Preserving the seasons is something I remember doing with my mum and my grandmother – they were both preservers extraordinaire, and made all of their own jams, jellies, chutney and pickles.
A Collection of Preserving the Seasons Recipes:
Jams, Jellies, Chutney and Pickles
Preserving the seasons is something I remember doing with my mum and my grandmother – they were both preservers extraordinaire, and made all of their own jams, jellies, chutney and pickles.
These they would serve with every meal, from hot toasted home-made bread at breakfast to a simple high tea with boiled ham, farmhouse cheese and fresh eggs.
In my seasonal round-up today, I have gathered together ten of the best seasonal preserves for you make at home.
Ten Preserving the Seasons Recipes
Shooting Party Chutney (Green Tomato Chutney)
If like me you have loads of green tomatoes in the garden, with no hope of ever ripening, then this vintage “Farmer’s Weekly” reader’s recipe for Shooting Party Chutney is for you; a sweet chutney with a bit of a kick, this is wonderful when served with salads, curries, cheese boards and charcuterie platters.
Pickles are quintessential British preserves, and no festive cheeseboard or cold cuts platter would be seen without a jar of pickles next to it. This old family recipe for runner bean pickle is perfect when you have a glut of runner beans and is very easy to make. It tastes similar to Piccalilli, but it slightly sweeter, and is also FAB in cheese and pickle sandwiches.
Bottling Tomatoes using the Water Bath Method
It doesn’t matter now often you use your tomatoes in cooking and for salads etc, there always seems to be an excess of them, and this simple water bath method of bottling tomatoes is a great way to save them for the winter months ahead.
Traditional Homemade Pickled Onions
The recipe I am sharing today is vert poignant, as it was my mum’s recipe for Traditional Homemade Pickled Onions, and she made a few jars every autumn for the Christmas tea table. Why only make these in the autumn? Well, in the UK you start to see small “pickling onions” in the greengrocers and supermarkets from late September and October onwards, and with a view to the Christmas buffet table, and that ubiquitous cheese board, now is the time to make these pickled onions so they have time to “mature” for 6 weeks.
A Country Recipe: Winter Salad (Pickle)
This delightful old country recipe makes good use of green tomatoes, and is a sweet and tangy pickle similar to Piccalilli but much sweeter. Taken from a collection of old “Farmers Weekly” reader’s recipes, it is very popular in the North East of England and is wonderful with cheese, cold cuts and in sandwiches.
Seedless Blackberry Jam: A delectable taste of the season, this lovely bramble jam is seedless, and is perfect on toast, crumpets and scones as well as in homemade cakes. You can also heat it up to drizzle over ice cream or dollop it on top of baked rice pudding.
Rowan and Apple Jelly – A deliciously smoky, tangy and jewel-like jelly that goes perfectly with game, lamb, cheese and charcuterie. Made with “free” foraged berries from a tree on the lane opposite our house, and with windfall apples from our orchard.
High Dumpsy Dearie, a Traditional English Autumn Fruit Jam
This delightful English fruit jam is the most amazing colour and cheers up a slice of toast in a trice, as well as perking up a scone and adding glamour to a sponge cake, and it is VERY seasonal right now ~ it’s made with apples, pears and plums, all GREAT Autumn fruits. The best news for me is that apples and pears are the main crop of windfalls that I am attempting to deal with right now, so I should get a bumper crop of this jam this year.
Traditional Greengage Jam Recipe
A delightful and traditional recipe for greengage jam. Greengages are small and oval-shaped with a yellow to green coloured flesh and they make a fabulous jam with a pretty colour. They are medium in pectin level and that’s why I add the juice of a lemon (if I don’t add the kernels to the jam), as based on my grandmother’s greengage jam recipe.
One Punnet Raspberry Jam, or Old-Fashioned Raspberry Jam, is one that is perfect for anyone with just a pound of raspberries to jam at their disposal; too often recipes call for at least 3 or 4 lbs of fruit, and whereas I DO use those quantities when I have a glut of fruit, there are often times where I just want to make a small batch of jam, or I only have one punnet of fruit available. (A punnet is usually a pound in weight) It’s also suitable for those who live alone, or who only want to make a couple of jars of jam at a time.
Pin me for Later Preserving!
Leave a Reply