A New Twist on an Old Favorite: Grapefruit Curd

 

I’ve been making lemon curd for close to 30 years. Initially, I would make a batch and refrigerate it, as I couldn’t find directions on how to can it. It seemed so much more delicate than jam or preserves. And given that it has eggs and butter, I was a fairly new and nervous canner. I remember calling in to a radio show my dad listened to when a well-known chef was on discussing canning. Question asked and answered. From then on, I have made double and triple batches at one time and canned that lemon curd safely.

 

Three weeks ago, my brother picked about 20 pounds of Meyer lemons and we met in Oxnard for a long weekend, part of which was spent canning lemon curd. Fifteen jars of it! We have since been in the California desert visiting family and getting a bit of respite from the freezing mountain temps. 

 

My godmother lives in a gated community called The Citrus, and throughout the property are lemon, mandarin, orange, and grapefruit trees. Residents (and guests) are allowed to pick all the fruit they want. Since I had my handy dandy canner with me (doesn’t everyone travel with one?), I thought I would give grapefruit curd a try, given their abundance this time of year. 

 

These were lovely ruby red grapefruits, bursting with bright pink juice. I used roughly the same recipe as with lemon curd, with one exception. Grapefruit juice is fairly mild in its singular form, but when boiled down you get a much more intense flavor that works well in the curd. I also threw in a bit of lemon juice to brighten/complement the flavor just a bit.

 

Needless to say, it was a hit. I ate it straight from the jar, but am looking forward to going home and making some crumpets on which to serve it. Nothing like a good crumpet with all its holes filled with curd to make me swoon. And you will too.

 

So here it goes…..

 

Grapefruit Curd

2 cups fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice

¼ cup lemon juice

7 tablespoons grapefruit zest

1 pound sugar

1 stick butter

8 eggs, lightly beaten

 

Boil the grapefruit juice down until you have 1 cup.

Before eggs....look at that color!

 

Combine juice, zest, sugar, and butter in double boiler over simmering water until the sugar dissolves and the butter melts. (I often use a very heavy bottom pan in lieu of a double boiler and it works if the heat is kept low enough and you stir constantly.)

 

Pour one ladleful of hot liquid into eggs, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Repeat at least twice to warm up the eggs and keep them from curdling. Once warm, whisk the egss into the hot mixture, stirring constantly. 

 

Cook, stirring, until thick (about 20 minutes). 

 

Remove from heat, cool, and store in the refrigerator. If you want to can these, it will take 20 minutes in a hot water bath 

 

YIELD: approximately 5 cups.

 

Quick Asian-Style Pickles

Canning isn’t for everyone. It involves long hours in a kitchen over a hot stove. I’ve been doing it for over 20 years, since my children were toddlers, and I don’t think much about pulling out the kettle and setting to work, but it can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t have Brilliant Daughter at your side.

While waiting to get down to the farm to pick up my produce, I happened to see some lovely pickling cukes at the local farmer’s market and decided to make some quick pickles that don’t involve any heat or canning kettles. The original recipe can be found here on the Food in Jars blog, a great resource and inspiration for home canners. Marisa has some great recipes and helpful hints, should you think you might want to venture into the world of preserved food.

I have altered her recipe for Asian-Inspired Quick Pickles to suit what I had on hand, one of the joys of experimentation. I started with pickling cucumbers that were about 5 inches long (this allows them to fit in either a quart jar or flat plastic storage container). I washed them well and then sliced them into 4-6 spears, depending upon their circumference. I laid them out nicely in a flat Tupperware and topped them with the seasoning ingredients, then poured on the rice vinegar. A few tosses with my hand, then I covered them up and stuck them in the fridge. I did periodically shake the container, whenever I was in the fridge for something else, but these were ready in one day.

What I like about this quick pickle recipe is the use of rice vinegar, which is a subtle flavor, not overpowering like white or cider vinegar might be. By using the refrigerator method, there was no problem with the crunch factor. (Some canned pickles, when not done properly, can become flimsy and limp.) And you can spice them up any way you want. I used dry chili flakes, garlic, lime and mint, but you could use any type of dried chili, or fresh chili for that matter (which is what the original recipe calls for). You could also experiment with herbs, spice, ginger, citrus zest…anything your mind can imagine. Because it takes so little produce and so little time, you could make a batch every week!

I, personally, liked these better after 3-4 days, but they got good reviews from the family when they were served with the Cowboy Burgers.

Quick Pickles

5-6 pickling cucumbers
2 teaspoons chili flakes (less if you want a milder heat factor)
1 cup rice wine vinegar
2 limes, juiced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
4 sprigs of mint, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt

Pack the cucumber spears into a quart jar or flat plastic storage container. In a 2-cup measuring cup, combine the rice wine vinegar, lime juice, chili flakes, garlic cloves, mint and salt. Pour over the cucumbers.

If using flat container, toss the cucumber with the mixture by hand and then cover. Shake the container several times a day to release additional flavor.

If using a canning jar, screw a lid on the jar, and holding the over the sink (in case of leaks) invert the jar and give it a good shake. Do this several times a day to release additional flavor.

Refrigerate for at least 24 hours before serving.

Sun-Dried Tomatoes: The Easy Way

I love sun-dried tomatoes, their concentrated flavor is perfect diced up in pasta salads, added to pizzas, cooked in stews. Right now there is an abundance of cherry and plum tomatoes available and it’s a perfect time to save them for later. But, let’s face it, it’s far too hot in most parts of the country to be drying tomatoes in the oven, even if it is only on to 150 degrees.

My new favorite way to dry tomatoes (and herbs) is in the car. Really, it’s the best method. Brilliant Daughter and I recently brought home a bounty of small plum tomatoes from the farmer’s market. We cut them in half and scooped out the seeds (not really necessary but I prefer it this way).

Then we placed them on racks in trays and sprinkled with some fresh herbs (you could use dried as well) and some sea salt and they were ready to be shriveled. It just so happens we have a classic car sitting in our driveway (1964 Nova) that does not get driven very often. It has a perfect back window that gets good sun most of the day. We covered our tomatoes with floursack towels (cheesecloth also works) to keep away any pests that might have entered the car while the door was open. Then we set them in the back window, rolled up all the windows, shut the door and let them cook.

Between the sun beating down and the heat in the car (probably between 150 and 200 degrees), the tomatoes were done in 2 days. Depending on how big your tomatoes are, how hot it is, and how cold it gets at night, this could be longer or shorter in duration. You can bring them in at night if you want, but it is not strictly necessary.

Once they are dried you can plce them in airtight jars, in Ziploc bags, or in the freezer for later use. This is a great set it-and-forget it way to use up excess tomatoes.