Category: Condiments

Condiments

Strawberry Freezer Jam

Lynnae

These last few blog entries have been all about English Afternoon tea. As a final topping for our biscuits and clotted cream, I made some strawberry freezer jam. These directions and recipe are almost identical to the raspberry peach freezer jam I made a couple of weeks ago.

First, you’ll need to prepare your containers. I usually just wash mine in the dishwasher. Next, prepare your fruit. For this jam, you should mash your strawberries with a potato masher and squeeze the lemons.

After preparing the fruit, add the exact amount of strawberries and sugar to a bowl. Combine thoroughly. The key to a good jam is getting the sugar to completely dissolve in the fruit. The fastest and easiest way to accomplish this is to microwave it. I start at 3 minutes, test it by tasting it, and then add another minute at a time until the sugar is dissolved.

Now mix the lemon juice and the CERTO in a separate bowl and then add it to the fruit. Combine and continue to stir for 3 more minutes. The jam should begin to set up fairly quickly. Scoop it into your glass or plastic containers using a funnel and leave 1/2 inch of head space for freezing.

It should mature on the counter top for 24 hours, then go in the refrigerator or freezer. You can store it for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator, or up to a year in the freezer. Now you can enjoy the fresh taste of summer all winter long.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

From the Kitchen of Lynnae Hymas

Recipe by Sure Jell

Serves: 6 cupsPrep Time: 30 minutesWait Time: 24 hours

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 cups crushed strawberries (4 cups fresh strawberries)
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 4 cups sugar
  • 1 pouch CERTO

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Measure the exact amounts of crushed strawberries into a large bowl.
  2. Measure the exact amount of sugar into the fruit and combine. 
  3. Let stand 10 minutes.  Stir occasionally.
  4. If, after 10 minutes, the sugar is still not dissolved, put the fruit mixture in the microwave on high power for 3-5 minutes until the sugar is dissolved.
  5. Combine the CERTO with the fresh lemon juice in a separate bowl.
  6. Combine the CERTO pectin with the fruit and stir for 3 minutes.
  7. Pour into the prepared containers, leaving ½ inch of head space.
  8. Let the containers stand at room temperature for 24 hours. 
  9. You can store the jam in the refrigerator for 3 week or freeze for up to a year.
strawberry-freezer-jamDownload

Breakfast, Condiments

Clotted Cream

Lynnae

Last summer, 2019, my oldest son, Aiden, and I got to go on a school trip to England and Scotland (did I mention it was really an EPIC summer?). You remember when we were able to travel and go places. Sigh. We missed a full day of our tour due to a traffic jam, aka stuck on a bus with 20 teenagers for 8 hours. Good times. Anyway to make it up to us, the tour company scheduled high tea for us at Kensington Palace.

This was the real deal with tea, clotted cream and scones, finger sandwiches, and desserts. Hands down the best thing we ate while we were there.

I’ve never been much of a tea drinker, but I changed my mind that day. I only drink herbal teas, so the maitre d suggested their mint tea. Oh my goodness! 2 lumps of sugar because I have, ya know, a sweet tooth, and some cream and I thought I’d died and gone to heaven…even though it was like 90 degrees outside, and I’m pretty sure the Brits don’t really believe in air conditioning.

The other amazing part of the meal was the clotted cream. As an American, I’ve only had this once or twice before in my life, and the name doesn’t exactly inspire images of the most appealing sorts of food, but…think the creamiest softest butter you’ve ever had on steroids. It’s amazing, especially with a nice fresh and flaky scone (think buttermilk biscuit) and preserves. My mouth is watering as a write this.

Being from the States means there is really not much opportunity to eat clotted cream, and it’s definitely not something I’ve ever seen at the corner market. But, I found it is actually one of the THE easiest things in the world to make. It just takes a little time.

The ingredients are super simple—-cream. That’s it. You’ll need 1 quart of pasteurized cream. Just make sure it’s not ultra pasteurized, which I admit is a little harder to come by these days. I get mine from a local dairy.

Pour the cream into a 9×9 glass pan and bake it in the oven for 12 hours at 180 degrees. Please ignore my dirty oven. 🙂

Remove from oven and allow it to cool until it gets to room temperature. Cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator until it’s completely chilled.

When you pull it out of the fridge, it will have a crust or a thick layer on top. If you lift up one corner, you can pour off the liquid underneath. You may want to hold onto the liquid. It’s great for baking with. Biscuits maybe? Just sayin.

What’s left in the pan is now the clotted cream. Scoop it into a jar and cover. Some of it will be a little crusty in texture. You can just leave it as is or stir it all together and the crust part will blend in with the rest. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I use it like butter. So yummy!

Clotted Cream

From the Kitchen of Lynnae Hymas

Serves: 6-10Prep Time: 10 minCook Time: 12 hours (plus another 12-24 hours to chill)

INGREDIENTS:

1 qt. pasteurized cream

INSTRUCTIONS:

Pour the cream into a 9×9 inch pan.  Bake in a 180°F oven for 12 hours.  Cool to room temperature and then cover and refrigerate until completely chilled, 12-24 hours.  Lifting one corner of the now crusted cream, pour off the liquid.  The liquid can be preserved and used in baking as a liquid substitute. You can then scoop up the clotted cream and store in in a smaller container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

clotted-creamDownload

Condiments

Raspberry Peach Freezer Jam

Lynnae

I love the fresh taste of freezer jams compared to regular jam. They are also pretty easy to make. I recently discovered that using CERTO liquid pectin gave me an improved set for my jam.

First, you’ll need to prepare your containers. I usually just wash mine in the dishwasher. Next, prepare your fruit. For this jam, you should mash your raspberries with a potato masher, dice the peaches, and squeeze the lemons.

After preparing the fruit, add the exact amount of peaches, raspberries, and sugar to a bowl. Combine thoroughly. The key to a good jam is getting the sugar to completely dissolve in the fruit. The fastest and easiest way to accomplish this is to microwave it. I start at 3 minutes, test it by tasting it, and then add another minute at a time until the sugar is dissolved.

Now mix the lemon juice and the CERTO in a separate bowl and then add it to the fruit. Combine. The jam should begin to set up fairly quickly. Scoop it into your glass or plastic containers using a funnel and leave 1/2 inch of head space for freezing.

It should mature on the counter top for 24 hours, then go in the refrigerator or freezer. You can store it for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator, or up to a year in the freezer. Now you can enjoy the fresh taste of summer all winter long.

Raspberry Peach Freezer Jam

From the Kitchen of Lynnae Hymas

Recipe by Sure Jell

Serves: 6 cupsPrep Time: 30 minutesWait Time: 24 hours

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 ½ crushed raspberries (3 cups fresh raspberries)
  • 1 cup chopped fresh peaches (about 1 pound of peaches)
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 4 ½ cups sugar
  • 1 pouch CERTO

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Measure the exact amounts of crushed raspberries and chopped peaches into a large bowl.
  2. Measure the exact amount of sugar into the fruit and combine. 
  3. Let stand 10 minutes.  Stir occasionally.
  4. If, after 10 minutes, the sugar is still not dissolved, put the fruit mixture in the microwave on high power for 3-5 minutes until the sugar is dissolved.
  5. Combine the CERTO with the fresh lemon juice in a separate bowl.
  6. Combine the CERTO pectin with the fruit and stir for 3 minutes.
  7. Pour into the prepared containers, leaving ½ inch of head space.
  8. Let the containers stand at room temperature for 24 hours. 
  9. You can store the jam in the refrigerator for 3 week or freeze for up to a year.
raspberry-peach-freezer-jamDownload