that's my jam!

a few weeks month ago (how is that possible?!), i made a batch of strawberry rhubarb ginger jam based on this recipe. i used the same base recipe to make some strawberry mint jam this time:
~1kg/~2 lbs strawberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 fistfulls of fresh mint
zing of lemon juice (from a bottle)

first, i poured about a half a cup into the ol' food processor with the mint and let that whirl around for a bit. this is the same technique i used when i made chocolate basil cake and i think it works quite well.

strawberries and mint sugar were plunked in a bowl to make themselves all syrupy. Then, i cooked and cooked and cooked and cooked the jam in a skillet (to maximise evaporation). This recipe produced about 3 small jars--i gave two away and kept one for ourselves.





the jams were processed in a water bath for 10 minutes and, post-boil, 5 minutes longer, just to make sure they were nice and sealed.

i am entirely grateful that my dear friend kathryn sent me canning supplies. after a great amount of searching for something that apparently doesnt exist here, a common theme in my life, i used the interwebs to make my dreams come true. or at least provide me with a jar lifter. (and a super cute tea towel! and really hot homegrown peppers!). another thing i cannot find here are 2 part lids--the kind i watched my mom use with the flat lid and screw part. however, i survived using a one piece lid. of all the jars i processed--of strawberry, plum, and cherry jams--only one didnt seal.

next, inspired by this recipe , and my penchant for chinese 5 spice, i made some plum jam. we happened to have nearly a pound of plums around, and i picked up a few more at the market to supplement the batch.

i used:
~.5kg/~1 lb plums
2/3 cup sugar
chinese 5 spice (五香份 [wǔxiāngfěn])
sichuan pepper, fennel, cinnamon, clove, and star anise

it was very messy.

this time, instead of cooking the jam in a skillet, i used our trusty fondue pot.

i got a jar and a half of deliciousness from this batch.  the half jar is in the fridge and the other one will be tucked away to eat later in the year when we are pining for fresh fruit.



lastly, i made some cherry jam with cardamon.

1 kg-ish/~2 lbs. cherries
1 packet pectin (50 g gélifiant)
2 cups sugar
cardamon

i was curious about the pectin here, so i decided to use it. i know i didnt for the strawberries, which are also low in pectin, but the only way to learn is by trying, right? right. the packet i found said it wasnt sweetened, but my jam turned out really sweet. true, i added more sugar in this recipe than the others, but still. i was a bit surprised how sweet it was.

but, before the cherries were cooked, i had to pit them; we don't have a cherry pitter... however, we do have a funnel! and funnels make for great cherry pitters. will you make a mondo mess? indubitably. but pitting cherries is a messy business no matter how you slice it.

i put the cherries a few at a time into a small glass bowl and press on them with the funnel with the pointy end. it takes out the stem and pit in one fell swoop. then, you can easily put the waste in the compost with a tap. it only took me about 15 minutes to pit all the cherries -- i was processing the plum jam at the same time.

the cherries and sugar were combined to encourage syrupy action


and then cooked and cooked and cooked, again in the fondue pot.


i added the pectin, brought the mixture again to a boil, and then filled my jars.


the cherries this year are amazing. over the last few weeks, ive had them with breakfast and made hand pies.

the fresh pop of fruit has been welcome at this house as once again the weather has decided to bite its thumb at us. here's hoping for warmer temperatures and picnics and eating OUTSIDE.

plein comme un œuf: salad and mirabelle clafoutis

christian returned from the market the other day with a big baskey full of mirabelles (yellow plums!). they are just as delicious as delicious can be. ive been snacking on them. as all things around here do, they were turning rather quickly and so i decided to bake those bad boys. but what? i asked christian how he felt about pie. he started salivating. ah, but we didnt have enough butter for a crust. hmm, thought i, what can i make that does not require a trip to the market on this dark and rainy day? hmm... we've got eggs... milk... so something custardy.... ah HA! clafoutis! i asked christian what he thought and he strongly approved of the idea. then i confided in him that i had never made clafoutis in my life.  he said no matter what, im sure it will be delicious.  (and you know what? he was right. )

i did some reading and settled on the following batter measurements, cobbled together from a few recipes and altered for my personal taste:

3 eggs
1 cup milk
vanilla to taste
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt

the oven was turned to 175°/350°


i washed, halved, and pitted the mirabelles. then i sprinkled some sugar on 'em (i didnt pour--i sprinkled), and i then added a food good shakes of both powdered ginger and cardamon.

the rest of the ingredients were mixed together pancake style: dry ingredients combined, wet ingredients combined, all ingredients combined.


i settled on julia child's method of baking because she was a rad woman and i trust her. i buttered the casserole and then poured just a bit of batter on the bottom and baked it for 5 minutes--just until it was starting to set. then i took it out of the oven, and added the fruit. the rest of the batter was poured in and then it hung out in the hot oven for about 45 minutes.

the end result?  victory is mine!   the flavours really worked together well.  it wasn't overly sweet, or whoa-heavy, but satisfying.

earlier in the evening, i dined on salad. it was round 2 of a simple and delightful salad i had for lunch yesterday featuring roasted sweet potato, mango, and edamame (soybean)

i had a meeting to attend for work and i needed a lunch that was quick but fulfilling. it was going to be a long and intense meeting and i didnt wish for my stomach to start staging a protest in the middle. bad form.

in the morning, i prepped everything so i could just throw it together and go when the time came.


i peeled and chopped the sweet potatoes, then roasted them with a handful of fresh cilantro and oil.

i steamed the edamame, while the taters were roasting,


and sliced the mango.

and then i made the dressing.

the dressing was an easy mixture of honey, rice vinegar, olive oil, fresh chopped mint, and a pinch of cilantro.

everything was plunked on a bed of lettuce and spinach (spinach was ON SALE)

christian missed out. i made enough for him too, but he didnt have time to eat it. so that was my dinner tonight. again, poor fella, he missed out.

but he DID have dessert.  

bright and cheery summer salads to eat during a thunderstorm

i'm super lucky to have my laura (and her always entertaining partner ryan) here! we're having a great time doing and sharing items and places of cultural importance.  for the 4th of july, team USA decided to show the swissies what we do for the 4th of july: have a barbecue at the park (with fireworks).  this was a huge cultural hurdle for our swiss friends.  after all,  the swiss, for their independence day on august 1st, have a barbecue at the park (with fireworks).

the fireworks were lacking (which suits me fine because after living in china, well, ive had enough fireworks to last me a lifetime), but mother nature provided a dazzling light show in the summer sky which i found much more rewarding.  as we all gathered at the park, a storm was gathering itself together as well.  we saw the foreboding clouds as we were walking to the park...  gorgeous!

here it comes!

while the grill was warming up, laura and ryan took advantage of the winds to fly a kite!

i threw some peaches on for salad number 1, a delightful combination of greens, grilled peaches, and mozzarella.

peaches!

the first time i made this salad was for my mom, and the poor woman instantly became hooked.

rest assured, the salad is easy to put together.  when i made it for mom, i used buffalo mozzarella, because it was on sale, but regular ol' mozzarella is still tasty.

assemble your salad greens as desired, throw in grilled peaches, add sliced mozzarella, and done! 

the salad dressing is a combination of balsamic vinegar, mustard of choice, and honey to taste, with a healthy blob of crème fraîche (greek yogurt would be super delicious as well).

laura prepared a potato salad, swiss style (she got the basic recipe from christian's mom), and i made another pot of beans in addition to the salads.

potato salad with corn and chives

my other salad was inspired by what we had laying about: 1 cucumber. and since im a huge fan of quinoa, i decided to throw those two items together.  i mixed in some fresh mint from the balcony, some chopped parsley, and added a good swig of rice vinegar.   laura looked at the salad and said, "hey, why not throw in these apricots?" and i said, ooooOOOoooo, yes.  and i'm glad she made that suggestion.  the salad went from awesome to super! awesome!

laura and i watched the storm approach and very cleverly packed up all that we could, save what was on the barbecue, and waited. we had barely gotten things grilled (the carnivors made a pile of sausage) and on a plate when the skies opened up...

we ran to the covered boat dock not far from where we were situated and continued our picnic, along with others seeking shelter.

dining by candlelight 

lightning storms are amazing here, and especially over the lake.  we had front row seats to a dazzling light show.

bon appétit <3