Homemade Low-Sugar Strawberry Jam Made with a Bread Machine

Spring is my favorite season; warm, bugless sunny days filled with the potent fragrance and color of early flowers like lilies and lilacs after a long, gray and cold winter.  And, BERRIES!  Lots of berries!

I look forward to berry season each year.  I use them on everything from cereal to salad, yogurt, muffins and now fresh jam!

I never, ever imagined that I'd make my own, especially because I saw how Grandma made jellies and jams.  It is a favored memory but it would be too much labor, time and volume for me.  The family would drive two hours to get to the country for the best pickings.  We gathered wild elderberries in buckets on the roadsides and visited the farmer stands for baskets full of berries, plumbs or grapes later in the summer.  Once and a while if we were lucky, and if Grandpa netted the cherry tree well in their back yard, and kept up his watch shooting enough BBs from his pellet gun into the air to scare the birds, we managed a jar or two of cherry jam.

Making jam or jelly with Mom at Grandma's was fun as a child, but it looked complicated.  There were so many large pots simmering on the stove, strainers, and huge metal cones with holes to mash berries and grapes into juice without all the seeds.  There were thermometers and times where my brother and I had to be quiet for a few minutes as Grandma and Mom behind her shoulder watched them closely.  There were also times where we had to leave the small kitchen quickly as Mom and Grandma poured hot fruit liquid into glass jars and pour hot wax to the top.  Then, sometimes there was some boiling of the jars if I remember correctly, or perhaps that's an overlapped memory of their vegetable canning.

Anyway, there was no way I was ever going to do all this, no matter they were the best jellies and jams I ever had.

Thank goodness for my very dear friend, Elaine.  She bought us an Oster Bread Maker for our wedding.  I had it on our registry because I couldn't wait to make homemade bread, pasta and pizza dough for my first time.  This machine is great for all of these.  It cuts down on time, the physical labor of kneading and mess.  Spreading your counter, floor and ceiling with flour is avoided with most of the recipes.

As you can see by the photos, I like to mark recipes I've tried with a blue postie.

I have tried eight from the Oster user manual  (the green tab is a quick measurement guide).


Surprisingly, there are recipes to make just a jar or two full of jam or marmalade.

I was so excited!  Could I actually make jam as good as Grandma, without making 2 dozen jars with all those contraptions?

Yes, I can!  The bread machine heats the ingredients up to just the right temperature for the right amount of time, so no watching the clock or thermometers.

Plus, this recipe is LOW SUGAR.  Most jam recipes call for double or triple the amount of sugar.  Pectin for low or no sugar recipes MUST be used.

And, don't skimp and use bottled lemon juice.  Most bottled lemon juice is diluted with water.  Only 100% fresh squeezed lemon juice will work with the pectin to make it gel.  You will only need one.

I've only made strawberry and blueberry jam, or a combo of both in the past three years.  Strawberries are my favorite, and our new home has a blueberry patch.  I love blueberries, too, and these two berries are easy to do since there are no large seeds to filter.

I plan on posting a blog entry when my blueberries are ready, and Elaine with her kind, beautiful daughter will help me pick them and make jam as we have done in the past.

For now, here's the recipe for the strawberry jam I just made.  Strawberries are super-cheap in my area now, so I'll be making more.

Copied and adapted from Oster Bread Maker's User Manual received in 2009.

Makes 2-3 cups

1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon powdered low-sugar pectin
1.5 cups fresh strawberries, sliced or diced
(dice smaller if you want more jelly or @ three cups,  keep them in slices or larger chunks if you want a thicker jam with more strawberries, but approx. two cups.)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Combine all ingredients into bread pan
Select Basic setting

Press "Start/Stop" Allow to mix 5-6 minutes, scraping sides of the pan with rubber spatula.

Press "Start/Stop" to cancel
Select Bake setting
Press "Start/Stop"
When Unit signals and display reads "0:00," press "Start/Stop"

Using hot pads, remove bread pan
Pour jam into glass container(s)

Use old jam or jelly jars, or any smaller glass jar with a lid. 

Cover. Refrigerate to set  (at least overnight or 8 hours)

Mom's Heavenly Cheesecake

This post is especially for Tresia, a reader from Namibia who saw the photo of my mom's cheesecake on Easter and asked for the recipe.

I thought I'd share it.  It needs to be shared.  Her cheesecakes are one of her many masterpieces.  Friends joked in the past that she should do catering.  It is just that good.  Mom bought me my own springform pan which I look forward to use.  I'm less experienced as a baker, but I look forward to this challenge someday, and will post step by step photos.  Until then, Mom was most happy to share, and flattered that readers from around the globe have taken interest.  She is most grateful and so am I.  Thanks for asking and we are happy to share.

You will need a 10 inch springform pan.

You will also need another larger oven-safe container to cradle the cheesecake pan during baking.  It needs to be deep enough to hold the pan while it is 1/3 to 1/2 submerged in a water bath to bake.  Large casserole bakers or pans work well.


Preheat oven to 300F

Crust:
1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup butter, softened at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar

Mix all ingredients together.  Push into bottom of pan and a little bit up on the sides. Bake for 10 minutes.  Set aside.

Filling:
4  8oz packages of cream cheese, softened at room temperature
2  14 oz cans of sweetened condensed milk
6 large eggs or extra large eggs (7 medium, 8 small)
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
8 oz sour cream (I'm guessing yogurt may work if sour cream is not available)

Mix all together, then whip for 5 minutes.  It must be whipped at high speed for 5 minutes to incorporate air and fluffiness. 

Pour into crust mixture.  Cover springform pan and sides with foil and place in larger pan.  Add water in the larger pan 1/3 to 1/2 high from the springform pan's height.  Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean with a slight jiggle in the middle. Ovens will vary, so keep an eye on it and check close to 60 minutes. Take out of the water bath pan.  Let cool for 30 minutes before toppings are added.  Don't turn off the oven.

Topping:
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Rasberry syrup or jam (optional)

Beat together while cheesecake is cooking, then spread over the top of the cheesecake that has been cooled for 30 minutes.

Place back in the oven directly on the rack (no water bath) for 5-7 minutes.

Let this cool for another 15-30 minutes, then chill at least an hour until serving.

If you want to make it even more decadent like Mom did, spread raspberry syrup or preserves on top, then add fresh raspberries.

Thanks for reading!

Dogs in Blankets (aka Pigs in Blankets)

Have you ever had one of those days where you just can't think of anything to make for dinner?

 I've had one of those days for almost a week now.  Sure, I can think of lots of things to make.  I have trusted and true standbys we both love, as well as a dozen cookbooks with more than a few dozen red Post-It tabs which scream to me,

"You REALLY wanted to make this, remember?  That's why it's marked in red!"

Sometimes, though I know these recipes calling are out to me - casseroles and soups just waiting to be discovered and introduced to others.  Cakes and muffins ask to finally be acknowledged.  Roasts and gratins wait patiently to get promoted from a red tag to blue, meaning I have completed the recipe.

Yet, I ignore them all.  The cooking side of my brain goes on vacation.  Sometimes for a few weeks, and sometimes a long weekend is all my cooking spirit needs to get recharged.  In the meantime, there's our favorite Mexican restaurants, a decent place for pizza, and quick, brainless meals like this.

I didn't plan on this tonight, nor have I made it before.  And, I can't remember any time I've ever had Pigs in a Blanket.  I call this Dogs in Blankets instead of pigs because there was no pork in the hot dogs.

And, I'm not promoting this as a healthy dish AT ALL.  Meals like this are hardly in our menu, especially when I cook at home.  My husband loves hot dogs, I've never been crazy about them.  I'll have one at a baseball game in the Summer, and/or grilled out at a friend's, then I'm good until the next year.  Even though my husband loves them, it doesn't mean I make them for him all the time.

Today was one of those special occasions.  It's been one of the first few warm and sunny days we've had, so I got one of his favorite grilling options - 100% beef hot dogs.  We planned to grill out but didn't due to a variety of factors - first is that the grill is allllll the way back in the garage behind a LOT of stuff.  And, since our deck is midway into weatherproofing, there was no need to drag it all the way out and not to be able to permanently place it where it should be.  Hubby doesn't get many full Saturdays off; so, I cancelled the grill plans and let him nap on and off in his "Strato-Cruiser," his name for his eggplant purple recliner, his favorite color.

So, I was left with hot dogs ready to go without much else except the spinach salad I already prepared.  Neither of us like boiled hot dogs.  I didn't have anything else thawed from the freezer.  As I gazed hopelessly into the fridge and wishing I didn't have to go back the store to pick up french bread pizzas, I saw the can of  Pilsbury Grands Biscuits I was saving to make a version of spinach pies.  I remembered seeing all kinds of creations with biscuit and crescent dough on Pinterest.  I remembered seeing 'mummies' at Halloween - hot dogs with biscuit mix rolled around and baked.  My husband loves hot dogs wrapped in pretzel dough, so thought an experiment with this may be fun and hopefully tasty.

I didn't bother trying to roll them like a mummy.  Hubby was between naps and overdue for something to eat.  So, this is what I did:

Preheat oven to 350 f
One package of 8 Grands Biscuits
One package of 8 of your favorite hot dogs or sausage

Optional: shredded cheese, jalapeno, diced onions

On the side: ketchup, mustard, relish

Line a medium to large cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil.

Release biscuits from can and GENTLY pull them to the length of the hot dog.  Gently widen it to look like an oval or bottom of a hot dog bun.

If you wish, sprinkle cheese, peppers and/or onions onto bottom.

Place dog or sausage in middle, pull sides up and pinch together.

Bake between 15 and 20 minutes, depending on your oven.  Mine took 18 until the golden brown color was visible.  Let stand for 5 minutes and enjoy.

We did enjoy them, but there's no enthusiasm from either of us for me to make them again.  I liked that the biscuit mix was still buttery and flaky.  It made the plain ones tastier for me.  I liked the ones with the cheese and peppers better - it just gave more flavor, heat and dimension.  My husband quickly ate his four.  He liked them enough, but now he wishes he got out the grill.

Ina Garten's Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic and Penzey's Saffron Rice

Ina Garten, or the Barefoot Contessa has such easy recipes in her book, "Barefoot in Paris: Easy French Food You Can Make at Home,"I can actually say that I can cook French food well in my first attempts.  My latest endeavor was a tasty adventure into a garlic lover's dream, Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic.

40 cloves may seem like a lot, but since they are slow-roasted, it's the perfect number to achieve that mellow but sweet taste that sinks right into the chicken and makes the sauce memorable for guests at your dinner party.

Best of all, you can make this a day ahead and reheat.

Ina Garten suggests a Moroccan couscous recipe, but both of us prefer rice, so I made a saffron rice recipe from Penzey's Spices.  We thought it was the perfect accompaniment.

Though the garlic is mellow, it's still a LOT of garlic.  I suggest a mint-inspired dessert if you are serving guests.  You can't go wrong with mint chocolate chip ice cream, plain or sundaes.


Ingredients
3 whole heads garlic, about 40 cloves
2 (3 1/2-pound) chickens, cut into eighths
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons good olive oil
3 tablespoons Cognac, divided
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons heavy cream


Separate the cloves of garlic and drop them into a pot of boiling water for 60 seconds. Drain the garlic and peel. Set aside.

Dry the chicken with paper towels. Season liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the butter and oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. In batches, saute the chicken in the fat, skin side down first, until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Turn with tongs or a spatula; you don't want to pierce the skin with a fork. If the fat is burning, turn the heat down to medium. When a batch is done, transfer it to a plate and continue to saute all the chicken in batches. Remove the last chicken to the plate and add all of the garlic to the pot. Lower the heat and saute for 5 to 10 minutes, turning often, until evenly browned. Add 2 tablespoons of the Cognac and the wine, return to a boil, and scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pot with the juices and sprinkle with the thyme leaves. Cover and simmer over the lowest heat for about 30 minutes, until all the chicken is done.

Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of the sauce and the flour and then whisk it back into the sauce in the pot. Raise the heat, add the remaining tablespoon of Cognac and the cream, and boil for 3 minutes. Add salt and pepper, to taste; it should be very flavorful because chicken tends to be bland. Pour the sauce and the garlic over the chicken and serve hot

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chicken-with-forty-cloves-of-garlic-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

My New Posts on Author Maria Isabella's Blog

My new posts for cookbook author Maria Isabella's blog have been published.

I made Eric William's Sofrito Green Beans, one of the recipes in Isabella's book, "In the Kitchen with Cleveland's Favorite Chefs."