For the final Can Jam of 2010 – but hopefully, not the last Can Jam ever – Tigress herself picked the key ingredient: Dried Fruit. I knew I wanted to use something a little bit out of the ordinary, and settled on one of my favorites – dried mango. And since I haven’t canned a chutney this year for Can Jam, I thought it was high time that I did. I was inspired by some of the flavors common to Bengal, in northern India. This isn’t a terribly traditional version, but delicious nonetheless!

Bengal-Style Chutney
(yield: 3 pints)

Ingredients:

10 oz. carrots
1-1/2 lbs apples
1 large onion (about 8 oz)
2/3 cup dried mango (chopped into roughly 1/4 – 1/2″ pieces)
4 dried chili peppers, crushed
1 cup raw sugar (turbinado or demerara)
1/4 cup kosher salt
1 Tbs ground ginger
1 Tbs curry powder (I used hot Madras curry powder)
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 Tbs honey
1-2/3 cups cider vinegar

Preparation:

Peel the carrots and slice into thin coins – about 1/8″. Peel and core the apples, then chop roughly into about 1/2″ dice. Peel the onion, cut in half, and slice into very thin half-rounds. Place everything into a large saucepan (at least 4 quart).

Add all of the remaining ingredients, stir well, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, and allow to simmer for about 45 – 50 minutes, or until reduced and thickened.

Ladle the hot chutney into hot, sterilized jars – leaving 1/2″ head space, cover with new lids, and tighten rings finger-tight. Process in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes. Check your seals in 24 hours. Any excess can be put into a sealable container and refrigerated.

While you can certainly eat the chutney right away, it’s at its best if allowed to meld for at least a couple of weeks. Try to control yourself.

This Bengal-Style Chutney is sweet, savory, and spicy all at the same time. Don’t wait for an Indian meal – this is a condiment that compliments so many different foods! Try it with chicken, turkey, and I imagine, even pork or a nice tofu steak.

Happy Holidays to all of my fellow Can Jammers!

By the way, have you been following
Share Our Holiday Table is a progressive holiday dinner party consisting of 7 courses over 4 tracks (Gourmet, Family Friendly, Vegetarian, and Gluten Free), with over 50 bloggers participating, to raise money for Share Our Strength during the critical holiday season. I’ll be posting a vegetarian side dish on Monday, December 13th, but here’s what’s been happening so far:

December 9: Soup

Gourmet

• edible cville
• The Runaway Spoon (read the post)
• A Girl, A Market, A Meal (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Ladles and Jellyspoons (read the post)
• Two Dollar Dinners (read the post)
• All About Alton Brown
• Cookie Central’s Great American Bake Sale (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Good Life Eats (read the post)
• Feed Our Families (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Celiac Teen (read the post)
• Celiacs in the House (read the post)
• Gluten Free Life with Jen
• And Love it Too! (read the post)

December 8: Salads

Gourmet

• The Bitten Word (read the post)
• girlichef (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Food For My Family (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Glugle Gluten-Free (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Add a Pinch (read the post)
• Gluten Free Diva (read the post)

December 7: Drinks

Gourmet

• Food Woolf (read the post)
• The Gringo Chapin (read the post)
• Neo-Homesteading (read the post)
• Three Many Cooks (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Fat Wuz Here (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Lexies Kitchen (read the post)
• Simply Sugar and Gluten Free (read the post)

Gluten Free

• Gluten Free Easily (read the post)

December 6: Appetizers

Gourmet

• The Italian Dish (read the post)
• Recipe Girl (read the post)
• Neo-Homesteading (read the post)

Family Friendly

• Family Fresh Cooking (read the post)
• Giving Up on Perfect (read the post)

Vegetarian

• Two Peas and Their Pod (read the post)
• Smith Bites (read the post)

Gluten Free

• La Fuji Mama (read the post)
• Wenderly (read the post)

Please visit these terrific blogs and consider donating to Share Our Strength.

I made some Apple Ginger Jam for next week’s Tigress’ Can Jam (here’s the jam recipe), and I started thinking of various things I can do with it. Well, besides spreading it on a toasted bagel. Here’s the first thing I thought of: Apple Cream Napoleons With Dulce De Leche. Sinful, ain’t they?

I can not tell a lie. I was inspired by this blog post by my friend Jim at Oxford Falls. I read that, and the inspiration light bulb went off over my head. Also, I was in the middle of making jam at the time.

Apple Cream Napoleons With Dulce De Leche
(makes 6)

Ingredients:

1 sheet frozen puff pastry
4 oz. cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
4 Tbs. Apple Ginger Jam (or your favorite jam)
1 recipe dulce de leche (follows)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400º.

Thaw the puff pastry at room temperature for about 30 minutes. On a floured surface, gently unfold and roll it out to a square, roughly 13″ x 13″. Now, you’re not going to get a perfect square – who’s kidding who, here? – so take a knife or a bench scraper and square it off to 12″ x 12″. I really did use a measuring tape that I keep in a kitchen drawer just for the purpose. Seriously.

With the knife or bench scraper, cut 12 squares about 3″ x 3″ and place them on an ungreased baking sheet. I left mine puffy, but if you prefer your squares a bit flatter, dock them by poking them a few times with a fork. Brush each square with a bit of water and sprinkle with sugar of your choice (I used demerara). Bake for 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool (which will take only a few minutes).

In a separate bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with a spoon until fluffy. Add the jam and stir to combine. Spread this mixture on half of the puff pastry squares and top each with a plain square.

Serve as is, or drizzle (okay, I used a heavy drizzle) with warmed dulce de leche.

Dulce de leche is a rich milk caramel sauce, hugely popular in the Spanish-speaking world, and a flavor that’s becoming more and more popular here in the U.S. Heck, even the Girl Scouts have a dulce de leche cookie! The secret’s out and you can make your own at home. Spread it on your toast, spoon it over ice cream, drizzle it over fresh fruit or just about any plain dessert you want to make a little extra-special.

Making the dulce de leche is the easiest thing on the planet, but it does take a bit of advance planning, attention, and care.

Dulce De Leche

Ingredient:

1 or 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk

Preparation:

Fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Remove any labels and put the unopened can(s) of sweetened condensed milk in the pot of boiling water, reduce heat slightly so that the water continues to boil a bit less violently. Allow to boil for 2 hours, taking care to keep the water level over the tops of the cans at all times. Keep a kettle of hot water available to top off the pot when the water level drops.

Notice I said “when the water level drops.” It will. Check on the pot every 15 – 20 minutes and top off the pot when needed. Do not allow the pot to boil dry, as it’s possible that the can(s) could explode. I’ve never had it happen to me, but I’m paranoid. A little paranoia is never a bad thing.

Remove the can(s) from the water and allow to cool before handling. If not using right away, you should probably mark the contents on the can. I keep mine in the refrigerator, just to be on the safe side (see previous paragraph regarding “paranoia”). Once opened, you should transfer it to a sealable container and refrigerate. It’ll keep for months unopened, and weeks after opening… if it actually lasts that long!

When you want to use some, open a can of your now-dulce de leche, spoon some out into a microwave-safe bowl. It will be really thick. Microwave on high for 15 seconds, give it a stir, and microwave for another 10 seconds. Repeat if necessary to get the spreadable or drizzly consistency you need. It will set up once cooled, so save this step for the last moment before serving.

If you have Dulce De Leche on hand, you’ll never be at a loss for a last-minute dessert. And with the holidays approaching, expect the unexpected!

Any questions?

Dulce De Leche

It should be FALL, right? Even in Miami, it should be fall. It should be more like 80º, not 90º, but it isn’t. So to give Mother Nature a hint, I decided to bake Tamarin Cinnamon Apple Sticky Rolls. Tonight is also the beginning of another 7-day Jewish holiday, Sukkot. Since my mother is making a meat-based dinner, I decided to make these sticky rolls non-dairy.

Tamarin Spread (no, not tamarind-the-fruit) is named for a small monkey in the Brazilian rainforests, and is a creamy, slightly cinnamon-y concoction that’s making it’s way here from Belgium, where it’s known as speculoos (or spekuloos). Kind of. And it evolved from a Christmas wafer cookie. I’m still not sure how that happened. But now, it’s a smooth spread that’s lighter than peanut butter, and ever so flavorful. I won a jar of Tamarin Spread at Elle’s New England Kitchen about a month or so ago, under the condition that I develop a recipe using it. I’ve owed Elle this post for, oh, about 3 weeks now, and there’s no time like the present!

The Jewish holiday Sukkot (or Succos), translates as “Feast of Tabernacles”, and commemorates the Jewish people’s 40 years of wandering in the desert between being released from bondage in Egypt to finally being permitted to enter Israel, their new permanent home. We are supposed to build a kind of impermanent dwelling outdoors, with a roof made of branches or palm leaves (depending on what’s available in your area), so you can still see the sky through it, and eat all of our meals during the next week there.

Sukkot is also a harvest holiday, akin to Thanksgiving, and fruit and/or nuts in some form is usually on the table. Tying all three events together is a piece of cake (no pun intended – sort of ) with this version of sticky rolls, spread first with a layer of Tamarin Spread, and then with a buttery chunky layer of apples cooked with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Tamarin Cinnamon Apple Sticky Rolls

For the Dough:

1 envelope (or 2-1/4 tsp.) yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm soy milk
1/4 cup natural cane sugar
4 Tbs. Smart Balance Light spread
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract

I mix this with my stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook, but you can certainly mix it by hand if you care to.

Preheat the oven to 350º F.

Put the yeast in a large bowl and pour the warm (between 110º-120ºF) soy milk over the yeast. With the mixer running on low speed, add the sugar, Smart Balance, and eggs. Start adding the flour, one cup at a time, followed by the salt and vanilla, and mix until a soft, cohesive dough is formed. The dough should not be sticky, but feel smooth and silky. This should take about 5-7 minutes.

With either a bit of oil or non-stick cooking spray, grease the bowl and form the dough into a smooth ball. Put the dough ball into the bowl, turning it over a bit, so the surface is completely oiled. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, and put it in a warm, draft-free spot to rise. Allow to rise till nearly doubled, about an hour.

For the Filling:

6 Tbs. Smart Balance Light spread
6 Tbs. organic brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1-1/2 cups apples (peeled, cored, and chopped in roughly 1/4″ dice)

1/2 cup Tamarin Spread

Melt the Smart Balance in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon, stir to combine, and heat till bubbly. Add the chopped apples, toss to coat, and reduce the heat to medium. Allow to cook for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce thickens and makes “strings” when you lift your spoon out of it. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool.

To Assemble:

Grease a 9″ x 15″ baking pan and set aside.

Roll the dough out to a 15″ x 10″ rectangle. Spread the Tamarin Spread evenly over the surface of the dough, to within about 1/2″ from the edges.

Spread the apple-brown sugar mixture evenly over the Tamarin layer. With the long side facing you, carefully roll the dough over the filling mixture, jelly-roll style. Slice the roll into 12 (relatively) even slices and place in the prepared pan, touching each other. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, and put it in your warm, draft-free spot. Allow to rise for another 30 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap and bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before serving.

*Notes:

Can you make these babies with dairy milk and butter? Hell, yeah! As I may have mentioned before, I keep a kosher kitchen and so does my mom. If she were making a dairy or neutral meal, I would have used milk and butter in a heartbeat. Using the soy milk and Smart Balance Light has the dual benefit of making this non-dairy and vegetarian. Can you make this recipe without the Tamarin Spread? Of course. The filling just won’t have that subtle creaminess.

*Disclosures: I won a jar of Tamarin Spread in a giveaway on the Elle’s New England Kitchen blog. Everyone entering the giveaway did so with the proviso that if they won, they would commit to creating a recipe using the product. I have received no other consideration, nor have I received any consideration in any form for the use of Smart Balance Light. I buy it and use it because it is non-hydrogenated, non-dairy, vegan, and for its specific stated healthy properties. I recommend it on those grounds for anyone needing a butter or margarine substitute. That’s my opinion.