Green Tomato Marmalade

Despite the amber hue of the resulting preserves, this is green tomato marmalade. And no, I didn't use the teeny-tiny yellow tomatoes on the left. They're just there for show.

Instead, I used small to mid-sized green tomatoes like the ones below. I figured since I could leave the skin on, I'd use tomatoes that would require peeling when ripe. Just because I take the time to make my own marmalade doesn't mean I can't be lazy about some things.

With my dining room window sill loaded with green tomatoes and lot of of blogger buzz about tomato jam, I thought I'd try a batch of green tomato preserves. Besides, I'm too impatient to wait for them to ripen.

During my research, none of the recipes I found called for pectin. But they all required ridiculously long cooking times. One variation would have taken me six hours if I'd followed their advice. (2 hours to cook, 2 hours to cool, 2 more hours of cooking. Are they crazy?)

I settled on two hours — total. I figured this was the amount of time it would take to watch a movie on DVD. I'd just pop in on things occasionally to avoid writing another "Kitchen Disaster" post. In reality, it was the amount of time it took to prep, cook, eat, makes notes about and clean up the Fried Green Tomato Parmesan I was making at the same time.

Despite my improvisation, the marmalade cooked up nicely. Things would have gone even better if someone had mentioned that you should cut the green tomatoes into small chunks. I knew they hold their shape from my Parmesan dish, but even when boiled like a witches brew these little green monsters don't break down. Of course I didn't take their freakishly firm structural integrity into account when I quartered the tomatoes. My solution? Pureeing the chunks into submission with an immersion blender.

The resulting marmalade has a citrusy tang but isn't sickly sweet. To my delight, it holds together much better than my liquid ketchup. While it freed up a good half-foot of window sill, I'm now running out of cupboard space. Guess I'll have to host a tea party to use up all my butterscotch peach jam and green tomato marmalade. The runny tomato and peach ketchup is reserved for chicken.

What's your opinion on marmalade? Do you have a favourite flavour?

Green Tomato Marmalade
Printable recipe

Makes 5 to 6 250 mL jars

Ingredients

• 2 oranges
  
• 1 lemon
• 1 cup water
• 4 pounds (about 9 cups) green tomatoes, cut in small pieces
• 5 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup crystallized ginger, minced

Instructions

1. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the rind from the oranges and lemon, being careful not to remove any of the pith. Sliver the rind. Set aside.
2. Remove the pulp from the orange and lemon. Set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, boil the slivered rind in 1 cup water for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse.
4. Core the green tomatoes. Cut them into small pieces. Make sure these pieces are the size you want in your jam.
5. Place the citrus rind and pulp, green tomatoes, sugar and ginger in a large pot. Bring to a boil and boil uncovered for 2 hours or until the jam thickens.
6. Meanwhile, prepare the preserving jars.
7. Fill jars with hot marmalade, leaving a 1/4 inch head pace. Wipe the rims clean. Seal according to manufacturer's directions.
8. Process the jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Two Quick and Easy Apple Recipes

It's been quite the week. Over the weekend I co-hosted a 24-hour playwriting contest for the playwright development centre I'm involved with. While my co-host and I ensured the entrants never ran out of coffee or junk food, a dozen writers pounded out scripts on laptops in the Rotunda of Kitchener City Hall — under the watchful eye of a gigantic inflated dung beetle. Really.

You just can't make this stuff up.

Sleep-deprived, I worked on the soon-to-launch WordPress site and inadvertently imported two years' worth of posts from a totally unrelated blog. In case you were wondering. Yes, it does take a long time to find and delete 200 entries.

But after it was all done, I took solace in one of my favourite comfort foods. Apples.

And today, I'm thrilled to be talking about this versatile fruit on CTV in Kitchener. If you live between Owen Sound and Windsor, I'm on at noon. And yes, I'm taller in person.

I'll be covering a couple of quick and delicious recipes. First up is the classic and oh-so-simple baked apple. Notice how it wears its cinnamon stick at a jaunty angle.

And then I move onto the elegant but easy single-serving apple crisp. Or is it crumble? Or Betty?

No matter what you call it, it's tasty. Especially when topped with a dollop of creme fraiche and a swirl of maple syrup.

I'm told I'll have six minutes, so in case I run out of time, here are the recipes I plan to cover.

Apple season's just begun. If peaches and tomatoes are anything to go on, you know I can be obsessive. So tell me. How do you like your apples?

Simple Baked Apples

Printable recipe

Ingredients

• 1 baking apple per person (Cortland, Northern Spy, Ida Red)
• cinnamon sticks
• maple syrup (optional)
• dot of butter (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Wash and core the apples.
3. Place in a baking dish so they aren't touching.
4. Put a sliver of cinnamon in the hole. If you like, add a dot of butter or 1 tbsp maple syrup.
5. Bake until soft, about 25 to 40 minutes depending on the size of the apple.

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Individual Apple Crumbles

Printable recipe

Ingredients

Crumble Topping

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup large flake oats (or rolled oats, not instant or minute)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 cup butter, cold, in chunks

Filling

• 1 apple per person (Cortland, Northern Spy, Ida Red)
• cinnamon
• nutmeg

Instructions

1. Sift the dry topping ingredients together.
   
2. Cut in cold butter until it resembles small peas.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F.
4. Wash, peel, core and chop the apples.
5. Toss apple pieces with a sprinkling of cinnamon and nutmeg, if desired.
   
6. Fill each single-serving, oven-proof dish with 1 apple's worth of pieces.
7. Sprinkle crumble over the apples. (Any leftover crumble topping can be frozen until next time).
8. Bake 30 minutes or until crumbs are golden brown and the apples are bubbling.
9. Serve warm.