Canning Cookbook- Spiced Kumquat Jam

Lots of ladies in a canning group I am in have been talking about kumquats lately. Some people like to can them whole in a light syrup. I thought they would be better in a jam, which is how I'd be more likely to eat them. If you haven't seen them before, kumquats are teeny tiny citrus fruits, about the size of grape tomatoes.

Because kumquats are relatively expensive here in the frozen Midwest, I didn't have pounds of fruit to work with. I had to buy a package and work with that. I wanted something not too similar to a marmalade, as the kumquats have very tender peels, and wanted to use as much of the pulp as possible. I also supplemented the pulp with a couple of oranges, cheating, I know, but I didn't want to shell out $10-15 in fruit for a single jar of jam. 

Spiced Kumquat Jam

1/2 lb kumquats
2 oranges
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
2 cups water
3/4 to 1 cup sugar
1 stick cinnamon
4 whole cloves

Cut the kumquats into quarters. Scrape the pulp into a bowl and set the peel aside. 

Remove any seeds from the pulp and any large pieces of membrane. I was glad I bought the oranges because the inside of the kumquats were not juicy at all. 

Finely chop the peel. Zest both oranges and add to the kumquat peel. Cut the orange into pieces and cut out as much pulp as possible, leaving the peel and membrane behind. It's easier if you cut the orange into supremes first, but you don't have to go to so much trouble. Be sure to do so over a bowl to catch all the juice.

Combine everything in a saucepan and bring to boil. Adjust the sugar according to the tartness of the fruits. Simmer until you reach the jelling point. If you use a thermometer, it's 220 degrees.

Remove the cinnamon stick and cloves and ladle the jam into a jar. Cover and store in the fridge.

I ended up with about a half pint of jam, so it wasn't something I would process for shelf storage. Now if I lived in a warm climate and had access to several pounds of kumquats I sure would, and follow the processing time for orange marmalade.

The spice flavor was very subtle in this jam, and the kumquat peels are so delicate they really softened up during cooking. I like marmalade but the peel in marmalade has a definite "bite" to it- not the case here. This is something I'd definitely make again but heat not quite to the jelling point and use it as pancake syrup. This jam is going to be perfect with freshly baked biscuits!

Pumpkin Butter- Yummy stuff!!

Let me start with a stern warning- I share a lot of canning recipes. This is NOT one of them. Pumpkin butter is NOT SAFE for canning at home, even with a pressure canner.  Ok, so we got that out of the way......

The Chef and I did an inventory of our canned foods still leftover from last fall- we have a LOT of pumpkin, butternut squash and Hubbard squash. So what should I do? Of course I plan on baking a few goodies but I thought why not a crockpot full of yummy pumpkin butter? It's the harbinger of fall, always makes the house smell AMAZING and is super easy to throw together in a crockpot. Since I have the extra jars, I decided to give it a shot.

I chose 6 quarts- 4 of pumpkin, one of butternut squash and one of Hubbard squash- all of which are perfect for pumpkin recipes. Drained and dumped in the crockpot, mashed with the potato masher, I added 3 cups of sugar (to start), a dash of nutmeg, ginger, allspice, orange peel and a big blast of cinnamon, and put it in the crockpot to simmer. Mmmmmm the smell is sooooo wonderful. Thanksgiving is in my crockpot!

Since I'm winging this one a little bit, let's jot down the recipe as we go- you will need-

• 6 quarts canned cubed pumpkin*
• 3 cups sugar (plus more)
• 1 tsp each nutmeg, ground ginger, allspice, orange zest (I used Penzey's dried- it you use fresh, 1 tb)
• 4 tsp ground cinnamon

Place the cubed cooked squash in the crockpot, mash well with a potato masher. Add sugar and spices, stir well. Turn on high heat and cover. Once the pumpkin butter is bubbling, turn heat to low and cover with splatter shield or prop the lid open. You want the pumpkin butter to cook down into a rich, thick consistency.

Taste during the cooking process too. Add more sugar if you need it, more spices, etc. When it tastes delicious to you, you've hit the right combo!

When you've cooked the pumpkin butter to your desired thickness, it's time to jar it up. You can use plastic freezer containers if you like. I am going to use those cute little square Ball jars- I know they are freezer safe. Pack the butter into your containers and allow to cool slightly before popping into the freezer. 

REMEMBER- this is NOT a safe canning recipe, so please do not can it and store it on a shelf. Pumpkin puree is far too dense to safely can. It's easy enough to freeze, so don't put yourself at risk of potentially deadly botulism. Since it's not being processed it's a great way to reuse commercial jars too. I don't have to worry about a seal failure. You might hear the lids "ping" as the jars are cooling before popping in the freezer, but DO NOT assume that's a safe seal. It is NOT. Please freeze or refrigerate ALL the jars!!

*Let's talk for a minute about the pumpkin. I had home-canned pumpkin cubes so I used those. I used 6 quart jars with the liquid drained off. You can use commercially canned pumpkin or cook your own fresh pumpkin or butternut squash or a mix of pumpkin and winter squash. How many cans from the store? Just guess- you can see how full my crockpot is. Estimate- maybe 10-15 cups. How many pie pumpkins or squash to roast? Again, it's just an estimate. It's ok if you don't have as much pumpkin to start with, just lower the amount of sugar and spices you start with.

Now that you have this jar of autumn scented deliciousness, what do you do with it? It's fantastic on warm biscuits, buttery toast or waffles. Top a slice of cheesecake. Use your imagination!