Low Sugar Jam

Makes about 3 pints

This recipe works with all berries (except maybe eggplants;). Pick your favorite or a combination of different berries.

Ingredients:
3 cups berries
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cup sugar

Wash berries and spread them on a paper towel to drain. Pick them over, removing any damaged or moldy fruit. If using strawberries, cut them into quarters.

Heat berries and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir with a wooden spoon to keep berries from scorching. Bring mixture to a boil.

Add sugar to the boiling berries, stirring until sugar dissolves.

Return Jam to a simmer and continue stirring for at least 15 to 20 minutes. To test whether it’s done, put a teaspoonful of jam in the freezer. Remove it after 2-3 minutes. If jam is thick and doesn’t run off the spoon, it is done.

can jam in jars. Un-caned jams will last up to 3 weeks in the fridge, and up to 3 months in the freezer.

recipe from: Living Without August/Sept 2008

for more canning recipes check out: http://www.pickyourown.org/allaboutcanning.htm

Pesto

this is a great sauce put on pasta for fresh pesto pasta!

makes about 1/2 cup.

Ingredients:
1/4-1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly cracked pepper
1/4 cup pine nuts (optional)

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor, and process until well blended. Put the olive oil in first to help blend. If the pesto is too thick add a little water.

recipe from: The Gluten-Free Vegan

Homemade Ketchup

After deciding to make all my own condiments from scratch I found and tried this recipe. It isn’t the best, but then again I don’t really like ketchup all that much. This does go great with sweet potato fries and garden burgers!

Ingredients:
1 (28-oz) can whole tomatoes in purée
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preparation
Purée tomatoes (with purée from can) in a blender until smooth.

Cook onion in oil in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add puréed tomatoes, tomato paste, brown sugar, vinegar, and salt and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until very thick, about 1 hour (stir more frequently toward end of cooking to prevent scorching).

Purée ketchup in 2 batches in blender until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids). Chill, covered, at least 2 hours (for flavors to develop).

Cooks’ note:
Ketchup can be chilled up to 3 weeks.

recipe from: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/HOMEMADE-KETCHUP-109037

Almond Cheese

A tasty way to use up the almond pulp left over from making almond milk, this cheese is a great spread on crackers:)

Ingredients:
2 cups almond pulp (what is left from making almond milk)
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon nutritional brewer’s yeast
1 teaspoon chopped chives
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon organic garlic salt

After making almond milk really squeeze pulp in cheescloth to get out all of the milk. Then combine all the ingredients in a bowl. After stirring well, wrap the mixture in the cheesecloth so it is in the shape of a log and set it aside to ferment: Place this mixture on a plate over a bowl of hot water. After 2 hours pass, remove it from the plate and place it on a wire rack that is laid across another bowl. Then place a heavy pan or weight on top of the cheesecloth so that the weight pushes the remaining liquid from the almond cheese. Leave this over night. Then romove the weight and the cheesecloth, and form the cheese into a rectangle. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate. This can be used like cheese in many recipes. It will last for about 1 week if kept refrigerated.

recipe from: The Gluten-Free Vegan