Jammin'

     My daughter Caroline decided that she wanted to learn to make homemade canned goods this summer and although she has made it before, we decided to start with strawberry jam. We headed to a local farm stand where we were able to get some beautiful berries that had been picked this morning. We decided on three batches so we had some for us to enjoy and plenty to share with friends and family.

     We simply used the recipe on the sure-jell package which has been a fail-safe method for me. So, working together we were able to make plenty of jam in just two hours. Here is the recipe and my method. Be sure to read though ALL of the directions if you plan on making this recipe as they are important. Making jam is an exacting science, similar to baking.

Strawberry Jam
Makes ~ 8 cups of jam 

    Wash and hull 2 quarts of fresh strawberries and then crush them to make 5 cups of berries. Place in large pot with one package of Certo Sure-jell and 1/2 tsp. of butter. 

Stir over high heat until mixture comes to FULL, ROLLING boil and then stir in quickly, exactly 7 cups of sugar.

The hand on hip/tilted head stirring method is popular in our house.

Bring back to a full boil and then boil for one minute, stirring constantly. (This can be difficult work so maintaining the appropriate caffeine level is essential! >>>>>> :)


   
To prepare the jars, wash them in hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly. I then let the jars soak in a clean dishpan in hot water while I make the jam. I put the lids and rings in a small saucepan on the stove with some water and let them simmer. 

   Once the jam has completed cooking, fill the jars up to 1/4 inch from the top. Carefully wash the lip of the jars and then place a cap and then a ring on the jar, being sure to screw it on tightly. Invert each jar on a dishtowel for 5 minutes and then turn right side up. You will know that you have a good seal if you hear a POP after a few minutes.

   And now...the best reason to make strawberry jam....the taste testing. It is delicious with butter on some crusty bread. Yum!   enjoy- p

One of our cats, Picasso watched us through the kitchen window!

Lemon Squares

Who doesn't love lemon squares? I have seen a number of different recipes over the years, some of them frosted, some not. I have also had some that are really gooey and even a few that didn't have a very intense lemon flavor. Below is a recipe from a church cookbook I received a number of years ago from a relative. I have adapted the recipe ever so slightly as I like them to have a bit of a bite. I have also made the crust with gluten-free flour and whole wheat flour, both with good success. They do not take very long and always seem to be popular as a potluck dessert.

 

Lemon Squares

325 degree oven

8 X 8 square pan

CRUST

Combine in a bowl: 

1 cup flour

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

Work in 1 stick butter until it makes a fine crumb.

Press crust mixture into an ungreased 8 X 8 pan and bake at 325 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until the edges are just starting to brown.

In another bowl, mix:

3 TBS. flour

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. salt

2 eggs, slightly beaten

3+ TBS. lemon juice(sometimes I even add some zest, about 1/2 tsp.)

Pour this mixture on top of the crust and return to oven for about 23 minutes or until filling is set and edges are G, B & D. 

(Golden, Brown and Delicious :) )

Let cool in pan, slice and serve with a sprinkling of powdered sugar! enjoy! 

yours in baking- p

Return of the Cupcake!

    Well, first of all..it has been a LOOOOONG time since I posted an entry. I have been baking quite a bit but the end of the school year is so hectic, I just never took the time to take photos and/or write up the recipes. But summer is here and I am back and ready to bake!

    I had these delightful cupcakes at an advisee's graduation party about a week ago. I have always been a bit intimidated by a white cake from scratch, but my friend, Alex insisted that these were easy...the King Arthur Flour recipe. And so when I was looking to bake a couple of days ago I thought I would try them. Alex was right; they were fairly easy for a "made from scratch" cake batter and I would definitely bake them again. I baked all of the cupcakes on the same shelf in the oven at the same time...I have NO IDEA why I did that...I have not done it before and probably won't do it again. The cupcakes on the outside edges baked a little too quickly and were browner and drier than I wanted. But most of them were just fine and really tasty with a simple buttercream frosting. Purple is my favorite color as anyone who has EVER met me certainly knows...so purple flowers as a decoration were in order.  Give these a try; I am confident that you could easily adapt this recipe to make lemon or orange flavored cupcakes simply by adding a different extract and some freshly grated zest to the batter,

  

The cupcake

(from the back of the King Arthur Cake Flour box!)

* 2 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached Cake Flour Blend
* 1 2/3 cups sugar, superfine is best
* 1 TBS. baking powder
* 3/4 tsp. salt
* 3/4 cup( 12 TBS.) butter, softened
* 4 large egg whites plus 1 whole large egg

* 1 cup full-fat vanilla yogurt or 1 cup whole milk 

* 2 tsp. vanilla extract 

* 1 tsp. almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare for 20 cupcakes by lining your cupcake tins with papers. You may choose the spray the papers, but I didn’t and the papers peeled off just fine.
 

Mix all the dry ingredients on slow speed to blend. Add the soft butter and mix until evenly crumbly, like fine damp sand. It may seem more like paste, but don’t worry!

Add the egg whites one at a time, then the whole egg, beating well after each to begin building the structure of the cake. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition.

In a small bowl, whisk the yogurt (or milk) with the vanilla and almond extracts. Add this mixture, 1/3 at a time, to the batter. Beat 1 to 2 minutes after each addition, until fluffy. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Scoop the batter into your prepared cupcake tins and bake about 18 to 20 minutes. A toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center will come out clean when done. Remove from the oven, and place the pan on a wire rack to cool. After 5 minutes remove the cupcakes and place on the wire rack to finish cooling.  

The Frosting

* 1 stick softened butter

* 3+ cups of powdered sugar

* 1 tsp. vanilla

* milk or cream

Mix all ingredients with an electric mixer until you reach your desired consistency. I always start with just a couple of teaspoons of milk and add more very slowly as too much liquid means you will have to add heaps of extra powdered sugar to balance it out and it really does change the flavor of the frosting.

For my purple flowers, I simply put aside a little of the frosting and used some gel food color I had to make it purple. I put the frosting in a ziploc sandwich bag and cut just a tiny tip off one corner. It made a handy disposable pastry bag which I sued to draw my flowers. Next time I think I would make the hole even smaller and have my frosting be just a tad thicker so that my design would not "relax" so much on the top of the cupcake. 

Enjoy!

yours in baking-

p