TOMATO CHILI JAM

Tomato Chili Jam

If ketchup put on $300 Japanese cult-brand jeans, this is what it would taste like: global, hip, sexy. This formula — infinitely adaptable, good with cheese, with fish, with spring rolls, as a chutney, as a sambal — began with the New Zealand chef Peter Gordon and was adapted by Darina Allen, the Irish cooking teacher. It appears in her book “Forgotten Skills of Cooking,” the first book anyone interested in craft cooking should read.

INGREDIENTS

• 28-ounce can plum tomatoes, diced (look for best quality)
• 3 to 6 fresh red chili peppers
• 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
• Fresh ginger, a 3-inch piece, peeled and chopped
• ¼ cup fish sauce
• ½ cup vinegar (like rice, wine or cider)
• 1 cup sugar

PREPARATION

1. Open the can of tomatoes and drain the liquid into a food processor or blender. Reserve the tomatoes.
2. Slice 3 to 6 fresh red chili peppers (depending on their heat) and add to the blender or processor with garlic, ginger and fish sauce. Blend until smooth.
3. Pour into a pan, add the diced tomatoes and vinegar and sugar. Simmer until thick and syrupy, about an hour. Natural pectin in the tomatoes gives the sauce its jammy consistency.
4. When cool, transfer to containers or jars, and keep refrigerated.

GREEK GODDESS DIP

GREEK GODDESS DIP

• ½ cup packed fresh dill
• ½ cup packed fresh mint
• ½ cup packed fresh parsley
• ⅓ cup packed fresh basil
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 scallions, white and green parts, sliced
• 1 ½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Pinch kosher salt, more to taste
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup mayonnaise, optional
• Raw chopped vegetables or pita chips, for serving

PREPARATION

1. Place dill, mint, parsley, basil, garlic, scallions, lemon juice and salt in a food processor and process until finely chopped.
2. With motor running, drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated. Add feta and process until smooth; pulse in yogurt. Taste dip and add more salt, if desired. If you like a creamier, richer dip, add mayonnaise and pulse to combine.
3. Serve dip immediately with vegetables or pita chips or cover and store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

CHICKEN GALLANTINE

Chicken galantine

TIME:

1-2 hours

SERVES:

4-6

Ask your butcher to bone the chicken for you, and to remove the bones without puncturing the skin.

Ingredients

100 g (3½ oz) minced (ground) chicken

150 g (5½ oz) minced (ground) pork

1 teaspoon green peppercorns

170 ml (5½ fl oz/⅔ cup) Calvados or apple brandy

2 tablespoons pouring cream

½ teaspoon mixed (pumpkin pie) spice

1 egg

50 g (1¾ oz) thickly sliced lean ham, cut into 1 cm (½ inch) dice

35 g (1¼ oz/¼ cup) pistachio kernels

2 kg (4 lb 8 oz) chicken, boned

80 g (2¾ oz) butter, softened

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F/Gas 3).

2. Put the chicken, pork and peppercorns in a small processor fitted with the metal blade. Whizz in 5second bursts for 35–45 seconds, or until fine. Add 2 tablespoons of the Calvados or apple brandy, the cream, mixed spice and egg and season with salt and pepper. Whizz in short bursts until just combined. Remove the bowl from the machine and stir in the ham and pistachios.

3. Lay the chicken on a board, skin side down, ensuring that all the flesh is on top of the skin. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the chicken and pork mixture on top, leaving a 3 cm (1¼ inch) border. Roll the chicken into a fat log, tucking in the ends as you roll. Tie the chicken in three to four places with kitchen string to help keep its shape, then secure the seams with short skewers.

4. Rub the butter all over the skin and put the chicken on a wire rack in a roasting tin. Cover the tin with foil, sealing the edges tightly. Bake for 35 minutes.

5. Remove the foil and pour the remaining Calvados or brandy over the chicken. Bake for 50 minutes, basting with the pan juices every 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool, basting once or twice. Wrap the chicken in foil and refrigerate overnight. Cut into thin slices to serve.

COCONUT ICE CREAM

6 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup loosely packed sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup light coconut milk canned
14 ounce can coconut cream

Instructions

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the sugar until light and fluffy. Set aside.
Add the coconut to a medium sized heavy saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir the coconut until it begins to brown, about 7 minutes, but do not allow to burn. Add the half and half, heavy cream, coconut milk, and coconut cream and bring to a simmer. You want to scald the mixture without it coming to a boil. Just before it starts to boil, turn the heat off.
Slowly pour the hot coconut milk mixture into the yolk mixture, starting with a small amout at first, whisking constantly. Once you've added enough to warm the egg mixture, add a little more, always whisking, until everything has been combined and well mixed. Then pour the mixture back into the pan.
Set over medium-low heat and cook, stirring slowly and continuously, until the custard thickens. You know its done if you can wipe your finger across a coated spatula and it leaves a trail. This takes about 5 minutes. Do not allow the custard to boil.
Pour the custard into a clean bowl and place over an ice bath to cool while occasionally stirring to mix the hot with the cool. Refrigerate the custard until cold, at least 1 hour.
Transfer the custard to an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Make sure your container has been frozen at least over night prior to starting. I have a Cuisinart and had to make the ice cream in two batches, one right after the other, and the mixing process took about 30-45 minutes per batch. Transfer the ice cream to a container, cover and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours. Makes about 1 quart.

CARAMEL PEAR PRESERVES

Caramel Pear Preserves
Recipe from Christine Ferber’s Mes Confitures
But I fiddled with the technique and spices
Makes 5-6 half pints

2-3/4# firm, ripe pears
2-3/4 c sugar and 1-1/2 c sugar
1/4-1/2 tsp quatre epices*
7 oz orange juice
Juice of one lemon
1 packet liquid pectin or 6 oz homemade apple pectin

Wash, peel, core and cut the pears in a fine julienne
Mix the pears with the 2-3/4c sugar, spices and the juices
Allow this mixture to macerate while you make the caramel.
In a preserving pan or 5 qt heavy stockpot, over low heat, slowly dry melt the 1-1/2 c sugar. Allow it to turn color from golden to a deeper amber color. It will smell like caramel (not like burned sugar.) Don’t rush this process. Take it slowly. You shouldn’t need to stir it much, if at all.
OK, here’s the really scary part. The part that will make you think you’ve wrecked it all.
Pour in the pears and all the liquid. The caramel will break. It will make you cry a little.
Don’t worry. Just heat the whole mixture up slowly. You’re going to bring it up to 221° which will take awhile. And stir it – a lot – trying to get those pieces of caramel off the bottom of the pot and incorporated into the preserves. It’s a hellish moment. Just know that I had it, too.
By the time the preserves is at 221°, the caramel will be incorporated and it will be heavenly.
You’ll smell those spices. You’ll be happy again.
Add the pectin and bring it back up to a full boil you can’t stir down and let it boil, stirring all the while, for a full minute.
Ladle into jars, wipe the rims well, place lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

*Quatre Epices is used in all sorts of French sausages and terrines. I like the little bite of white pepper blended with cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. It’s a nice blend to have in the cupboard – lovely with pears, nice with winter squashes. Give it a try.

RHUBARB JAM

Confiture de Rhubarbe

– 1.2 kg rhubarb (1 kg when trimmed)
– 800 g sugar
– the juice of a lemon

(Makes 4 jars if you’re using the Bonne Maman size)

Rinse the rhubarb, trim the ends, halve the stalks lengthwise and dice. Christine notes that she likes to use young and slender green stalks, and doesn’t peel them, to keep the rhubarb chunks whole.

Combine the rhubarb pieces, the sugar and the lemon juice in a ceramic or glass dish, cover with parchment paper, and let rest overnight. 

In the morning, the sugar will have drained the juice out of the rhubarb. Put a saucer in the freezer. Wash the glass jars and their lids carefully, then soak them in boiling water for 10 minutes, and set them out to dry upside down on a clean kitchen towel.

Pour the rhubarb mixture through a sieve. Bring the syrup you’ve gathered to a boil, cover and let it boil for five to ten minutes. The goal temperature, if you have a candy thermometer, is 110°C (230°F).

Add in the rhubarb, bring back to a boil and let simmer for five to ten more minutes, stirring gently from time to time. 

Take the saucer out of the freezer, and put a drop of jam on it. Tilt the saucer, and see if the jam is set. If not, let it boil for another minute, then test again until you’ve reached the desired consistency.

Pour the jam into the jars until they are full, wipe carefully if there was any spillage and close the lids tightly. Let cool to room temperature upside-down on the counter, then store in a cool and dark place for a few months.

Important disclaimer! This jarring method (boiling the jars then closing them tightly and letting them cool upside down) is one that’s been commonly practiced in France for generations and generations.

YELLOW AND WHITE PEACH CONFITURE

Yellow and White Peach Jam

1 1/2 pounds ripe yellow peaches (weight before peeling)
1 1/2 pounds ripe white peaches (weight before peeling)
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Sterilize your jars and put 5 teaspoons on a plate in the freezer, to test your jam for doneness later.

2. Blanch the peaches by immersing them in a pot of boiling water for two minutes, then quickly transferring them to a bowl of ice water.

3. Peel the peaches and roughly chop them into thick chunks.

4. In your jam pot, combine the peaches, sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer, then transfer the mixture into a glass or ceramic bowl. Cover and let sit in the fridge overnight. (Actually, I prepped mine in the morning and let them sit for about six hours, then made my jam in the afternoon. No big deal.)

5. The next day (or later that day, whatever) . . . pour the mixture through a sieve into your jam pot so what you end up with is a pot full of sweet peachy syrup. Set aside the peaches and bring the syrup to a boil. Cook the syrup until it thickens, about 5 minutes.

6. Add the peaches to the syrup and return the mixture to a boil, cooking on high heat until your jam reaches the setting point (see below for the test I use). As the jam cooks, use a shallow, stainless-steel spoon to periodically skim any stiff white foam from the top of the mixture. It took about 15 minutes for this jam to cook for me, but keep in mind that lots of factors affect cooking time. Watch your mixture and test it carefully.

To test your jam for doneness: Remove the pan from the heat. Use one of your frozen spoons to scoop up a little bit of jam — not a whole spoonful. Return the spoon to the freezer and wait 3 minutes. Retrieve the spoon and hold it vertically. If the mixture runs very slowly or not at all, it’s done. (“Not at all” may be overdone, in fact.) Give the mixture a little push with your finger. If it clearly creases or wrinkles up, it’s done.

7. Ladle the hot jam into your sterilized jars and seal. Process 10 minutes in a water bath canner.

Yields about 4 half-pint jars.