Welcome to My Kitchen

Jam and jelly season is in full swing with rhubarb, strawberries and blueberries already ripe and apricots, peaches and blackberries soon to follow. Jams and jellies are some of the easiest preserving tasks to accomplish, if, you have a good recipe. I have heard from several people who have purchased Sure-jell powdered pectin packages that are missing the instruction sheet. The omission seems to be random and not isolated to any one area or store.

Accurate measuring of ingredients is the most important step in jam and jelly making, so missing instructions can present a problem. The company must be aware of the problem because links to instruction sheets are at the top center of their home page. http://www.kraftbrands.com/surejell will get you to the page where you can link to Surejell and MCP Pectin instructions. You will also find lots of additional recipes for using the jams and jellies you make.

Powdered pectin is a wonderful invention that allows the making of jam and jelly without hours of cooking to thicken and set the fruit. Pectin is in all fruits to some degree and when combined with fruit acid and heat causes the mixture to congeal. Many fruits need added acid, so most recipes call for adding lemon juice.

Jellies and jams may be made without adding pectin, but require extra cooking and stirring time. Here is a recipe for Peach Jam made without added pectin.

Peach Jam

Peaches

Granulated sugar

Note: in this recipe the peaches are peeled, chopped, cooked, then measured. So how many peaches? 8-10 peaches is a good amount for trying this method.

Peel peaches by dipping in boiling water for 10-15 seconds, then cooling in ice water. This will loosen the skin and make it easier to slip from the peaches.

Remove pits from peaches and chop peaches into about one half inch dice. Place diced peaches in a non-reactive kettle (stainless steel or enamel coated). Place kettle over very low heat. Heat slowly until peaches begin to soften, crush them slightly with a potato masher. Cook slowly about 20 minutes until peaches are softened. Do Not add any water.

Measure peach pulp, and for each cup of pulp, add 1 cup of granulated sugar. Return to kettle and place over medium heat. Cook until thick, about 20 minutes more. Pour into sterilized jars, filling to 1/4 inch from top. Place lid and band on jar and screw firmly tight. Process in boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes. Remove jars from water bath and cool away from drafts. Yield: about 1/2 pint for each peach.

Charlene Kagele made a Basil Watermelon Salad for a recent potluck picnic that brought in numerous requests for the recipe. She found the recipe at http://www.wishfulchef.com. The recipe is easy to double or triple for a crowd, and features watermelon and fresh basil and feta cheese.

Basil Watermelon Salad

With Feta and Red Onion

3 cups watermelon, cut into 1 inch chunks

3/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped

4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

1 small red onion, sliced

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp agave nectar or honey

salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, agave nectar, salt and pepper. Add watermelon, onion and basil, then crumble feta on top and toss gently. Garnish with more basil if desired. Serve cold or at room temperature. Yield: 4 servings.

Harvest is rolling into motion and that means lunches have to be prepared to fuel the workers for the long days in the field. Wrap sandwiches, popular nowadays, can be a welcome change from the usual sandwich fare, when some want to avoid so much bread in the meals while sitting all day in a combine or grain truck.

Anything you can put in a sandwich, you can put in a wrap. Even peanut butter and jelly is a taste treat served as a wrap sandwich. Sandwich fillings can be made with less dressing because the tortilla doesn’t absorb like bread. Spread tortilla with a thin layer of cream cheese and you may not need dressing at all. Try this Meatloaf Wrap in your next lunch box meal.

Meat Loaf Wrap Sandwich

Large flour tortillas (10 inch or larger

Cream cheese, softened

Meatloaf, cold and crumbled

Lettuce, chopped

Optional ingredients:

Grated cheese

Sliced olives

Pickle slices

Mustard

Mayonnaise

Ketchup

Salt and pepper to taste

For each wrap, spread one tortilla with a thin layer of cream cheese. Spread a layer of crumbled meat loaf over about one third of the tortilla, top with lettuce and any other ingredients you like. Make sure things like pickles and olives are well drained so the wrap doesn’t get drippy while eating. Roll up wrap tightly from the filling edge, the filling will creep over onto the cream cheese part. Cut in half and wrap tightly.

Note: if you use the largest tortillas you can do a chimechunga fold on each end as you are wrapping to make it easier for one handed eating while maneuvering harvest equipment.

I have heard it said, a lunch without cookies is not a lunch.

What is your harvest crew’s favorite homemade cookie? Is there a recipe you make only for harvest lunches, something to look forward to during harvest? Share your favorite recipes by sending them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Odessa Record, email to therecord@odessaoffice.com or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tin in The Odessa Record office. Grass clipping make good mulch for potato plants.