Marrow and Ginger Jam

Heather Bowery's Marrow and Ginger Jam recipe.

Marrow & Ginger Jam Ingredients
approx 15 fl oz pectin as extracted from apple peel & cores.
1 marrow (about 2 kilo's in weight) peeled, deseeded & diced.
3 inches ginger root, peeled and shredded fine
2 kilos sugar
lemon juice - approx 2 tbs, enough to make the mix taste sour

Mix the sugar and diced marrow in a bowl and let it stand overnight OR microwave diced marrow in batches, cook it until it turns a lovely sunshine yellow and juices start running.
Put everything into pan and boil to setting point (wrinkle point)

Bottle and seal in the usual way.

I made several small to medium jars as I was giving them as gifts at Christmas.

I used the microwave version but I do have another marrow that needs using up, so for the next batch I'm going to use the overnight version and see if there is a difference, but this batch does taste lovely!

Heather's preference is for the overnight version, "I think the texture is a bit better, but its very marginal. Another variation is to add the grated zest of a couple of lemons, and have only a hint of ginger (or none at all) The last time I did this I boiled it until it only just set and the soft marrow was a lovely contrast to the lemony syrup/jelly."

Let me know if you try it and what you think of each method.

KitchenCraft - Making Liquid Pectin

One of my lovely Facebook friends Heather Bowery shared some recipes with me on my self sufficiency page for spicy apple chutney, marrow and ginger jam and liquid based pectin.  Already a chutney lover and having been given a marrow to use I decided to give her recipes a try.

I had read about fruits with high or low pectin levels and how this effects the setting of jams but hadn't needed to make or use pectin before...

Hopefully she won't mind if I share the wisdom with you!

Take the peel and cores from approx 4lb of apples, (the apples were used in the chutney) put in a pan with barely enough water to cover. Simmer gently with lid on for 1 hour.

Pour the contents of the pan through a colander or sieve - remembering it's the liquid you want to keep!! To get more liquid out you can push the contents of the sieve with a spatula but don't rub it, think in terms of squeezing the juice out.

Return the liquid to the pan and boil down to about 15 fl oz. If you are making it to store, bottle and seal hot. 

This quantity of pectin can be used to set marrow and ginger jam.

KitchenCraft - Learning to Cook from Scratch

Since having my boys I've been trying to learn to cook from scratch.  It started with an Annabel Carmel book with recipes for making purees for your baby and just went on from there.

I like to follow recipes from TV chefs or from the internet as I prefer to see what I'm supposed to do and what things should look like. I guess as I gain more experience and my confidence grows this will change.

I have lots of cookery books, old and new, my favourites are anything from Jamie Oliver and Marguerite Patten - the latter was brought for me by my nan. 

Talking of Nan, she used to be a school dinner lady back in the day when they used to budget for, buy all the ingredients and cook the meals on site.  She is a mine of information on traditional recipes and techniques and always amazes us when she comes to stay by whipping fabulous things up from items at the back of my cupboards!

I've graduated from risottos to paella, from casserole to pie (made my first Steak and Kidney pie recently with Nan's supervision! and I was very chuffed with myself!), I've even tried my hand at a couple of roast dinners - although my timing needs work!

A few of my friends are great bakers, so I call on them from time to time for this side of things, here's a delicious Chocolate Tart my friend Sandra helped me with.

I'm also branching out into preserving and have made apple chutney (pictured), orange marmalade, chilli jam and also things my kids like; peanut butter, chocolate and hazelnut spread and tomato ketchup.

I love to scour car boot sales, charity shops and antique shops for pots, pans and utensils.  I got some bargain pans for preserving this way.  My husband (Jez) brought me a food processor and slow cooker just before Christmas, I'm okay with the basics but need to get to grips with them properly 

I'd like to share my successes and failures with you and if anyone has any good recipes or hints and tips for me - all is welcome, thank you ;o)