Such a day was last Sunday and our back road explorations led to a lovely old orchard, Domaine Da Vine, on the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi near Bay City. There we wandered through mixed orchards and a vineyard and picked a variety of apples, pears and grapes of many varieties—most of them with unusual and old-fashioned names we had not heard. The orchards are not sprayed or treated, so some of the fruit has spots—but they were not bad and I like the unsprayed fruit. You can cut out any spots that bother you.
The owners, Jeff and Paula Soholt instructed us to circle the orchard, pointing us in the direction of certain kinds (crab, pie apples and pears) and inviting us to sample from any tree. The same was true for the different varieties of grapes. It was great fun.
Of course I came home with bags and bags of eating apples, pie apples and crabs (for jelly), as well as many pears and two varieties of grapes. Now, again, I have a porchful of produce to process.
Last year I found Concord grapes at the same farm, but the owners were not home and someone was helping out. Grapes were all picked and at the end of their season—I purchased the two pounds they had and made spiced grape butter—it was delicious. This year, with more grapes and some good instructions, I am making grape jelly.
Some of you probably know that grapes contain tartaric acid which causes crystallization in jelly. To remove the tartrate crystals, you must let the juice stand in the refrigerator overnight, then pour the juice through a paper coffee filter or 3 layers of dampened cheesecloth to leave the sediment behind.
How to make grape juice:
Place washed grapes (stems removed) in nonreactive saucepan. Add ½ cup of water per pound of grapes (1 pound is about 3 cups). Crush grapes with potato masher. Heat for 5 minutes at medium heat (do not boil). Crush again, and cook 5 to 10 minutes longer, or until skins lose much of their color. Strain through several layers of dampened cheesecloth or paper coffee filters. Do not squeeze—let drip. You should get about 1 ½ cups of juice from each pound of grapes.
The pears are so good to eat out-of-hand, I’m not sure that we’ll have a lot left to process when I get to them. They were a bit under-ripe, so I can leave them on the porch for a few days. I found a recipe in Abundantly Wild by Teresa Marrone for Pear muffins that is perfect for our inn. Pears are great in salads, paired with walnuts, too.
Here are the recipes that I’m going to do—I’ll report on the results in a later column:
All are from Abundantly Wild. (See above).
No-Cook Grape Jelly
3 half-pint canning jars, with bands and clean lids; or plastic freezer containers
1 ½ cups grape juice (let juice stand overnight in refrigerator and strain before using; see above.)
2 ½ cups sugar
Half of a 1.75-ounce box powdered pectin
1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp. water
Sterilize jars and lids in boiling water. Combine juice and sugar in glass or Pyrex mixing bowl, stirring to dissolve sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. In small saucepan, combine pectin and water; stir well (mixture may be lumpy). Heat to a full, rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Cook at a rolling boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour pectin mixture into juice in bowl. Stir constantly with wooden spoon until sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy, about 3 minutes; a few grains may remain, but the mixture should no longer look cloudy (or the jelly will be cloudy).
Pour mixture into prepared jars or containers, leaving ½ inch headspace; cover with clean lids. Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours; the jelly should be set. If it is not set, refrigerate for several days until set before using or freezing; grape jelly may take as long as a week to set. The jelly will keep for 3 weeks in the refrigerator, or it may be frozen for up to a year.
Pear Muffins (12 muffins)
2 cups flour
½ cup sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. nutmeg
1 cup whole milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup (half a stick) butter
1 cup finely diced pears (peeled, cored and diced before measuring)
½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Heat oven to 425. Spray 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray; set aside. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg in sifter or wire-mesh strainer; sift into large mixing bowl. (Or stir with a wire whisk). In another bowl, stir together milk, egg and butter. Add milk mixture to dry ingredients; stir until just moistened (batter should still be lumpy). Add pears and nuts; mix together gently. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling 2/3 full. Bake until tops are browned and center springs back, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from pan immediately; cool to warm room temperature before serving. Best served warm.
Pear-Apple Jam
3 half-pint canning jars, with bands and new lids
1 cup finely chopped pears (peeled, cored and chopped before measuring)
1 cup finely chopped apples (peeled, cored and chopped before measuring)
Half of a 1.75-ounce box powdered pectin
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
¼ tsp. cinnamon
3 cups sugar
Prepare jars, by sterilizing in boiling water for 10 minutes; lids and bands by simmering for 10 minutes. In heavy-bottomed, nonreactive saucepan, combine pears, apples, pectin, lemon juice and cinnamon. Heat to full, rolling boil that can’t be stirred down, stirring constantly. Add sugar. Return to a full, rolling boil; cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir for about a minute. Ladle into prepared jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Seal with prepared lids and bands. Process in boiling-water bath for 10 minutes.
Domaine Da Vine is open weekends in September, or by appointment
Directions from Red Wing: Cross bridge on Hwy 63; turn right on highway 35. Proceed south 1.7 miles, turn left on County C. Proceed .5 miles, turn right on 170th street. Go up the hill, .7 miles. Turn right at the Domaine Da Vine sign. Proceed .5 miles through the fence to the farm.
Cell phone 651-334-5613
PBSoholt@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment