Evidences

In my family, cooking is a normal, natural part of the daily routine. All through her working career, my (now retired) mother even had a weekly cooking routine : she'd cook easy dishes that didn't need a lot of prep time through the week, then on Saturday morning my parents would go grocery shopping at the market, and on Sunday morning my mother would take over the kitchen, make something a little fancier than usual for lunch, and often cook a second batch, or another dish she would freeze for later. In the summer month and during the summer vacations, she'd buy cheap, almost too ripe fruit in bulk to make jam. I've seen her and my father's mother cook for so long it all seemed natural to me. Watching my other grandmother's nearly non-existent cooking habits should have made me realize that cooking might not be as natural but... no.

I nearly fell off my chair when I heard a girl my age didn't know how to make jam. And then again when I read a bunch of jam recipes. Why should things be so complicated ? Making jam is simple, if slightly time-consuming. But seeing as you make a year's jam supply with each fruity batch, the time issue becomes much more relative.

This is my mother's general recipes, the one we use to make strawberry jam, apricot jam, apple-and-rhubarb jam, apple-and-quince jam, plum jam, cherry jam. My mother just cuts the fruit into not-too-big pieces, I prefer to run a hand-blender through mine just before I put them into the jars.

A few things to consider

• It does not take much longer to prepare 5 pounds of jam than just one, so as long as you're not experimenting with a new-to-you fruit or fruits combination, go ahead and make a big batch. Just make sure your cooking pot(s) is big enough and you have enough jars.
• You will prepare the fruit and sugar in the evening, and cook the jam the next day.
• Be sure to have (enough) jars clean, dry and ready when the jam is done. I leave them (and their lids) for 20 minutes in boiling water to sterilize them and then just let them air dry on a clean towel. If you're unsure about how many jars you'll use, prepare a few more.
• The jars will be HOT right after you've filled them. I tend to schedule my jam-making for when I can leave them on the table to cool for a few hours afterwards (not too close to the table’s edge, so that the little fingers won't get burnt !)
• Think about how you will seal your jars. I mostly use screw-on lids, depending on what jars I have at hand.
• Pectin is often concentrated in seeds and skin. When making apple jam, I put the apple cores I have cut out into a small, closed cloth bag and let it cook with the jam.
• You will need a LONG spoon (to reach the bottom of the cooking pot without burning your fingers), preferably of wood, to stir the jam and ladle to put it into the jars.

The trusty jam recipe

Wash, it necessary peel, stone, dice the fruit. Weigh it and place it in the pot you will use to cook it. Add the same weigh of sugar. Cover and let it sit for 8 to 24 hours, until a) you have time and b) there's a good quantity of juice in the pot.

Place a clean plate in your fridge.

Bring the pot over onto the stove, and turn the heat on. Once the jam is boiling, turn the heat down so that is keeps happily blubbering without overflowing. Stir regularly, all through the bottom of the pot to prevent the fruit from adhering to it. Check on your jam regularly to make sure it is not trying to escape from the pot (jams takes up a LOT more space when boiling and can overflow easily), stir some more. Do NOT cover the pot, as the water needs to evaporate - plus, the jam would run over pretty quickly.

Let the jam on the stove for 30 minutes to one hour. To check whether or not it is done, take the plate out of the fridge and pour just one drop of jam onto it. It should turn almost solid instantly and not run if you move the plate. If it does, let the jam cook for some more.

When the jam is ready, use a ladle to pour it into the jars. I re-use store-bought jam jars, pickle jars... and their lids. Right after I've filled the jars, I screw the lid on and turn the jar on its head (being careful not to burn my fingers !). I turn them back on their "feet" once the jam has cooled.

Label the jars (I write down what it is and when I made it) and store them in a cool, dry place. As long as they've been thoroughly cooked and well sealed, they can keep for some years.

De-bugging

Sometimes jam does not keep perfectly... It does not mean you need to throw that whole batch from last year away.

• cristallization : sugar cristals, mostly on the surface of the jam, caused by too much sugar, overcooking it or storing it in a too warm place. Just add 1 or 2 tablespoons of boiling water to dissolve the sugar before eating the jam. And next time you make jam out of this fruit, use a little less sugar.
• mold : it can happen if the jam hasn't been cooked enough. If it's just a little bit in one pot, carefully take it out, store the jar in the fridge and eat this jar first. If the whole batch shows mold, you will have to cook it again. Empty the jars in a pot, boil the jam again, clean the jars, etc.

To each their own...

... chocolate mousse recipe !
Every person I've met had their particular recipe. Some had tried half a dozen before they found the one they claimed was THE recipe. Well, I'm no exception, I have my own recipe as well, combined for my own taste from several others.
Actually, this is not just a chocolate mousse recipe. This is one of my staple recipes to use leftover egg whites. Because one can get tired of meringue and still want to have some home-made mayonnaise.

Spiced chocolate mousse with only egg whites
9oz dark chocolate
4 egg whites
1 tsp cinnamon
1 pinch ginger
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup almond cream

Beat the egg whites until they are very stiff (they are when you can turn the bowl upside down and nothing moves). Still beating, add the sugar.
Cut the chocolate into small pieces, add 2 spoons of water and slowly melt it in the microwave. Add the spices and the cream. Gently fold the chocolate into the egg whites (not the other way round !) and place the mousse in the fridge for at least 6 hours.

This one has to sit in the cold for quite some time to set. It stays a little creamy (especially at the end of the bowl), but very light. As a good rule of thumb, one egg white makes for one portion, so this should serve four guests.

Dip dip dip

It is hot here. The weather forecast keeps promising us rain... tomorrow. It's always "tomorrow". And it stays this way. In my quest for summer recipes that don't turn my kitchen into a sauna, I have turned to dips. I made a little more variety than usual as we had guests yesterday. There was the trusty guacamole, as well as the eggplant caviar, and then some more. I made another trusty preparation, almond tapenade from this blog, translated here for your convenience.

Clockwise from top left : eggplant caviar,
humus, tuna-hazelnut spread, tapenade

Almond tapenade

1/2 cup almond butter

1/2 cup green olives, pitted

Rinse the olives in running water, mix everything together. You can add more or less almond paste depending on your taste. If the tapenade is a little too thick, add a dash of olive oil.

Then I got a little bit more experimental, and I tried my hand at something I'd never done before : humus. I only had a can of chick pas. I'd have preferred the dry kind (as the humus turned out a bit salty for my taste), but well... you do with what you have.

Vegan humus

1 can chick peas (garbanzo beans)

1 cup oat cream

1 clove garlic

2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (okay, it was frozen coriander, my usual seller wasn't at the market lately)

1 tbsp tahini

Blend together using your mixer until smooth.

I was not so convinced right out of the bowl, the taste was better after  few hours in the fridge. A lot better, considering how many servings the guests took.

Lastly I was craving something with salmon. But I had no smoked salmon, could not find any at the store I went to, and the smoked salmon spread recipe I had involved fresh cheese anyway.This is were I got very experimental, and I must say, it worked !

Tuna-hazelnut spread

1 1/2 cup whole hazelnuts

1 can tuna (8 oz or so)

1 cup oat cream

1/2 oat milk

In a mixing bowl, blend the hazelnuts into a fine power. Keep blending and let the hazelnut power get a little warm. Add the rest of the ingredients and keep blending until you get a smooth cream.

I served everything with grilled spare ribs, sticks of red bell pepper, cucumber, endive and fresh bread. It was very good and I had leftovers for the next day. I will definitely keep tweaking the humus and tuna recipes, I'm sure they can be improved. I'll edit this post if I turn to a better version.

Spread the beet

I adore red beet. Cooked in stews, mashed, or diced into fresh salads all year round. My husband usually does not care for it, but we did find one recipe that he loved. It was a spread, and it involved mixing the beat with fresh goat cheese. That wouldn't do in our house. I thought about it for a bit, decided to try something out and... bingo ! It worked AND the home geek loved it.

The best part is that it is super quick and easy to make, as long as you have an immersion blender and can buy the red beet already cooked (if not, peel it, dice it and use your pressure cooker, red beets takes a rather long time to cook).

Vegan red beet spread

1 cooked red beet

2 teaspoons tahini (sesame paste)

3 teaspoons almond paste

1 or 2 garlic clove(s)

Peel and dice the red beet, peel the garlic. Put all ingredients in your mixing bowl and mix until they have blended into a soft, purple paste. Serve cold over fresh bread, or as a dip.

I don't claim originality

... but at least a reasonable dose of personal adaptation.

This recipe wasn't totally mine to begin with. My best friend made me something similar a few months ago, and I played with what I had in the fridge and a few spices.

Spinach-hazelnut tart

1 pastry dough

3 cups frozen spinach or one big salad bowl raw spinach

3 eggs

1/2 cup oat milk

1/4 cup canned tuna or smoked salmon

1/2 cup ground hazelnuts

1 pinch ginger

pepper

Cook your spinach (a few minutes in the pressure cooker after the pressure is on will do it just fine), then drain it and cut it into small, small bits.

Roll out your dough onto a lightly floured surface, then transfer it into a greased mold. Pre-heat the oven at 360°F.

In a large-ish bowl, beat the eggs with the milk, add the spinach, the fish (in smaller pieces), the hazelnut and the spices. Pour the filling over the dough, fold the edges of the dough over the filling.

Bake in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the dough is dry and slightly golden. Serve warm or cold.

The only thing to be mindful of, if you watn to play with proportions, is that the fish will add quit ea lot of salt, so don't add too much of it.