This month’s contribution to the Can Jam, a Peach Vanilla Marmalade, kind of evolved in the pot as I went along. Once again, I found myself seasonally-challenged by the choice of “stone fruit” by Kate of The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking. To my knowledge, we don’t have much in the way of stone fruit in South Florida (unless you count mangoes – should I have counted mangoes?) this time of year, so I settled for the bounty of California peaches that are apparently in-season and flooding our markets right now. (I should note here that the computer file I created for the photos I took for this episode, is titled “Sept 2010_Stoned Fruit”. Should say a little about where my head was at.)

When we get them, the peaches start out rock-hard, then ripen in an instant, so I virtually stared them down, giving the occasional poke, until they were ready. All the while, I longingly recalled the gorgeous fresh peaches I’d seen and tasted in the Granville Island Market, while visiting Vancouver a couple of weeks ago. Wish I could’ve brought them home with me… sigh.

The ones I was stuck with were so-so, so I added a couple of nectarines, a lot of lemons, and a tablespoon of good clear vanilla extract to the pot and it worked!

Peach Vanilla Marmalade
(makes about 5 1/2 pints)

Ingredients:

4 lbs. ripe peaches
1 lb. ripe nectarines
7 average lemons
2 cups water
8 cups sugar
1 Tbs. clear vanilla extract

Stash a couple of small plates in the freezer for gel-testing.

Peel, stone, and chop the peaches and nectarines into rather small pieces (about 1/4-1/2 inch) and place them in a bowl of cold, acidulated water (add a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice to the bowl of water to acidulate it).

Shred the lemons finely with a mandoline, being careful to remove the seeds as you go along. Place them in a large (roughly 6 or 7 quart) non-reactive pot. Add the water, cover, and boil on medium-high heat for 25 minutes.

Drain the peaches/nectarines. Add the fruit and sugar to the pot and stir well. Bring back to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium. Cook uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and do a gel test by putting a small spoonful of the liquid on one of the frozen plates, return the plate to the freezer for about a minute, then remove. With the tip of a spoon or your fingernail, push the liquid on the plate. If it wrinkles – even a little bit – you’re ready to can. If it stays completely liquid, return the pot to the heat and cook for an additional 5 minutes, then try again.

Add the tablespoon of vanilla to the pot when you get a successful gel-test and stir well.

Ladle the hot marmalade into sterilized, prepared jars, wipe the rims with a very damp paper towel to clean them, cover with new, heated lids, and screw on the bands finger-tight. Boiling water process for 5 minutes. Wait 24 hours to test your seals (they should have all gone ping! and the lids should have no flex when pushed on).

Label and store your golden treasures against the cold, dark winter months ahead, so you can dream about summer once again. Of course, it’ll be sunny and pleasant here, and I’ll be outside gardening & basking while y’all are inside, hiding from the cold and shivering. Bwahahahaha! Oops! Did I say that out loud?

This is the second in my Blueberry Series for Tigress’ Can Jam, and today I bring you Grand Marnier Blueberry Peach Sauce! Sounds delectable, doesn’t it?

Strawberry season is over for us in South Florida. In fact, the farmers markets and local vegetable/fruit stands all pretty much closed by the end of April. Remember, the bulk of our fresh and local produce comes in the winter and early-mid spring. With our growing season kind of topsy-turvy to most of the rest of the country, finding “local” produce is going to present a bit of a challenge for future Can Jams.

I mention this, because we in the South tend to think pretty much of the whole South as “local.” If it came from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, or anywhere in Florida, well darlin’, that’s as good as our own backyard. Otherwise, we’d be pretty much fruit-less… at least until the mangoes come in. And our local mango season is running a bit late this year because of all the strange weather we had this winter. But I digress…

During the month of June, aside from the Florida blueberries, there is nothing quite like a Georgia peach. They just don’t come any sweeter and juicier – and they are coming into our markets right now. So, why not combine the two?

This dessert sauce is kind of a riff on, and adapted from, a hazelnut mango blueberry sauce I spotted in Small Batch Preserving by Topp and Howard. And I’d have made it with mangoes, too, except for the fact that, as I said earlier, the only mangoes available right now are those small, hard, stringy things from Mexico. Also? I don’t have any hazelnut liqueur.

But what I did have, were peaches. And mmm…. Grand Marnier. The result was something my husband said is so good, I could sell it. And it may come to that.

Grand Marnier Blueberry Peach Sauce
(makes about 6 half-pints)

Ingredients:

7-8 peaches
2 dry pints (approx. 4 cups) blueberries (washed and stemmed)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
3 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon rind
1/4 cup Grand Marnier (or other orange liqueur)

Preparation:

Cut an “X” through the skin of the bottom of each peach and drop them into a pot of boiling water. Allow them to blanch for 3 minutes, then remove them to a bowl of ice water for a minute. The skins should slip right off. Remove the pits and dice the peaches about the size of your blueberries. Slightly larger is okay.

Place all ingredients, except the liqueur, in a large, non-reactive saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for about 25 minutes, or until the fruit has softened and the liquid has thickened.

Add the liqueur and simmer an additional 5 minutes.

Ladle into hot, sterilized jars, seal with new lids and rings (prepared appropriately), and process in a boiling water canner. Ten minutes for half-pints, 15 minutes for pints.

Remove from canner and allow to cool. Wait 24 hours and check your seals.

This sauce is fantastic served over cheesecake, pound cake, or ice cream. Here, I’ve served it over some One-Ingredient Banana “Ice Cream” (2 banana recipe, to which I added 1/2 tsp. vanilla and a tiny pinch of salt). The combination of the cold, creamy banana with the blueberries, peaches, and hint of liqueur, is like a match made in heaven!

Stay tuned for Blueberry Mojito Jam!

And did you see the Blueberry Marmalade?