Strawberry and Nectarine Jam with Vanilla
I hate throwing anything out (as my over-stuffed wardrobe proves), but particularly food. So when I had a punnet of strawberries and a couple of nectarines that looked like they wouldn’t last much longer without serious resuscitation, I had to do something with them. As you know, I’m a great fan of making jams and jellies in small quantities, particularly if you’re not entirely sure how successful the result will be and this was a perfect opportunity.
Now I know, you are meant to make jam when the fruit is at its freshest, but that doesn’t mean it still isn’t good when it may be slightly past its best. To avoid over-boiling which could be the kiss of death if your fruit isn’t as fresh as you may like, it’s better to use ready-prepared pectin which means you don’t have to over-cook. Also, on this occasion though, I decided I’d add a little extra flavouring as an experiment to see what happened. The result was lovely; the added vanilla worked brilliantly with the flavour and frankly, it was good enough just to eat straight from the jar with a teaspoon.
Ingredients
- 400g punnet of strawberries, stalks removed and coarsely chopped (about 375g chopped weight)
- 2 nectarines (150g chopped weight)
- Juice of 1 small lemon
- 750g preserving sugar with pectin
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- Knob of unsalted butter (about 1 teaspoon)
- 100mls Certo liquid pectin
Method
- Place the nectarines in a jug of boiling water, leave for 2 mins and then take the skin off and chop coarsely
- Place the strawberries, lemon juice and sugar in a large sauce pan over a very gentle heat and allow the sugar to dissolve, stirring every now and then
- Once the sugar granules have disappeared and the fruit is clear and syrupy, add the vanilla essence, chopped nectarine flesh and a knob of unsalted butter (the butter cuts down the foam)
- Turn up the heat and boil for 2 minutes
- Remove from heat and stir in Certo liquid pectin
- Leave to stand for 5 minutes then bottle in to clean, sterilised jam jars
Scones
The perfect combination with the jam is clotted cream and fresh scones. Scones are not difficult to make, you just have to remember not to over-work them or they will be heavy. They also don’t last, so eat them same-day, which has never proved to be a problem! This is my own recipe, which is a sort of combo of other people’s wisdom.
Ingredients
- 225g self-raising flour
- 1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 50g unsalted butter
- 125ml buttermilk
- 1 large egg – beaten, with 1 tablespoon of it reserved for glazing
Method
- Pre-heat the oven to 200 fan/220 non-fan/Gas mark 7
- Butter a baking sheet
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt and butter in to a food processor and whizz for a few seconds until it looks like breadcrumbs
- Tip in to a mixing bowl and stir in the sugar
- Make a well in the middle and add the butter milk and egg
- Combine quickly, first using a knife and then with your fingers – do not over-knead – if it is too dry add a little milk, but it should be quite wet and squidgy
- Tip on to a floured service and knead very slightly
- Press down to a thickness of approximately 2 cms and using a 5.5cm cutter, start to cut your scones – NOTE: apparently they rise butter if you don’t twist the cutter – not sure why??
- Place your scones on the buttered tray, glaze the tops with the reserved egg and place in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes until well risen and browned on top
- Eat with clotted cream/butter and jam – yum!
The Bombay Boys 