Blackberry Bay Leaf Jam Recipes

BLACKBERRY-BAY LEAF JAM

Steps:

• Place a few small plates in the freezer. Stir together berries, sugar, lemon zest and juice, salt, and bay leaves in a large, heavy stockpot. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar and mashing lightly with a potato masher. Skim foam from surface. Cook, stirring more frequently as jam thickens, until it is the consistency of very loose jelly, 10 to 11 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
• Press about half of the jam through a medium sieve; discard seeds. Return strained jam to pot, and stir until combined. Return to a boil.
• Remove a plate from freezer, and drop a spoonful of jam on it. Return to freezer for 1 to 2 minutes, then gently nudge edge of jam with a finger. If jam is ready, it should hold its shape. If jam is too thin and spreads out, return to a boil, testing every minute, until done. Remove bay leaves, and discard. Spoon hot jam into hot sterilized jars, and cover immediately with sterilized lids.

BLACKBERRY JAM

Steps:

• Place the berries in a large stainless steel or enamel saucepan. Bring to a full boil over high heat, mashing the berries with a potato masher as they cook. Add the lemon juice and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring and mashing constantly.
• Add the sugar and return the mixture to a boil. Cook, stirring constantly, until it begins to look syrupy and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and test for doneness: a candy thermometer should register 220 degrees F and the mixture should coat the back of a spoon. Run a finger--or a clean object about the width of a finger--through the coat of jam. If the jam does not run and fill the gap, it is done. Otherwise, return the pan to the heat for another 1 to 2 minutes and test again. Be careful not to let the mixture get too thick--it will thicken as it cools.
• When the jam is done, transfer it to a heatproof jar and cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate. The jam will keep for up to 2 weeks.

PEAR & BLACKBERRY CRUMBLE WITH BAY LEAF CUSTARD

Steps:

• First, make the custard. Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl until just broken up - they shouldn't be frothy. Pour the milk and sugar into a saucepan and warm over a low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, until almost boiling. Add the bay leaves, remove from the heat, and leave to infuse for 10 mins. If the milk mixture has cooled after this time, briefly warm it up again until just steaming, then remove from the heat. Discard the bay leaves and pour a little of the mixture into the whisked egg yolks. Whisk in the splash of milk, then pour the yolk mixture into the milk pan, whisking continuously to combine. Cook over a low-medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and silky smooth. Strain through a sieve and set aside. The custard can be served warm or cold - you can chill it at this stage, or set aside to reheat later.
• For the crumble topping, combine the flour, sugar, oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds, hazelnuts, spices and a pinch of salt in a bowl, then pour over the butter. Mix well. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Butter a large ceramic baking dish. Combine the pears, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and knob of butter in a medium pan, then set over a low heat. Cook for 4-5 mins, gently stirring, until the pears have released some juice and are slightly softened, but not falling apart. Remove from the heat and tip into the dish along with half the cooking juices released into the pan. Dot the blackberries among the filling.
• Scatter the crumble topping all over the filling, then bake for 25-30 mins until golden, crisp and bubbling at the edges. Leave to stand for 10 mins before serving with the custard, alongside the remaining pan juices.