Sweet, Tart and Spicy Tomato Jam

Someone once told me that divorce is like a death in the family and that you need to go through the five stages of loss in order to get over it. Stages such as denial,  anger, bargaining, depression and, finally, acceptance. I think I was over my divorce and "accepted" it a long, long time ago, but I was stuck in a funk with cooking. I didn't divorce cooking, but somehow I felt like I did. And as much as I love cooking I just couldn't (or wouldn't) go to the kitchen and cook something out the blue, or even follow a recipe. I needed a foodie therapist.

This year, during Thanksgiving week, my daughter was in Minnesota for a couple of weeks so I took advantage and took a mini vacation to San Francisco. There I met up with two of my favorite friends from Boston, Gracie and Kerry, who are also major foodies like me. Perhaps it was their company, perhaps it was the crisp San Francisco air, or perhaps it was all that wine we drank, but I began to realize that I needed to start cooking again, not because it was the only way to get my "mojo" back, sort of speak, but because I truly, truly love being in the kitchen and cooking, experimenting, tasting...oh, the tasting!

This little gem of a recipe is from the blog, injennieskitchen, and I stumbled upon it via my friend, Gracie, who made the tomato jam for us to enjoy for Thanksgiving. Once I tasted the jam I knew I had to make it. I took it upon myself to triple the recipe (bad idea) and instead of the 3 hour cooking time, it was actually more like 4 1/2  hours. So take it from me, don't double or triple, just follow the recipe below and it will come out great. I did add a little cayenne pepper (about 1/4 teaspoon) when I made mine, and it gives it just a slight spicy edge. Also, try to use a variety of tomatoes like Roma, Heirloom, yellow and grape tomatoes and don't forget the tart apple. You really need it in order to create a bit of pectin for your jam. Lastly, I did cut down on the sugar by about 1/2 cup for my tripled batch and it still came out sweet and tangy.

The way I love to use this jam is by smearing a little goat cheese on crostini and top with the tomato jam. Also, other ways to use it is as a relish on a burger or just place a dollop of the stuff on top of some cottage cheese. Happy cooking, my friends!

INGREDIENTS (makes 1 1/2 to 2 pints)

• 3 1/2 lbs tomatoes, coarsely chopped
  
• 1 small onion, diced
  
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
  
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1/2 tsp coriander
  
• 1/4 tsp cumin
  
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  
• Juice of 1 lemon
  
• 1/2 cup finely diced tart green apple

DIRECTIONS

Put all ingredients in a 2-quart pot. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until thickened and jam-like consistency, about 3 hours. Transfer to sterilized glass jars and store in refrigerator for up to two weeks, or use a hot-water canning bath for 15 minutes for long-term storage.

Tomato Chutney

Our two little tomato vines are still producing fruit. I was very surprised because I thought the season was over. Anyway, I didn't want the tomatoes to rot on the vine so I made this super simple and delicious tomato chutney. I got the recipe from a UK website but I changed it up and didn't add the red chili it asked for or the cardamon seeds. Instead, I substituted with a good pinch of red pepper flakes. How easy is this, you ask? I got up at 6am, started the chutney at 6:30 and it was done by 7:30am. I was able to cool it and jar it and store it in the fridge and still left for work on time!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup red onions, finely sliced
• 2 cups tomatoes, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/4 tsp. fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 ounce red wine vinegar
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• Pinch paprika
• 1/4 tsp. coarse salt

DIRECTIONS

Place all the ingredients into a large heavy-bottomed pan and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring frequently. Simmer for 1 hr, then bring to a gentle boil so that the mixture turns dark, jammy and shiny. Place into sterilized jars and allow to cool before covering. Will keep for 6 weeks.

Tomato Jam

My hubby got us The Encyclopedia of Country Living and it's a wonderful and useful book, even if you don't live out in the country. It has great gardening tips, advise on how to gut livestock and really interesting country recipes. I was looking for an idea of what to do with all the tomatoes our plants are producing. I've been eating them and using them in savory recipes, but it was getting to be too many tomatoes. I figured perhaps the country living encyclopedia may have suggestions on what to do with an abundance of tomatoes, and that's where I got the idea of tomato jam or preserves. The jam came out really, really good. I kind of made it up as I went along, but the encyclopedia gave me a good idea on how to get my jam started.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 1/2 cups peeled and quartered tomatoes
• 1/2 cup stemed and quartered strawberries
• 3 cups sugar
• 1/2 lemon, sliced thinly and seeded + the juice of the other half of the lemon
• 1 dash cinnamon
• 1 dash nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS (makes about 26 ounces of jam)

Put peeled and cut tomatoes, strawberries, sugar, sliced lemon, cinnamon and nutmeg in large, heavy pot and bring to slow boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. When foam rises to surface, add butter and continue stirring and simmering until preserves thicken, about 45 minutes to an hour and a half (mine took about 90 minutes because the tomatoes were very juicy). Add the juice from the lemon and stir. To test, stick a fork into preserves. When preserves cling to tines of fork, it should be thick enough to can.

Pour preserves into sterilized jars (I used a 1 pound 10oz jar, but 3 half pint jars will work, too), seal and process in hot water bath for 15 minutes.