Prune Conserve

Hi Friends,

I don't know if I have any regular readers or not.  If I do, I would love to know you are there.  I know a lot of people pop in for recipes, and I wonder if you ever come back again.  If you are there, please do leave comments as you get a chance.

I thought I'd let you know what I made today.  Last year our favorite homemade jam was made out of prunes.  All the other jams we made were ok, but the Prune Conserve stood out above all the rest in many ways.  By the way, prunes are really a fresh fruit.  They are not just dried plums.  One common variety is Italian Prunes. They are purple/blue in color, and split easily in half, like an apricot.  Their flavor is sweet with a touch of lemon juice complexity, with no bitter.  There happened to be one of these trees on the property when we moved into this house, which made me really happy, because there were Italian prunes where I grew up also.  I think you could also make this recipe with some sweet plums too.

The original recipe had 6 cups of sugar!  So of course, I had to start tweaking.  Last year we figured out this recipe really does not need much sugar, and its thickness is not based on sugar or pectin either.  I also decreased the amount of orange peel in the recipe, because frankly, it is not one of my favorite flavors.

Another tip for the recipe is that if you have a food processor, use it.  If you don't, it will take you a bit more time for chopping ingredients, but that doesn't matter, if you aren't making mega batches.  Another tip is that it is ok to make multiple batches, as long as they will fit into your largest kettle.

Prune Conserve
wildflowermorningrecipes.blogspot.com

2 1/2 quarts chopped, pitted prunes or plums (about 4 pounds)*
2 cups raisins
1 3/4 cups chopped orange pulp*
1/3 cup thinly sliced orange peel*
1 1/2 cups sugar (you might try xylital or stevia)
2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans or other nuts*

* Use the S-blade of your food processor on these, if you have one.  Pulse them until they are as small as you wish.  The nuts and orange peel can be pulsed fine.

Combine the prunes, raisins, orange pulp, orange peel and sugar in a large pot.  Bring slowly to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Cook rapidly almost to jellying point, about 15 - 20 minutes.  As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking.  Add nuts the last 5 minutes of cooking.  Pour hot mixture into jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space.  Adjust caps.  Process 15 minutes in boiling water bath.  Yield:  about 5 pints.

Thanks to William at Heavenly Light Photography for the photos.

Easy Fruit Cobbler (Gluten-free, Vegan), With Raspberries

The raspberries are producing every day now with our sunny warm, but not too warm weather.   Twice I've made my favorite quick and easy fruit cobbler recipe with raspberries.  It is fruity like cobbler, but you can eat it in your hand like cake.  The recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, low in sugar and fat.
 

Easy Fruit Cobbler (Gluten-free, Vegan)
www.wildflowermorningrecipes.blogspot.com

Oil to grease the 9 x 13 dish.

1/2 cup sugar of your choice, such as Florida Crystals or sucanat
2 cups Sorghum Flour*
2 Tablespoons Tapioca Starch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 3/4 soy or rice milk, or milk of your choice
2 cups fruit, fresh or frozen, such as raspberries, blackberries, cherries, or peaches
1/2 cup walnuts or other nuts

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease your baking dish.

3.  In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar, flour, tapioca starch, and baking powder.  Mix well.  Add the milk of choice and mix until smooth. Pour this batter into the baking dish.

4.  Arrange the fruit over the batter and sprinkle with the nuts.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

*If you can eat gluten, you may make this recipe with 2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour to replace the sorghum flour and the Tapioca starch.

Blueberry Smile Smoothie

It is time to post some of our favorite smoothie recipes. We eat them several times a week for breakfast.

We pick many pounds of blueberries every year, so blueberries are a common smoothie ingredient. This recipe will fill a Vita-mix Blender Jar. If you have a smaller jar or a smaller family to make smoothies for, adjust the amounts accordingly.

Blueberry Smile Smoothie

Serves 4 people a large 2 cup serving of breakfast

2 oranges, peeled
A handful of pitted dates
1 quart of frozen or fresh blueberries.
Several leaves of romaine lettuce or spinach
2 cups of water.

The amounts of each ingredient is not scientific. Use what you have. Add more dates if you need it more sweet, and less if you don't. Put in more greens when you are ready. It is good without greens, but not as good for you. Some people even like to up the minerals with a little kelp powder, maybe a teaspoon full, and you might not even taste it there, unless you are sensitive to the taste of kelp (like me). If you need it to be more fatty, or creamy, throw in some raw nuts, such as cashews or almonds or pecans. Put in just enough to make you smile. Drink enough to fill you up. It's pure nutrition.

Layer it in the blender, in the order I listed it above, and then blend until very smooth. If you don't have a strong blender, you might have to stop it frequently and push the ingredients down. Another thing you could do is wait until the berries are thawed, and then it will work easier. A Vitamix or something similar will work best, but if you don't have one, don't let that stop you from eating smoothies. Figure out what yours can do, and then put on a Blueberry Smile.

Easy Canned Fruit Layer Salad

When I didn't know what to fix for supper, my 10 year old son, told me he would make me a surprise, as long as I didn't come into the dining
room while he was working. This is what he made.


It's easy.

You need:
A pedestal bowl, or other bowl with clear straight sides.
Jars of home canned fruit in different colors
Some frozen fruit in other colors
Optional: Grind up a variety of nuts and or seeds to sprinkle on as a topping

Open those jars, pour out most of the liquid, and then layer in the bowl. Top with some frozen fruit of different colors, or some fresh fruit.

Serve. Sprinkle on some ground nuts.

Instead of Chocolate- Grapes!

Instead of Chocolate - Grapes!
Barbara Frohne
www.wildflowermorningrecipes.com

1 bunch of red seedless organic grapes
1 cup of finely chopped walnuts or pecans, place some in a tiny dish
1 recipe of Sweet and Sour Cashew Dip

1. Wash the grapes and drain.

2. Make some Sweet and Sour Cashew Dip
Place in the blender and blend until smooth
3/4 cup of raw cashews
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (fresh tastes so much better)
1 TBSP honey or agave nectar
More water if needed, but be careful to keep this as thick as possible, because you are going to need to have it thick enough to dip grapes in and have it stick.

3. Dip the plump end of a grape into the cashew dip, then dip onto the chopped nuts and roll it just a little bit to get the nuts to stick and cover the spread.

4. Arrange the grapes on a platter and serve.

Serves 4 - 12, depending on how many you eat.