I finally got round to trying some of my preserves over Christmas and have to say I was extremely pleased with the results...
... tomato & pepper relish really did taste as good as something you could buy in the shops - I can't wait to try it on a burger.
... pickled green tomatoes were quite sweet, I was expecting them to taste more like pickles. They are lovely with both cheese and ham.
... pumpkin chutney was a total delight, I will definitely be making more of that next year.
... pickled cucumbers, once again are just as good as the ones you can buy. I will have to put more effort into growing onions for pickling next year.
The only thing left to try is cucumber and apple chutney, hopefully I will enjoy that just as much as the others.
Showing posts with label Green Tomatoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Green Tomatoes. Show all posts
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Sunday, 3 October 2010
Green Tomato Jam
I thought I'd do something completely different with some of the tomatoes and green tomato jam seemed completely different; I made a couple of batches of this.
This is what the recipe called for:
3 lbs Green Tomatoes
2 lbs Cooking Apples
4 tbsp Lemon Juice (bottled)
1 oz Root Ginger
3 lbs Sugar (I used a mixture of jam sugar and granulated)
A Little Water
This is what I did:
Wash and quarter the tomatoes (the second time I chopped them smaller than quarters). Peel, core and cut the apples into chunks. Place in a pan with the lemon juice.
Slice the ginger and tie up in muslin; place this in the pan.
Cover with enough water to come to the level of the fruit. I didn't really know what or how much this meant; the first time I think I put far too much water in and it took ages to simmer away, so the next time I just put in enough to cover the bottom of the pan before I added the tomatoes and apples.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer until the fruit is tender.
Remove from the heat, add the sugar and stir to dissolve.
Return to the heat, bring back to the boil then allow to simmer until reaching the correct consistency. Stir occasionally.
Decant into warm sterilised jars and seal.
This really is a lovely jam, a couple of people have said it tastes a bit like plum. You wouldn't think it was made from tomatoes and it is delicious on hot buttered granary toast.
This is what the recipe called for:
3 lbs Green Tomatoes
2 lbs Cooking Apples
4 tbsp Lemon Juice (bottled)
1 oz Root Ginger
3 lbs Sugar (I used a mixture of jam sugar and granulated)
A Little Water
This is what I did:
Wash and quarter the tomatoes (the second time I chopped them smaller than quarters). Peel, core and cut the apples into chunks. Place in a pan with the lemon juice.
Slice the ginger and tie up in muslin; place this in the pan.
Cover with enough water to come to the level of the fruit. I didn't really know what or how much this meant; the first time I think I put far too much water in and it took ages to simmer away, so the next time I just put in enough to cover the bottom of the pan before I added the tomatoes and apples.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer until the fruit is tender.
Remove from the heat, add the sugar and stir to dissolve.
Return to the heat, bring back to the boil then allow to simmer until reaching the correct consistency. Stir occasionally.
Decant into warm sterilised jars and seal.
This really is a lovely jam, a couple of people have said it tastes a bit like plum. You wouldn't think it was made from tomatoes and it is delicious on hot buttered granary toast.
Pickled Green Tomatoes
I got this recipe from a veggie growing forum on the internet and thought I'd give it a go. I think it said that the recipe is originally from Germany.
This is what I used:
5 lbs Green Tomatoes, 1 inch (2.5cm) diameter maximum, stems removed
2 pints Malt Vinegar
6 Cloves
1 x 1 in Cinnamon Stick
1 whole Nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 lb Sugar
1 pint White Wine Vinegar
This is what I did:
Place the tomatoes in a large pan with the malt vinegar. Stir very gently and bring to the boil, then strain immediately.
Put the tomatoes very carefully into a bowl, taking care not to split the skins.
Boil the cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and sugar with the white wine vinegar in a separate pan.
Pour hot over the tomatoes. Cover and leave for 24 hours.
On day three, heat the tomatoes and the liquid together, but do not boil. Lift out the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and pack them carefully into warmed jars. Throw out any that have accidentally split their skins because they will ruin the effect of the pickle.
Reduce the liquid until it turns slightly syrupy, then strain off the spices and pour the cooling pickle over the tomatoes, making sure they are completely covered.
Seal and store for 3 months before opening.
I haven't actually tasted them yet, but the aroma as I was making them was very pleasant so I can't wait to try them.
This is what I used:
5 lbs Green Tomatoes, 1 inch (2.5cm) diameter maximum, stems removed
2 pints Malt Vinegar
6 Cloves
1 x 1 in Cinnamon Stick
1 whole Nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 lb Sugar
1 pint White Wine Vinegar
This is what I did:
Place the tomatoes in a large pan with the malt vinegar. Stir very gently and bring to the boil, then strain immediately.
Put the tomatoes very carefully into a bowl, taking care not to split the skins.
Boil the cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and sugar with the white wine vinegar in a separate pan.
Pour hot over the tomatoes. Cover and leave for 24 hours.
On day three, heat the tomatoes and the liquid together, but do not boil. Lift out the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and pack them carefully into warmed jars. Throw out any that have accidentally split their skins because they will ruin the effect of the pickle.
Reduce the liquid until it turns slightly syrupy, then strain off the spices and pour the cooling pickle over the tomatoes, making sure they are completely covered.
Seal and store for 3 months before opening.
I haven't actually tasted them yet, but the aroma as I was making them was very pleasant so I can't wait to try them.
More Green Tomato Chutney
My bumper harvest of green tomatoes called for a few batches of green tomato chutney.
I based it on a different recipe this time, which didn't use any apples. As per usual I changed it a little bit, so this is what I used:
5 lbs Green Tomatoes
1 lb Onions
1 lb Sultanas
1 oz Root Ginger
Chillies
Spices (black peppercorns, allspice berries, cloves, mustard seed)
1 pint Balsamic Vinegar
1 lb Demerara Sugar
And this is what I did:
Wash and chop the tomatoes and onions; I use a food processor to get them finely chopped. Place in a pan with the sultanas.
Slice the ginger root, chop the chillies in half (the recipe calls for 4 red chillies, but I used a variety that is green when ripe for one batch as I had some in the garden ready to be picked), and place in muslin with the spices. I varied the spice mix each time so didn't necessarily use all of them in each batch. The mix below was allspice berries and cloves.
Secure the muslin parcel and place in the pan with the vinegar.
Bring to the boil. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Reduce the heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until it has thickened to the right consistency.
Decant into warm sterilised jars and seal.
I based it on a different recipe this time, which didn't use any apples. As per usual I changed it a little bit, so this is what I used:
5 lbs Green Tomatoes
1 lb Onions
1 lb Sultanas
1 oz Root Ginger
Chillies
Spices (black peppercorns, allspice berries, cloves, mustard seed)
1 pint Balsamic Vinegar
1 lb Demerara Sugar
And this is what I did:
Wash and chop the tomatoes and onions; I use a food processor to get them finely chopped. Place in a pan with the sultanas.
Slice the ginger root, chop the chillies in half (the recipe calls for 4 red chillies, but I used a variety that is green when ripe for one batch as I had some in the garden ready to be picked), and place in muslin with the spices. I varied the spice mix each time so didn't necessarily use all of them in each batch. The mix below was allspice berries and cloves.
Secure the muslin parcel and place in the pan with the vinegar.
Bring to the boil. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Reduce the heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until it has thickened to the right consistency.
Decant into warm sterilised jars and seal.
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Green Tomato Chutney
I'm not totally sure why my first attempt to preserve some of my produce was green tomato chutney... maybe it had something to do with coming to the end of my first growing season and not being convinced that the remaining tomatoes were going to ripen naturally.
So, I searched on the internet and found a recipe for green tomato chutney. It called for:
4lb (2Kg) Green Tomatoes
1lb (450g) Cooking Apples, peeled and cored
1 1/4 lb (575g) Shallots or onions
8oz (225g) Sultanas
1/2oz (15g) Fresh root ginger
8-10 dried red chillies (think I only used 4-5)
1oz (25g) Salt
1lb (450g) Brown Sugar
1 Pint (600ml) Malt Vinegar (I used Balsamic)
and told me to:
Chop the tomatoes, apples, onions and raisins. Alternatively mince these if you prefer smoother chutney (I minced them); Place them in a large saucepan.
Bruise the ginger and chillies: place them between sheets of greaseproof paper and hit them with a rolling pin or mallet. Tie them in a piece of muslin and add the packet to the saucepan.
Stir in all the remaining ingredients and bring the chutney to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the chutney until thickened to the desired consistency.
Stir the preserve frequently during cooking to prevent it sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Remove the bag of spices before potting the Chutney.
How easy was that?.... Extremely, have a look at the results.
The only thing I was paranoid about was ensuring that the jars were properly sterilised, so that I wouldn't open one a couple of months later and be faced with a layer of fungus. Luckily this wasn't an issue; I made the chutney in September and most of it was consumed around Christmas... yum!
So, I searched on the internet and found a recipe for green tomato chutney. It called for:
4lb (2Kg) Green Tomatoes
1lb (450g) Cooking Apples, peeled and cored
1 1/4 lb (575g) Shallots or onions
8oz (225g) Sultanas
1/2oz (15g) Fresh root ginger
8-10 dried red chillies (think I only used 4-5)
1oz (25g) Salt
1lb (450g) Brown Sugar
1 Pint (600ml) Malt Vinegar (I used Balsamic)
and told me to:
Chop the tomatoes, apples, onions and raisins. Alternatively mince these if you prefer smoother chutney (I minced them); Place them in a large saucepan.
Bruise the ginger and chillies: place them between sheets of greaseproof paper and hit them with a rolling pin or mallet. Tie them in a piece of muslin and add the packet to the saucepan.
Stir in all the remaining ingredients and bring the chutney to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the chutney until thickened to the desired consistency.
Stir the preserve frequently during cooking to prevent it sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Remove the bag of spices before potting the Chutney.
How easy was that?.... Extremely, have a look at the results.
The only thing I was paranoid about was ensuring that the jars were properly sterilised, so that I wouldn't open one a couple of months later and be faced with a layer of fungus. Luckily this wasn't an issue; I made the chutney in September and most of it was consumed around Christmas... yum!
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