, and it had the added flavour of Rosewater which sparked my interest.

Peach and Rosewater Curd
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup fresh peach puree (put them in the blender or food processor to make)
lemon juice to taste, about 1 tsp
1/2 teaspoon rosewater (use regular water if you can't find this)
90g butter

Beat the egg yolks with the sugar, peach puree, lemon juice, and rosewater.

Place over simmering water and stir constantly until thickened.

Remove from heat and beat in butter, bit by bit.

Strain well and chill.

Use on cake, ice cream, scones etc.
 
Group Recipes
 

 
I pureed the peaches with the skin on and then strained them, as much as I liked the pink flecks running through the puree I wasn't so sure it would look that appealing in the finished curd.  I'm really pleased with the end result though, it tastes amazing! While the peach is the main flavour the addition of the rosewater has added a little exotic touch to it at the same time.  When spooned over the pancakes I was in seventh heaven, it was a proper girly breakfast!

Peach Crumble Cake - CBC 5

Another beautiful day!  There are blue skies all around, the neighbours children are out playing in the street, the birds are even singing.  Summer can't be far away now.  All of this makes me crave summer fruits and BBQ's and ice cream cones ... and a white sandy beach with the waves crashing in would be quite nice too while I'm dreaming on!  This cake has always seemed like summer on a plate to me, and the best part is that I don't actually have to wait for peaches to be in season to make it.  Or maybe the best part is that, as far as cakes go, I can eat a slice of this without feeling any guilt whatsoever. 

Peach Crumble Cake
Low fat cooking spray
275g SR flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
Salt
125g low fat polyunsaturated marg (guilt free has its concessions!)
125g soft light brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
200g low fat plain yogurt (I used Total 0%)
410g can peach slices in juice, drained

Preheat the oven to 160C fan.  Spray a 20cm spring-form cake tin with low fat cooking spray and line it with baking parchment.

Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a mixing bowl.  Rub in the margarine until the mixture is crumbly, then stir in the sugar.  Weigh out 80g of the mixture into a small bowl for the topping and set this aside.

Mix the eggs, vanilla extract and yogurt into the remaining flour mixture to form a smooth batter, then pour into the prepared cake tin.

Pat the peaches dry on kitchen paper, then arrange on top of the cake.

Scatter with the reserved crumb mixture, then bake the cake in the oven for 45-50 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack.  The cake can be stored for 2-3 days.

Serves 12
Adapted from WW Cook Smart Baking

I couldn't help but take this last photo - I walked back into the kitchen to find Hubby's empty plate sat in front of the cake ... he had already snuck an extra slice when I wasn't looking!  Do you think he likes it?

Summer Fruit Crumble

Summer is putting up one last fight here, lovely blue skies and almost warmish days. Hurrah ;0)

I'd like to think that tonight's dessert is my way of lending support to summer's last stand, but in all honesty I've got to the point where there is loads of fruit in the fridge and fruit bowl that need to be used up. I was going to make muffins, but couldn't decide which kind, could have made a raspberry and white chocolate blondie recipe that I came across the other day but I don't have all the ingredients ... hmmm ... time to get inventive!

Summer Fruit Crumble

1 mango, remove stone, peeled and flesh cubed

2 peaches, remove stones, sliced

A handful of fresh raspberries

A handful of fresh blueberries

25g vanilla sugar

Crumble

150g plain flour

75g butter, chilled and cubed

75g demerara sugar

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Add fruit to a pie dish or ramekins and sprinkle over caster sugar.

Make the crumble; place the flour in a large bowl, add the butter and using your fingertips, rub it in until the mixture resembles very course breadcrumbs. (Don't rub in too much or the crumble will not be crunchy). Add the demerara sugar and mix to combine.

Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the fruit and bake for 15 mins for small crumbles or 30-45 mins for a large one until cooked and golden.

Serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Serves 4-6

Adapted from Rachel Allen's 'Bake'

My verdict on this is scrumy - especially the crumble part. Next time I make it though I think I'll leave the mango out and up the amount of raspberries if we have them kicking about.

Bill Granger's Peach and Raspberry Slice

I've been meaning to make this recipe for quite some years time now.  I first saw Bill make it on one of his TV shows and went out to buy the book, especially for the recipe.  The book then ended up on the book shelf, occasionally removed from its perch so I can leaf through the pages.  I've even made one or two of the recipes, but I never quite got around to making the Peach and Raspberry Slice.  That was until last weekend ;0)

Bill Granger's Peach and Raspberry Slice
185g plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder, plus 1/2 tsp extra
125g butter, chilled and diced
115g soft brown sugar
115g caster sugar
3 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced into wedges
90g raspberries, fresh or frozen
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, lightly beaten
185ml milk

Preheat the oven to 180C.  Grease and line the base of a 20cm x 30cm baking tray.  Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and then rub in the butter with your fingertips.  Stir in both the sugars.  Press half the mixture over the base of the tin.  Lay the peaches over the top and sprinkle with raspberries.

Add the vanilla extract, extra baking powder, egg and milk to the rest of the base mixture and stir well - don't worry too much about lumps.  Pour evenly over the top of the peaches and raspberries and bake for 1 hour.  Cool in the tray, then cut into squares to serve.

Makes 20 pieces
Bill Granger - Everyday

* To peel the peaches, score a cross in the skin with a sharp knife, then blanch the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds, refresh in cold water and peel the skin away from the cross.

I was expecting this slice to be worth the wait, and in hindsight there were maybe one or two things I could have done differently to enhance the final product.  I could have made the slice when peaches were in season and slightly riper than the rock like beasts I ended up using.  I believe using the right sized tin may have also helped the cause a little!  This is not to say that the slice was a complete disaster, its still pretty yummy and goes down very well with some ice cream, it just didn't quite live up to my expectations.  Guess I'll just need to wait till 'next summer' (!!!!) when the peaches are at their peak!

Peach and Raspberry Buckle

Summer made a glorious appearance today - quite handy of it to do so too seeing as I had a day off work ;0)

After the success of last year's Blueberry Buckle recipe (I still love the name 'buckle'!) I had been hoarding this recipe for just the right moment.  With a few tweaks, no recipe is safe from my continual interference,  I decided today was just the moment I had been waiting for and set about baking when I returned from enjoying the sunshine.  The tweaks refer mainly to that fact that I substitute vanilla for the cinnamon in the original recipe because I think of cinnamon more as a winter spice and it seems to get its way into everything, and also swapping apricots for peaches, this change was for no other reason than I had peaches handy and they needed using.

Peach and Raspberry Buckle
175g self-raising flour
200g softened butter
2 tbsp demerara sugar
Seeds from 1 vanilla pod
175g caster sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
6 small peaches , stoned and sliced
200g raspberries , fresh or frozen

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter and line the base of a 23cm square tin (I don't have a tin that size and opted for my pyrex pan which is 23cm x 19cm). For the crumble mix, put 2 tbsp flour and 25g of the butter with the demerara sugar and vanilla seeds in a bowl. Rub between your fingers until it resembles damp breadcrumbs.

Tip the remaining flour and butter and the caster sugar, eggs and vanilla in a bowl, then beat until well combined. Lightly fold in half the apricots and raspberries, then spread over the prepared tin.

Scatter over the remaining fruit, then sprinkle with the crumble mix. Bake for 45-50 mins until light golden, then cool for 10 mins and remove from the tin. Cut into squares and serve warm with cream or ice cream for dessert, or cold for tea.

Serves 8
Good Food Website (links to the original recipe)

Hubby and I treated ourselves to a small slice for dessert tonight, with a small drizzling of cream.  Yum!