More Chilli Jam (Recipe included)

The weather is pretty mild today, and dry too, but I can't get outside so instead I decided as I didn't have any home grown tomatoes I would try the jam recipe with tomato juice. To save work I just cut the stalks off the chillies, put them into the tomato juice, quartered the apples and stewed the lot together. It means the jam hasn't got individual bits of chilli in, but it still tastes good. I think this lot is hotter still, but the chillies might have been dried a bit, so 100g may have been more fruits than last time. The jam itself is darker red, but this is because the tomato juice is darker than the home grown, probably from plum tomatoes. Buying the juice worked out cheaper than buying tomatoes this time of year, so it cuts the cost of the pressies. I decided to give my brother and his wife a selection of cheeses and a jar of the jam. She likes cheese, he likes the jam, so they will both be happy.

Recipe for Chilli Jam

• 1.5kg tomatoes stewed, sieved and the juice made up to 3 pints, or 3 pints bought tomato juice
• 100g chillies (stalks removed, easiest done with scissors)
• 1kg bramley apples (cut into pieces, with skin and core included)
• 500g (1lb) of sugar to 500ml (1 pint) juice, do not mix the measures!

For jam with bits of chilli, using gloves, remove the pith and seeds and chop the flesh. The pith and seeds or the whole chillies should be stewed with the apples and tomato juice until the chillies are soft and the apple breaks down. Then sieve to remove apple cores, skins and seeds. If you want to make a clearer jelly, put the juice into a jelly bag and allow it to drip through without pressing. This will look good, but gives less yield.

Measure the juice and add the required amount of sugar, sorry for the mix of imperial and metric measures. Add the chilli bits if you saved some. Boil rapidly until setting point is reached, and put into jars.

Takae was fascinated yesterday when I was putting the soaked mung beans in the sprouter. I explained I was planning on chow mein on Monday, so by then they should have grown enough to use. It will be interesting to see her reaction today when she sees they have already got tiny roots showing.