Meyer Lemon Marmalade

I brought some lemons back from CA (and bought more at Costco) with the intention of trying to make lemon marmalade again. Last time was good, but a little overcooked. This time I got lucky and it's pretty close to perfect.

INGREDIENTS

• 1.5 pounds Meyer lemons
• 2.5 cups sugar
• water (3 cups needed for the actual jam recipe, but start with more for boiling)
• Pomona's Pectin (I bought this in CA.  Not sure if it's available locally, but it's really a unique product that allows me to successfully make jam with less sugar.  It's a 2 step process - definitely different than using SureJell, so read the directions carefully.)

PREPARE THE PECTIN 

• Prepare the Calcium Water.  To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well.  Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.
• For this recipe, mix 4.5 teaspoons of pectin powder with 2.5 cups of sugar. 

SOFTEN THE LEMON PEELS

• 1.5 pounds of washed Meyer lemons (round the weight up if necessary, but don't cut a lemon to keep it at 1.5 pounds. I weighed 1 lb, 12 ounces for this batch.)
• Place in a single layer in a pot, cover with water, bring it to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. (Cover with a lid to keep your water from evaporating.)
• Cool until you can work with them.
• Save the cooking water.

COMBINE INGREDIENTS 

• Cut each lemon in half and remove the seeds.  The lemon is pretty broken down after all that simmering, so use a cutting surface that will hold the juice that tries to escape.
• Peels and all, put them in the blender with 3 cups of the cooking water. (I divided the lemons and water in half to do this in 2 steps.  Not sure my blender would have held it all and I didn't want to overprocess it.)  
• I processed it on my slow pulse setting so it would roughly chop but not puree.
• Pour it into a pot and bring the water and chopped lemons to a boil.
• add 3 teaspoons of prepared Calcium Water (1 part of the Pomona's process)
• Add pectin-sugar mixture, stirring vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin while the marmalade comes back up to a boil.  Once the marmalade returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat.

PROCESS THE JARS

• Fill hot jars to ¼” of top. Wipe rims clean. Screw on 2-piece lids. Put filled jars in boiling water to cover. Boil 10 minutes (add 1 minute more for every 1,000 ft. above sea level). Remove from water. Let jars cool. Check seals; lids should be sucked down. Eat within 1 year. Lasts 3 weeks once opened.

NOTES (as if I needed more):

Food in Jars has a more traditional marmalade recipe but it's lemon ginger.  That sounds pretty great so I might use my extra lemons along with a tube of Aldi Ginger Paste to try this all over again.

I used bits and pieces of all these recipes.  Take a look if you want to refer to someone who knows what they're talking about.

• https://pomonapectin.com/orange-marmalade/
• https://foodinjars.com/recipe/meyer-lemon-ginger-marmalade/
• https://foodinjars.com/recipe/honey-sweetened-meyer-lemon-jam/

I'm pretty sure this is all firmly in the ranks of rambling, poorly written recipes, but since there are basically 5 readers, I'm not too concerned.  LMK if something is unclear and I'll update.

Rosemary Thyme Spiced Nuts

 

INGREDIENTS
3 c. large whole nuts - I like to use 1 c. cashews, 1 c. pecans, and 1 c. almonds (I usually buy nuts at Trader Joe's)
2 T. olive oil
2 T. coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 T. sugar
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 300° F. Place nuts in a medium heatproof bowl.

Pour oil into a small heavy saucepan and place over medium-low heat until warm. Do not let it get too hot – the oil will burn. Add rosemary and thyme and stir until aromatic, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat and stir in cumin and cayenne pepper. Pour the flavored oil over the nuts and stir to coat evenly. Sprinkle with sugar, salt, and black pepper. Stir again. Transfer to a jelly roll pan or a baking pan with sides. Bake for about 15 minutes total, stirring after the first 10 minutes. Let cool. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

JEN'S NOTES:

• Very tasty and simple! A nice break from all the sweet snacks this time of year.
• I made a double batch and divided them into little mason jars as St. Nicholas day gifts for co-workers.
• I used half oven-roasted, salted almonds and half unsalted, chopped pecans, which was a good mix for flavor and texture.
• I didn't have fresh herbs, so I used dried rosemary and thyme, and changed the proportions accordingly.
• I added a little garlic powder because, you know, garlic.

Source

Maker's Mark Mustard

1/4 cup yellow mustard seeds

1/4 cup brown mustard seeds

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

1/4 cup bourbon

2 to 3 tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

To prepare mustard seeds: In small bowl, combine yellow mustard seeds, brown mustard seeds, vinegar and bourbon. Cover. Let cure at room temperature for 2 to 3 days.

To make mustard: In blender or food processor, combine mustard-seed mixture, brown sugar and salt. Process to desired consistency.

NOTES:

• Mmmmm!  Sorry we used up your Maker's, Tony, but this is a pretty good use for it.
• Source
• See the recipe source for a news article with some other recipes as well, including a yellow ballpark mustard that looks really good.  Reprinted below just in case the article disappears, but not yet tried.

BALLPARK BEER MUSTARD 

Don't let the bright-yellow color fool you. Thanks to mustard powder and hoppy beer, this condiment packs a spicy punch. Swipe this stuff on your next grilled hot dog and don't look back.

Makes 1 pint.

1/2 cup mustard powder

1 cup hoppy beer (see shopper's note)

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric

1 egg

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons sugar

To prepare mustard powder: In small metal bowl, whisk together mustard powder, beer, water and turmeric until smooth. Cover. Chill overnight.

To make mustard: Bring saucepan with 1 inch of water to a simmer. To mustard-powder mixture, add egg, salt, cornstarch, lemon juice and sugar. Whisk to blend. Place bowl over simmering water. Cook, whisking continuously, for 5 minutes or until mixture starts to thicken. Immediately remove from heat.  I used an India pale ale.

Spicy Honey Mustard

1/4 cup yellow mustard seeds

1/4 cup brown mustard seeds
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

To prepare mustard seeds: In spice blender or mortar and pestle, grind yellow mustard seeds and brown mustard seeds until most are broken. In small bowl, combine seeds, vinegar and water. Cover. Let cure at room temperature for 24 hours.

NOTES:

• Did not make a pint as it said
• More "spicy" than "honey" but definitely good.
• Source

Whole Grain Mustard

AKA Nick's Craft Mustard

Makes about 2 cups

½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup yellow mustard seeds
¼ cup brown mustard seeds
¼ cup beer or water
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
¾ teaspoon salt

1. Combine vinegar, mustard seeds, and beer in medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to 2 days.

2. Process soaked mustard seeds with sugar and salt in food processor until coarsely ground and thickened, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as necessary.

3. Transfer mustard to container and let stand at room temperature until it achieves desired spiciness, then refrigerate for up to 2 months.

NOTES:

• We were in a bit of a hurry to get this started so just lightly processed the seeds in the little electric coffee grinder first and basically skipped the first step.
• On the "beer or water" option, use beer.
• Very good, would definitely make again!
• Source

Cranberry Pecan Bread

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped coarse(optional)
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
2/3 cup buttermilk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg, beaten lightly
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups cranberries, coarse chopped
Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan; dust with flour, tapping out extra.

Stir together the orange zest, orange juice, buttermilk, butter, and egg in a small bowl. Whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Stir the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients with a spatula until just moistened. Gently stir in the cranberries and pecans. Do not overmix. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° F; continue to bake until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes longer. Cool in the pan 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool at least 1 hour before serving. The bread can then be wrapped in plastic and stored at room temperature for several days.

Candied Nuts

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound walnut halves

1 cup white sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread nuts in a single layer over a baking sheet. Roast for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, or until the nuts start to turn brown and the smell of roasting nuts fills the kitchen.
2. Stir together sugar, cinnamon, salt, and milk in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat for 8 minutes, or until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage of 236 degrees F (113 degrees C). Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla immediately. .
3. Add walnuts to sugar syrup, and stir to coat well. Spoon nuts onto waxed paper, and immediately separate nuts with a fork. Cool, and store in airtight containers.

Great with pecans!

Molly Koop's Scones

Bet you never thought I'd be endorsing a scone recipe, did you? Well, this one is very good when served fresh from the oven, and even pretty good when cold. (Not that there will be any leftovers...)

It came as a gift - a jar of dry ingredients and a recipe card with instructions to complete it.

Scone Mix (these are the ingredients that were in your jar)
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

The recipe card (in a very girly font with a teapot clip on it) said this:

Ingredients
1 Jar Scone Mix
1 Bag Chocolate Chunks or Cinnamon Chips
1 Stick Butter cut into pieces
1 ¼ Cup Milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In mixer with paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer) mix dry ingredients. With mixer running, add butter and mix until coarse and sandy. You should be able to see small lumps of butter. Add milk and mix until almost combined. Add chips and mix just to distribute them evenly through the dough. DO NOT OVERMIX. There may still be some flour not mixed in at the bottom of the bowl.

Turn dough out onto lightly-floured surface. Knead dough ten times to bring it together and smooth it out. Using floured rolling pin, roll out dough to thickness of one inch. Using biscuit cutter or two-inch cup, cut out circles. Using a spatula, transfer scones to ungreased baking sheet. Knead scraps together just until combined, then roll again and continue cutting out circles until dough is used. Bake until light golden brown, about fifteen minutes.

Variation: Use dried fruit or other baking chips for a different flavor scone.

Notes: I HIGHLY recommend the cinnamon chip option.