Cooking and Baking Archives - Page 43 of 52

Cinnamon Peach Jam

October 9, 2009 jennifer Preserving and Freezing

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Fresh peaches! Gotta love ’em! Not only do I love fresh fruit in the late summer and early fall, but I also love preserving some of it to be enjoyed throughout the year.

Today’s project is homemade peach jam. Yum.

First, measure 7 1/2 cups sugar. Yep, that’s a lot of sugar!
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Start chopping those lovely peaches until you have 4 cups of chopped fruit.
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Pour the sugar into a large saucepan.
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Add the peaches.
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Add 1/3 cup lemon juice.
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Finally, add 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon.
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Stir well over medium-high heat.
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Bring to a rolling boil that can’t be stirred down, and add two 3 ounce packets of liquid pectin.

Return to a rolling boil and cook for 1 minute.

Remove from heat. If desired, stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Ladle into sterilized canning jars.
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Fill jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space at the top. Wipe the lip of the jars with a damp, clean towel and put on a lid and band. Process in hot water bath to seal.

Let stand for 24 hours in order for jam to set and lids to seal.
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Aren’t they beautiful! This recipe makes 4 pint sized or 8 half-pint jars of jam.
I have two batches in my basket. I love the feeling of abundance that comes when I’m canning.
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I must say I’m in love with the glow of this jam. It’s so beautiful!
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In the morning sunlight, it’s like amber. And it tastes delicious.
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Cinnamon Peach Jam 7 1/2 cups sugar 4 cups chopped peaches 1/3 cup lemon juice 1 tsp. cinnamon 2 pouches, 3 ounces each, Ball Liquid Fruit Pectin 1 tsp. vanilla extract, optional Combine sugar, peaches, lemon juice and cinnamon. Cook over medium high heat until reaches a rolling boil. Add pectin. Return to boil and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Stir. Ladle into sterilized jars and process in hot water bath according to instructions. Let set and store. Enjoy!

Fabulous Potato Salad

September 22, 2009 jennifer Sides and Salads

This potato salad is terrific, as well as relatively quick and simple to prepare.
I’ve never had a potato salad recipe that I love, so this summer I’ve been fiddling with it, and I think I’ve got it right.

In a large pot, place 3 pounds unpeeled red potatoes. Cover with salted cold water and bring to a boil.
Cook until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork.
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While potatoes are boiling, place 5 eggs (please ignore the number in the picture; I was making a large salad) in a pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove eggs from pan and place in ice water to cool, and to reduce the chances of having that ugly green ring on your yolks.
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Chop 2/3 cup onion, celery and dill pickles. Set aside.
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When potatoes are done, drain. While they are still hot, chop them up, leaving peels on.
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Place in a large bowl IMG_6589 (Large) Drizzle potatoes with 2/3 to 3/4 cup Italian salad dressing of your choice.
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Add a couple of tablespoons of apple cider vinegar IMG_6592 (Large) Pour in some pickle juice, around 3 tablespoons worth.
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Toss to coat, and then add the chopped vegetables.
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Peel and chop your hard boiled eggs, and add those too.
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Next add 3/4 cup mayonnaise and a generous sprinkling of Lawry’s seasoned salt.
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Mix to combine. Add a little salt and pepper to taste.
Finally, to add a wonderful crunch and texture to the salad, add 1/4 to 1/3 cup cooked crumbled bacon.
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I like to stir the bacon in, then sprinkle a bit more on top before serving.
Cover and refrigerate to chill the salad.
I get a lot of compliments on this salad. It has a great flavor!

Enjoy!

Jennifer’s Potato Salad 3 lb. red potatoes 5 hard boiled eggs 2/3 cup chopped onion 2/3 cup chopped dill pickles 2/3 cup chopped celery 2/3 to 3/4 cup Italian salad dressing 2 Tb. apple cider vinegar 3 Tb. dill pickle juice 3/4 cup mayonnaise 1 tsp. Lawry’s seasoned salt salt and pepper to taste 1/4 to 1/3 cup cooked crumbled bacon Hard boil the eggs, then place in ice water. Boil potatoes until tender. Drain and chop. Drizzle warm potatoes with Italian dressing, vinegar and pickle juice. Add chopped vegetables and eggs. Mix together. Add mayonnaise and Lawry’s seasoned salt. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add bacon. Refrigerate to chill. Serve and enjoy!

Apple Berry Salsa

September 6, 2009 jennifer Snacks and Appetizers

I could eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner! I love this salsa.
It’s delicious, and a great way to enjoy seasonal fruit.

Start with 1 cup diced strawberries.

Peel and chop 1 kiwi Then peel 2 apples. Granny Smith is best, but I had gala on hand Core and chop the apples Zest one orange Add to the fruit mixture.

Squeeze the juice of the orange into a small bowl.

Add 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar.

Add 2 Tablespoons apple jelly and mix.

Pour over fruit mixture.

Mix gently.

Spoon into small bowls or dessert cups and serve with cinnamon chips.
Usually I make my own cinnamon chips by baking flour tortillas, but this time I decided to try it with Stacy’s Cinnamon pita chips.

The pita chips were a little too thick for my personal tastes, but the salsa still tasted wonderful. This is such a delicious dish! Later we used it as a topping for our homemade raspberry frozen yogurt, and it was heavenly.

In fact, this is so good you might want to skip the chips and frozen yogurt and just dig in with a spoon!

Apple Berry Salsa 1 cup diced strawberries 1 kiwi, peeled and chopped 2 medium granny smith apples, peeled and chopped zest of 1 orange juice of 1 orange 2 Tb. packed brown sugar 2 Tb. apple jelly cinnamon chips