... and I've found myself appointed to some kind of informal committee about desktop publishing and the like. I suppose that my time (such as it was) at General Electric will come in useful there. Up until today I had forgotten all about that, but I bet that some of my long-term subscribers will remember.
I shan't say very much about the meeting except that you might probably recall my theory about workplace meetings - that is that they should take place outside, with everyone standing up, and in the pouring rain. This afternoon's meeting would have benefited from being held in those circumstances.
Apart from that, nothing much else. Shopping in St Eloy and that was about that. No solar energy for my immersion heater, grey day that it was, but the water boiler ran for a couple of hours and the water was still warm at washing-up time.
Tomorrow is the Virlet brocante and it's usually a good 'un. I can't wait.
Good God... The Addams family!
ReplyDeleteAs promised, the jam recipe.
ReplyDeleteSeedless blackberry and apple jam
This is seedless but it’s not a true jelly as it’s cloudy. I resent the waste of good fruit to make a true jelly.
Equipment:
A sieve, mouli or other method of sieving the pips, core and skin from the stewed fruit.
A large pan
Ladle, wooden spoon, a jam funnel, if possible.
Jam jars, wax discs, either cellophane circles (and elastic bands) or lids.
Labels
Ingredients and method
For every kilo of blackberries, you need about 350g of apples. They can be windfalls (cut out any bad bits before weighing) or well flavoured eaters. Chop the apples into small pieces, core, skin and all, just no bad bits
Place the fruit in a large pan with enough water to prevent sticking (you can always add more if necessary later. Simmer the fruit until it’s all soft. I like to give it all a good mashing with my potato masher from time to time to help it along.
When it’s all soft and mushy, push the fruit through a sieve or a mouli so that all the pips and skin remain behind. Discard these.
Weigh the fruit pulp. Add the sugar, gram for gram – i.e. 500g fruit pulp will need 500g sugar. Place the sugar and the fruit pulp in a large pan and stir together well. I like to leave it overnight, covered. It’s not essential but it helps the sugar to dissolve into the fruit and I think it reduces the amount of scum (no idea why).
When you’re ready, get the jam jars together, clean them thoroughly and place them in the oven at about 130 C to get good and hot.
Heat the fruit and sugar, slowly at first and then, when all the sugar has dissolved, bring it to a rolling boil and let it boil for about 10 minutes or until it reaches setting point.
Scrape any scum from the surface and allow to stand for a few minutes.
Ladle the hot jam into the jars, using a jam funnel, if possible (because it’s less messy), lay the wax discs over the top and them deal with either cellophane and an elastic band or a screw lid.
All to cool, label and store in a cool, dark place.
Thanks Joy. And for those of you wondering about this apparent non-sequitor, you'll be amazed at just how much stuff you are actually missing!
ReplyDelete