Bread Machine Jam

This is SO quick and easy and makes the house smell amazing! I had a ton of organic raspberries from the sale this week and made one regular and 3 double batches of this today! Our freezer is stocked!

Strawberry Jam

1 c. sugar

1 T. powdered low-sugar fruit pectin (I bought the regular kind by mistake but it turned out fine.)

1 and 1/2 c. fresh strawberries, sliced OR same amount of raspberries or other fruit mashed with potato masher)

2 tsp. lemon juice

1. Combine all ingredients into bread pan.

2. Select Basic setting.

3. Let machine run 5-6 minutes, scraping sides of the pan with rubber spatula. Stop machine to cancel.

4. Select Bake setting and re-start machine.

5. When machine is done (mine is a 1 hour cycle), turn it off. Use oven mitts to remove the pan. Pour jam into containers; cover. Refrigerate to set. Makes about 3 cups. Can be doubled. Can be frozen.

Strawberry water

This is what I'm doing with some of the berries we picked at the farm today.

--a little more than 1 cup whole strawberries, hulled and damaged sections removed
--about 1 1/2 c sugar
--about 6 cups water

Dissolve sugar in water over low heat. Once dissolved, bring to boiling, and add the berries. Cover and turn off heat. Let sit for at least one hour.

Strain though cheese cloth until all liquid has been drained. Do not press the pulp; just let it drip.
The recipe says that the pulp is tasty to eat. I might mix it with yogurt.

Chill the water and enjoy!

A taste of Spring to come... Balsamic Strawberries

There were boxes and boxes of dark red strawberries at Costco today and I just couldn't resist. So we had Balsamic Strawberries for Dessert and I thought I'd share the recipe cause it's kinda interesting.

Balsamic Strawberries with Marscapone

1 lb fresh, hulled strawberries ( I quartered mine but if they'rre small you could serve them whole)
2 Tbs good Balsamic vinegar
black pepper
1 tsp of sugar (only if your strawberries aren't quite sweet enough)
1 c marscapone cheese (can be subbed with cream cheese beaten with a touch of honey & thinned with a 1-2 tsp water)

Wash & strain strawberries. Drizzle vinegar over them. Crack a little black pepper over them, stir and chill for a minimum of 30 minutes, but a couple hours is even better. Serve over a spoonful of cheese.