The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader

Author:Carol W. Costenbader
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
Published: 2002-03-25T16:00:00+00:00

TIP

If you’re not using purchased pectin in a recipe, use 1 part barely ripe fruit to 3 parts very ripe fruit.

LOW-METHYL PECTIN

Low-methyl pectin, a natural product used for gelling, is derived from citrus peel and requires the addition of dicalcium phosphate, a calcium salt, in order to gel. It can be purchased in most health food stores and has the advantage of needing no sweetener (except for taste) in order to gel. Follow the package directions to combine the low-methyl pectin and the dicalcium phosphate. Recipes that call for low-methyl pectin cook much more quickly and thus result in a fruit spread with a fresher flavor.

What’s the Difference?

Although people use the word “preserves” to refer to all forms of sweetened jarred fruit, there are many different varieties.

Butter. This fruit spread is made from puréed fruits with sugar and sometimes spices added. The mixture is cooked down and naturally thickened and is very easy to make. Apples and pears are the favorite fruits for making butter. When cooking, be careful not to scorch it.

Conserve. At their height in popularity in Victorian England, conserves were whole or sliced fruits preserved in a syrup base. They were eaten for dessert and were much richer and more syrupy than conventional jams and jellies. Today they are often made with two or more chopped fruits, may contain nuts or raisins, and have the ingredients and consistency of jam.

Curd. A type of preserve that contains, in addition to fruit, eggs and butter. Very smooth and rich, curds are most often made with citrus, lemon being the most common. Because they contain dairy products, curds should always be refrigerated and should not be stored for longer than three months.

Jam. This is the least labor-intensive way to process spreadable fruit. It consists of washed, crushed fruit; sugar; and possibly pectin (depending on the recipe). Jams can be cooked or freezer-preserved with sugar or a sugar substitute. Jams may even be made by an uncooked method (see page 192).

Jelly. Made from strained fresh fruit juice or purchased frozen fruit juice, plus sugar, with or without pectin, jelly is clear with no fruit pieces.

Marmalade. More like jelly than jam, marmalade has small pieces of suspended fruit or peel added to the gel.

Preserves. Similar to jams, preserves have bits of one or more fruits and are made with or without pectin.

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