Well,, another year and season passes - lets hope the weather in 2013 is a bit better than that of 2012.
The spring was too dry, the summer too wet and overcast to have been called a good one.
Don't forget to plant out garlic cloves now, and inside plant onion seed in trays.
Seasons greetings to all of you and yours, I wish you a happy, peaceful and prosperous new year.
Oranges are not the only fruit - nor are fruit in the way we look at things. In an EU Jam Directive, written in the 80s and updated in 2001, it describes the parameters required for a product to be labelled as jam or marmalade.
There is the phrase "for the purposes of this directive, tomatoes, the edible part of rhubarb stalks, carrots, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, melons and water melons are considered to be fruit".
This was introduced to pacify the Portuguese.
In Portugal, a delicious jam is made from carrots! There is also a version in India, this recipe is sort of a hybrid. The result is delicious, fresh and crisp - it makes a real change from the norm.
The recipe for carrot marmalade is furtehr down the page
There is also a precedent from Victorian times, from Mrs Beeton's famous book on Household Management.
One assumes that in Victorian times real apricot jam would have been expensive, so this would have been a substitute for families of a more modest income.
The book written by Mrs Isabella Mary Beeton (née Mayson) (12 March 1836 – 6 February 1865) is regarded as the first modern cookbook, it a format that was a precursor to what we have now.
The book contained 900 recipes, because of this the book is also known as Mrs Beeton's Cookbook.
Most of the recipes were illustrated with coloured engravings, and it was the first book to show recipes in a format that is still used today.
I was a guide to running a Victorian household, with advice not only on cooking but also fashion, animal husbandry, poisons(!!!!), the management of servants, science, religion, and industrialism.
No doubt, a few copies of this book would have been sold in Ireland, particularly with a growing middle class in places like Belfast, Dublin and Cork.
The recipe I give here is based on Mrs Beeton's Carrot jam to imitate Apricot Preserve - but altered to add flavour and help setting. As a fan of Indian and SE Asian cuisine, I had to add my own twist to it.
The carrots I used for this were Jaune Obtuse de Doubs, I sourced the seeds for this heritage French variety from realseeds.co.uk.
They are a yellow carrot, and so were perfect for this recipe. They are very sweet naturally and grew well in the garden this year, great to add to salads as well.
This recipe is an ideal way to use up smaller or mis-shapen carrots.
The weights here will fill about three and a half standard jam jars.
INGREDIENTS.
900 gm Carrots, sliced
100 gm Cooking apple, grated
900 gm Sugar
Zest of one lemon
Juice of two lemons
5 Tsp ground Almond
1 Tsp Tumeric (for added colour) OPTIONAL
1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
Seeds of 5 Cardamom pods, crushed
You can of course add the flavours you like as well, things like star anise, ginger, cinnamon or nutmeg are recommended.
METHOD
Put sliced carrots into a pot with boiling water, around 300 ml to ensure they don't burn.
With a grater, remove the zest from one lemon and squeeze out the juice.
Squeeze the second lemon.
Peel and grate the apple.
Mix the ground almond, grated apple, lemon zest, cardamon pods and lemon juice.
When the carrots are softened a bit after about 10 minutes add the apple/almond/lemon mix and tumeric to the syrup and stir through.
Keep stirring until the apple has broken down.
At this point there should be enough liquid to cover the bottom third of the ingredients.
Add the sugar and dissolve. Keep stirring until carrots are soft.
After about 10 minutes its time to blend the mix. This is where we have a real advantage over the Victorians as the carrots can be blended down to almost a puree, giving a real apricot jam imitation.
This is a little different from normal jam making. This is because the carrots float.
Strain off the ingredients, retaining the liquid syrup.
Return the syrup to the cooking pot and keep on low temperature.
Add the solids to the blender and give it about 3 minutes until finely blended.
At this point I added the 1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
Return the blended solids to the pot and reduce over a low heat, remember to stir frequently to stop anything burning.
Do the cold plate test as normal for jams and prepare to jar up in hot sterilised jars as per the preserves made easy posting. Fill the jars to just below the threads and waterbath to seal.
The biggest difference between my recipe and Mrs. Beeton's is that she advises, to extend the shelf life, that you allow the carrot jam to cool and add 3 Tsp of Brandy (I suppose any strong liquer would do) - but you need to do this at under 70 deg C to retain the alcohol. But other than flavour, the water bath treatment should take care of this anyway. The other divergence is the apple, that I added for the pectin content.
FALSE MARMALADE
Fairly straight forward this, pretty much as above with a few minor changes. The big difference is grating the carrot to give a marmalade like texture and the use of Demerera sugar to make it a bit darker.
INGREDIENTS
900 gm red carrot (I used Lisse de Mieux, also from realseeds)
100 gm tart apple
Zest and Juice of two Oranges
Zest and juice of one Lemon (try a couple of lime if you like)
200 ml water
500 gm white sugar
400 gm Demerera Sugar.
METHOD
Grate the carrots and apple. The grating is done for texture and appearance
Zest and juice oranges and lemon
Blend all above ingredients, put into a large heavy bottomed pot and soften the carrot.
When the carrot is softened, take about 1/3rd of the grated carrot and put through food blender/processor.
Return processed carrot to pot and add all sugar.
Cook until reduced to setpoint and jar as per previous posting on preserves.
Yields 3.5 regular jam jars, tastes delicious.
Thanks for reading and please do take the time to leave a comment.
This is a Ukrainian style preserved cabbage.
But this method is the same as for Zuurkool, Sauerkraut, Kimchi and other fermented veg recipies.
You will need a fermenter or a very large crock, glass or enamel container
Non iodized salt
Sterilised bottles, filled with water
Sterilised plate to fit container
A sterilised tealight if you want to copy this method.
The basics are salt and cabbage.
I used 2.3 KG of cabbage and 4 tablespoons of sea salt.
You can make as much as you wish as long as you use the ratio of 5 lbs. cabbage to 4 Tbs. salt.
If you plan on refrigerating and not jarring use 3 tbs of salt, not 4.
I added:
Half a cooking apple, grated - the sugar speeds up fementation.
Half a teaspoon of Juniper Berries
Half a teaspoon of Carraway seed
Some tips here to prevent problems with your sauerkraut:
Never use aluminum utensils! Absolute cleanliness is necessary for a good result.
I made a fermenter with the help of Home Brew West to make my sauerkraut. But you can use a glass or enamel coated container or a large crock.
Clean and scald the container well! I washed everything in Milton Fluid first, then rinsed by pouring boiling water into the container and swishing around for no less than 30 seconds
To prepare the cabbage, remove and discard the outer leaves. Wash and drain and then cut the cabbages into halves or quarters while removing the core in the process.
1) Shred Cabbage - I use a food processor for speed and ease. If you shred by hand, make sure the shreds are no thicker than 2 Euro coin
2) Mix, with wooden spoon or very clean hands, 2.3 KG / 5 lb of shredded cabbage with 4 tablespoons of non iodized salt like seasalt, maldon salt or Kosher salt - do not use regular table salt.
Toss and mix thoroughly until salt dissolves.
Step 3) When juice starts to form on cabbage from tossing - Pack the cabbage firmly and evenly into a clean crock, glass or enamel container. Press firmly to encourage juice formation.
You can also give it a bit of a pounding, I use a rolling pin, the blunt end.
Leave it for an hour or so to let the liquids seep out of the cabbage.
Step 4) Make sure the liquid covers the cabbage completely!
This does not always happen unless the cabbage is fresh from the garden, and red cabbage seems to have less water than green.
You can prepare additional extra brine by putting 1 1/2 Tablespoons of salt into 950 ml of boiling water. Dissolve salt and cool brine to room temperature before adding to the pot of cabbage.
Step 5) Once cabbage is immersed in brine water, place your sterile plate and weights on top
I used sterilised bottles filled with water but you cab use a large food grade, plastic bag filled with brine water and lay on top if cabbage.
Use 2 large bags, one inside the other with a couple of litres of cooled brine water inside.
That way if the bag breaks it will not water down the cabbage into a tasteless mess.
The cabbage must be well sealed all around with the bag, so no air can get in and contaminate the sauerkraut with unwanted yeasts or molds!
Step 6) If using a fermenter the put on the lid and wrap clingfilm round the edge.
If you dont have a lid first seal off with clingfilm, then a heavy towel or cloth tied securely into place.
Do not remove this until fermenting is complete!
It really does need to be airtight as it is oxygen that spoils the food.
Now, one little trick I came up with for the fermenter was to remove all oxygen is very clever, straight out of intercert physics, even if I do say so myself, and easy - but you need to be careful.
I took a but a lit Tealight candle into the fermenter before closing.
I then closed the lid and sealed off with clingfilm as above.
On the first attempt the candle created a new unplanned "observation" window that I had to seal again with clingfilm and silicone.
But the second attempt worked. The trick is to keep cold water running over any hotspot the candle creates.
21% of air is oxygen, so that got burnt off by the candle that extinguishes itself when the oxygen runs out - and also creates a partial vaccum in the fermenter. Doing this burt off approx. 2 litres of oxygen.
In addition to getting rid of O2 there is another benefit. You can see this on the s-bend airlock that I got from Home Brew West, that difference of level on both sides confirms that I have an airtight seal.
I am actually happy to have an observation hole now and will incorprate that into my next fermenter, but get some plexiglass or glass instead, the clingfilm repair job will do for now.
Step 7) Put in an area where the temperature will not be above 25c degrees. Fermentation will begin within a day, depending upon the room temperature.
Step 8) Fermenting does not take long, but this is
If room temperature is 24c degrees allow 3 weeks for fermentation.
If room temperature is 20c degrees allow 4 weeks for fermentation.
If room temperature is 18c degrees allow 5 weeks for fermentation.
If room temperature is 15c degrees allow 6 weeks for fermentation.
NOTE: If temperature is above 25 degrees, the cabbage may not ferment and could spoil.
Step 9) Once fermented taste to see if your required tartness exists. Tartness will weaken as you process by jarring so make sure it is a wee bit more tart than you like!
If you refrigerate only rinse and toss with cold water to attain the tartness desired.
This is a great staple for the cupboard. I love it with smoked sausage, I guess its because I really liked rookwurst and zuurkool in the Netherlands.
There are good smoked sausage available in Ireland at the supermarkets, Lidl in particular.
Another one that I get locally is delicious, made by McGeough's in Oughterard
Like my Blackberry Chutney, this is another way to use blackberries.
The final result is a stunning lemon and blackberry flavour with a creamy, buttery texture
It tastes really nice, perhaps a little too sweet, so in future I'll just reduce the sugar content a bit, and maybe use a little carrageen, I just need a little more tartness.
I think it would make a really nice filling for a tart.
The only pain is the straining, but it is really worth the trouble.
Before you start I would recommend reading Val Harrisons advice on curd making
Its just a nice thing to have a bit of variation on the staple blackberry jam, which cant be beaten - but this comes close.
It is advised that you use unsalted butter, but I used a really good butter from a small Mayo based family company who make a really nice butter, far better than anything else I found in the supermarkets over the years. Cuineog have deservedly won several awards for their traditional, great tasting product. It's great to see a small family business doing so well.
Once you have tried Cuinneog, I can tell you it's hard to back to the mass produced kerrygold types.
The flavour is rich, and if your going to the trouble of making this curd, just for the flavour, I'd recommend it fully.
The good news is that Cuinneog's distribution and availability is increasing all the time.
Ingredients:
1.0kg blackberries
350g peeled and cored apples*
150 ml water
110 g butter
Yolks of 2 fresh eggs
900g sugar
100 ml fresh lemon juice
I added 20g Ginger and two tsp lemon rind to give a little more zing to the original recipe that came from the wonderful John and Val Harrison at allotment.org.uk
Vals method is a little different to mine, but they both work.
(*I added 100gm of rhubarb in lieu of apple)
Method:
1.Put blackberries, apples and sugar in a large saucepan with the water. Bring to the boil over a high heat. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes until the fruit is is soft and near setpoint.
2.Remove from the heat and push the fruit through a strainer into a medium-sized mixing bowl, pressing down on the fruit with a wooden spoon.
3.Put another heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water or bain maire and melt the butter.
Beat the eggs lightly and stir into the bowl with the lemon juice and pressed blackberry and apple.
4. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes or until mixture thickens, stir frequently.
5. Remove the bowl from the heat and pour the curd into clean, dry, warm, sterilized jars.
IMPORTANT TIP: Filling curd jars is different from jam, you leave as little headspace as possible because Curds shrink.
8. Don't forget to cool them sitting on a cloth, this gives more even cooling.
Keep the jars in a cool, dry place. Curds will last about 3 months if kept in a refrigerator, 6 weeks in a cool, dark place but only about a week once they are opened.
I hope the waterbath may push out the shelf life to about 5 months
Despite my best efforts the cats are still not impressed, but my kohlrabi has started to come of age, and I want to use them.
Also, today is important as it was the first new potato's I lifted.
In our family, my father would always grow crops for the kitchen. We always had them planted by St Patrick's day, and lifted for the first time for St MacDaras day (July 14th)
I was concerned about floppy-ness in the helms, or potato stalks, so I uncovered the bottom of one of the auxiliary ridges, and much to my delight I uncovered a few small potato's, they are still a little small and remaining plants will get a few more weeks - but those from the test dig get cooked tonight.
Dis still not cheezburgrz!!!
I haz had nuff
The name is German, Kohl is cabbage, plus Rübe ~ Rabi, the Swiss German for turnip - so it literally means cabbage turnip, and is sometimes called German turnip.
But it can grow almost anywhere. They even have a word for it in Icelandic - hnúðkál !!
It must be one of the weirder looking veggies in the garden, like some kind of UFO.
It is easy to grow, does not take up much space - far less than turnip, so I wish I had planted more of them.
I grew the kohlrabi from seed. The variety I got was Olivia F1 - one of the few hybrids in the garden, it was the only kohlrabi I could find locally, bit of an impulse buy. Next year I hope to get Azur Star or Superschmelz.
Kohlrabi is commonly eaten in Kashmir where it's called Monj, and eaten with the leaves.
There is a spicy version called "dum monj" and non-spicy version is called Monj-haakh that will be dealt with in the future.
It can be cooked or used in salads - a very versatile veg.
The taste is like broccoli stem or cabbage heart, but milder and sweeter. Under 10cm I am told is a good time to harvest as most varieties can get woody.
The easiest way to adapt it to Irish cuisine is use it as a substitute for white turnip.
This first recipe is a mild cooked version based on a German recipe -
As they say in Germany - Mahlzeit!
1 c. finely chopped onions
1 lb. peeled kohlrabi, cut into stick pieces about 1 1/4 inches long and 1/4 inch thick (about the size of a small chip so a food processor is ideal.)
4 tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. salt
About 1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. flour
1 c. milk
1/3 c. finely chopped fresh parsley
In a heavy frying pan over medium heat saute onions and kohlrabi in butter until well coated with the butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover tightly and cook, stirring occasionally until kohlrabi is tender, about 25 minutes.
Sprinkle with flour and turn to mix. Gradually add milk and cook and gently stir mixture until milk thickens to a smooth sauce. Correct seasoning, adding salt and pepper generously. Stir in parsley. Makes 4 servings.
You could serve this with some stamppot which I have made here before minus the bacon.
But today I'm going for new potato's (first ones from the garden - Orlas) boiled in fresh Atlantic Ocean water.
I simply collected seawater on the flood tide (cleaner this way) and boiled the new spuds in it. Strained them, added a good chunk of butter to the pot after returning the potato's with chopped chives.
Simple, perfect and easy.
This was served with a pork chop dusted in flour and paprika to add a bit of spiciness to the meal.
As a bit extra, I took some of my Japanese Mustard Greens and stir fried them in the paprika/oil remnants for only about 30 seconds, it really added heat, depth and spice.
I found the kohlrabi dish and the mustard green to be a delicious contradiction, this creamy clean parsley/mild cabbage taste with the spicy pork chop and mustard greens with the saltiness and texture of the new potato's was a really nice meal.
There is a Grace that my family have always said with the first crop of new potato's, I guess its an old Irish post-famine prayer
Fogriam Fuacht agus Gort as Eireann,
Dia go ar tharlu
Is go mbeireagh muid beo ag an am seo ar ais
It translates as
I banish cold and hunger from Ireland
God protect us
And may we be alive this time next year.
Adapted a recipe on the excellent food and travel blog souvlakiforthesoul.com -
Its an Irish twist on a Greek favourite.
For the original recipe visit the link above, its direct.
They are wonderful served warm as a snack with something like an expresso coffee and Tahini or Yoghurt sauce and perfect for a quick breakfast the next morning.
The greeks use caster sugar in this pastry recipe that I used honey for, and altered the original to potato, buttermilk and Soda dough.
GARDEN GREENS with FETA IN POTATO SODA DOUGH SCROLLS
For the pastry:
150 gm plain flour
100 gm cold potato peeled or mash
1 tsp of honey
80 gm of chilled, chopped good quality butter
teaspoon baking powder/soda
Teaspoon salt
buttermilk to finish
Mix all ingredients except milk in a bowl until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Then add enough milk to form a soft dough and mix thoroughly with a fork.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes, until it’s quite smooth Shape into a 35 x 20 cm rectangle. Trim the edges.
Retain buttermilk for egg wash mix.
If you have only regular milk, pour a little into a glass and add a squeez of lemon or lime juice, or a drop of vinegar if there no lemon or lime available.
Excess off-cut dough can be saved in fridge to make dumplings, or be used on a cover for assorted pies
For the filling:
300 gm of freshly chopped leaves.
Whatever you have handy really. I used mostly spinach-say 200 gm, with some beet leaf and Mustard green leaf thinnings
50 gm chopped shallots
Quickly blanch leaves and shallots, squeeze off any excess water. (makes approx 200 grams)
200 gm of crumbled feta
75 gm of crushed walnuts and almond mix
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg to mix with buttermilk for wash
Place all the ingredients, excluding the nuts in a food processor and whizz until you have a nice, creamy paste.
Spread the spinach mixture on the freshly rolled dough and spread the nuts evenly on top.
Roll the dough up until it resembles a log, or swiss roll, making sure to seal it with a little egg wash on the final tuck.
If the pastry board is small enough, just put it into the fridge like that, the less it is handled, the better
Leave the roll into a refrigerator and allow it chill for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 200 deg C.
Gently transfer the roll onto a cutting board, or just leave on pastry board - using a lightly floured serrated knife cut into 2cm thick slices.
Arrange the slices on a baking tray, leaving a little room between them to allow for spreading during cooking.
They will need more space than shown in this picture.
Brush a little egg and buttermilk on the top and sides and bake for 15 mins in the middle of the oven until golden.
I serve with a modified Al Fez Tahini sauce, but greek yoghurt is another option, which some would prefer at breakfast.
TAHINI DRESSING
2 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
1/2 cup well-stirred Al Fez, or ay sesame seed paste
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh corriander
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Im sure the recipe is adaptable to allow for collard greens and other fillings. If you want a less salty filling, perhaps try mild goats cheese in place of the feta, the only limitations are imagination.
I would, however, avoid using overpowering flavours as the idea is to get the delicacy of the dough and greens with the strength of the cheese.
Enjoy, as they say in Greece - Καλή όρεξη! (Kalí óreksi!)
Well, there is a recipe that can be used for any potato based mash.
The Irish make many types of potato cake, this is just my version.
Its simply a way of using up left-overs.
I used up my turnip greens stamppot in this way, and its a nice brunch/lunch.
I did find the stamppot mash made a really delicious cake.
With the turnip top and bacon bits in the cake, its like a cross between a normal potato cake with the English staple, bubble and squeak
PROCEDURE
Simply put the flour, mash and egg in a bowl.
Keep some flour for dusting fingers and board.
Add some salt if it is a plain mash.
Mix with a fork.
Dust your pastry board* (see 2012 below for another suggestion)
With a serving spoon place a dollop of mix onto the board and shape into patties like burgers.
Finished they should be about 2cm thick, and a diameter of about 15 cm
These can be frozen for future use, just defrost the night before cooking. Just put greaseproof paper between them and store in a lunchbox container or a clingfilm wrap.
Fry in olive oil or Donegal Rapeseed oil. Serve with mayonnaise and chives or shallots.
Enjoy!
* 2012 update
For a bit of variety, crunch and just to look a little different you can incorporate rolled oats
Simply mix some rolled oats with the flour
Then pat down the potato cake onto the board, both sides
