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Mango-Pineapple Jam

October 26, 2014

This past summer we once again had a good harvest of mangoes and were looking for a new jam recipe to try with our beautiful fruit. So after a bit of searching on-line, we tried Rachel’s recipe from her blog Coconut & Lime. The combination of mango and pineapple is delicious. Rachel mentions in her comment section that this particular jam is on the loose side. The jam tasted fantastic, but I wished it were just a bit firmer. The original recipe calls for liquid pectin. The second time we made it, we tried using regular powdered pectin. This still did not make for a firmer jam so we tried low-sugar pectin and adjusted the amount of fruit and sugar and it worked perfectly.

Adding fresh pineapple gives this jam a lovely tropical flavor. Being able to can the jam so that it is shelf stable for up to a year is the key to enjoying the flavors of summer even when summer is long gone.

The fruit, lemon juice, rum and pectin are cooked on the stove before adding the sugar. Once the sugar is added you continue to cook the mixture until it is thick and jammy as in the photo below. Scrumptious.

Mango Pineapple Jam

Updated 10/31/20

Adapted from Coconut & Lime Blog

Makes 7 half pint jars

Ingredients

3 cups diced mango

3 cups diced fresh pineapple

2 tablespoons dark rum (optional)

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 package (1 3/4 ounce) Sure-Jell low/no sugar pectin or 3 tablespoons Ball low/no sugar pectin

4 cups sugar (800 grams)

Preparation

Wash jars and place them in boiling-water canner. Fill the jars and canner with water to the top of the jars. Cover and bring water to a simmer over medium heat, do not boil. Prepare the two piece closures. Wash lids and place in a small saucepan and cover with water. Heat to just a simmer but do not boil. Do not heat screw bands.

While jars are simmering, pour fruit, dark rum, lemon juice and pectin in an 8 – 10 quart pot, preferably with high sides. Place over high heat, stirring constantly with a long-handled wooden spoon. Bring to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down. Still stirring, add sugar. Return to a boil that cannot be stirred down, and boil for exactly 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

Lift the canner jar rack and fix into place on the rim of the canner. Remove one jar at a time from canner and empty hot water back into the canner. Place jar on a cutting board and place a canning funnel in the jar. Ladle hot jam into jar leaving 1/4 inch head space. With a clean damp cloth or paper towel wipe jar rim to remove any food residue. Using a magnetic utensil, lift hot lid from water, center it on the jar and place screw band on jar. Tighten screw band evenly and firmly just until resistance is met. Then increase to finger tip tight. Do not over tighten. Return jar to canner rack. Continue filling jars individually until all jars are filled, lower rack into canner and ensure that all jars are covered by 1 inch of water. Cover canner and bring water to a full boil over high heat. Process for 10 minutes, starting timer only when water reaches a full boil. Turn off heat, remove jars from canner after 5 minutes to cooling rack. Leave them undisturbed for 24 hours. After 24 hours check lids for proper seal. Remove screw bands and press down on the lid with your finger. Sealed lids will curve in and will show no movement when pressed. Jars that haven’t sealed properly must be refrigerated immediately or reprocessed. Wipe jars and store in a cool, dry place. Label and date jars. Properly sealed jars will keep in your cupboard for up to one year.

Dessert, Fruit, Lactose Free, Recipes

Lilikoi Bars

August 11, 2014

Lemon bars are a favorite dessert of mine since they’re easy to make and most importantly, taste great. Creamy and rich from the eggs, a bit of sweetness with a hit of tartness, they are a wonderful dessert. This is a variation on the classic lemon bar. In this recipe I used lilikoi (passion fruit) an exotic tropical fruit which has an extraordinarily fragrant scent. Once the fruit is open, the entire room is filled with a wonderful essence that lingers in the air. It’s mesmerizing….

Now that we grow our own lilikoi I’m always searching for new recipes. The fruit hangs gracefully from the vines and drops to the ground once ripe. They can be left on the counter for a few days and will become more fragrant as each day passes. Their taut skin becomes wrinkled, and honestly, they look very homely at this stage. But don’t throw them out! This is perfect time to get out the food mill if you have one, and collect the precious juice. The food mill is ingenious. It presses out the juice from the fruit and leaves all the seeds behind. If you don’t have a food mill use cheese cloth or a jelly bag to strain the juice. I freeze the juice in 1 and 2 cup containers to use later. Speaking of searching for new recipes, I found this excellent recipe on Hungry Cravings. The shredded coconut in the crust is absolutely divine. The coconut becomes nicely toasted as the crust bakes and adds a delicious note to the bars. Don’t leave it out.

This is the perfect recipe. Mix up the crust ingredients, dump it in the pan, press and bake it. You end up with a beautiful, golden crust with hints of toasted coconut.

You can see the bits of coconut in the baked crust. I didn’t have finely shredded coconut on hand so I chopped up some coconut flakes and it worked out fine.

Not only does this recipe have coconut flakes in the crust, it also incorporates coconut milk into the lilikoi layer which adds a subtle richness along with the eggs.

Lilikoi-Coconut Bars (Passion Fruit-Coconut Bars)

Updated 9/23/15

Adapted from Hungry Cravings

Ingredients

For the crust:

1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (I used lactose-free Buttery Sticks)

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon kosher salt if using Buttery Sticks)

For the lilikoi-coconut layer:

4 large eggs

1/4 cup coconut milk

6 ounces fresh lilikoi juice

1 1/4 cups sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

powdered sugar, for dusting

Preparation

Make the crust:

Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil leaving an overhang on all sides. This makes it a breeze to lift out the entire tart once thoroughly cooled. Lightly butter the foil. Whisk together the flour, powdered sugar, coconut, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Transfer the dough to the baking dish and press into an even layer and up the sides of the pan about 1/3 – 1/2 inch. Refrigerate at least 15 minutes and up to 30 minutes. Don’t skip this step as it will help to keep the crust from shrinking and pulling away from the sides of the pan which will cause the lilikoi mixture to seep under the crust. While dough is chilling in the refrigerator, pre-heat the oven to 350° then bake for about 20 – 22 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Make the lilikoi-coconut layer:

Blend together the eggs, coconut milk, and lilikoi juice in a small bowl. Whisk together the sugar, flour, and salt in a large bowl. Add the lilikoi mixture to the sugar mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour over the baked crust and bake for 16 – 18 minutes, or until just set. Let cool to room temperature then transfer to the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Using the edges of foil, lift the bars out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into portions and dust with powdered sugar just before serving.

*Updated the dough procedure to include pressing dough up the sides of the pan about 1/3 – 1/2 inch prior to baking. This provides a barrier for the lilikoi mixture when you pour it over the baked crust (it could seep down the sides of the baked crust if this is not done).

Fruit, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Pickled Mango

July 8, 2014

Many of the world’s cultures have their own version of pickled mango. In India they often use chiles, fenugreek and mustard seeds for a spicy pickled mango side dish. Vietnamese- style pickled mango may include Thai chiles. Here in Hawaii we make a brine of vinegar, sugar and salt and sometimes dried plums are added.

A few weeks ago strong trade winds knocked off a number of our White Pirie and Rapoza mangoes. This could have been a tragedy, given how tasty these mangoes are when perfectly ripe. So bucket in hand, I gathered up the fallen green mangoes and made a small batch of pickled mango. All of my Maui friends love pickled mango!

The seed of this green Rapoza mango is small and soft which makes it very easy to cut the mango into slices. This particular mango is all fruit and little seed.

Adding dried plums to the pickled mango is not essential however I usually include them. They soak up all the tasty brine and add that extra “umami” flavor we all love.

Pickled Mango

Makes about 11 cups

Ingredients

6 – 7 pounds green mangoes

2 1/2 cups white vinegar

3 cups filtered water

2 1/2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons Hawaiian salt or kosher salt

1/2 – 1 teaspoon li hing mui powder (optional)

20 li hing mui plum seed or dried seedless plums (optional)

Preparation

Combine vinegar, water, sugar, and Hawaiian salt in a 3-quart pot. Bring to a simmer, stirring until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved. If using li hing mui powder, add it now and stir to combine. Remove from the heat and let mixture cool to room temperature.

Peel mangoes and cut fruit away from the seed. Slice into strips about 1/3-inch thick. Place cut mangoes in a large bowl. Add enough liquid to cover the mangoes. Give it a stir, add dried plums/li hing mui if using. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight, stirring occasionally. The pickled mango tastes best after it has marinated for a few days in the delicious sweet-tart brine. Pack in individual containers and store in the refrigerator. Give them away as gifts, your friends will be forever grateful.

Dinner, Fish, Fruit, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Mango Salsa

July 2, 2014

Our mango tree (White Pirie) provides us with the sweetest fruit imaginable. These little, nondescript mangoes are a revelation to those who are not familiar with this particular variety. I have to give credit to my mom who told me how delicious this mango is, and, that I should plant a White Pirie tree in my yard. Now, more than 25 years later, this tree is the crown jewel of our garden.

This is a quick salsa that is particularly good with grilled fish. It goes especially well with Cajun style blackened fish: it’s really the perfect summer meal.

During the summer months when mangoes are in season, there are a number of ways I like to use them. Sorbet, jam, pickled and occasionally a nice mango crisp for dessert. This salsa recipe is one of the most delicious ways to enjoy this fruit.

Mango Salsa

2 generous servings

Ingredients

1 cup diced, sweet mango (ripe but not too soft)

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon finely chopped Maui onion

jalapeño to taste (I like to use our nacho jalapeños but feel free to use fresh jalapeños)

juice of 1/2 lime

Preparation

Combine mango, cilantro, onion and jalapeño in a medium bowl. Squeeze lime juice over and toss very gently to combine ingredients. Refrigerate until well chilled. Serve over fresh, grilled fish or chicken.

*Salsa is best made within a couple of hours before serving.

Dessert, Fruit, Lactose Free, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Blueberry Tart

May 11, 2014

I’ve been enjoying fresh blueberries for months, adding them to my yogurt at breakfast, in weekend griddle cakes, and sometimes eating handfuls for a quick snack. My friend Shanna recently sent me a recipe link for this blueberry tart. The following week while at Costco I found some gorgeous blueberries so I bought a couple of containers with this Alice Medrich recipe in mind. Posted by ABC News, as sometimes happens with recipes, there were two important pieces of information left out; tart pan size and oven temperature for the crust. I only have one tart pan (9-inch) which meant the first problem was solved. The oven temperature was easy to find after a quick search on the internet. Voila! Time to make a blueberry tart.

The dough was quite soft as the recipe mentioned it might be, but that actually made it easy to press into the tart pan.

Baked to a beautiful golden color the crust did shrink quite a bit from the top edge of the tart pan. I thought it might be too shallow but it worked out perfectly.

Blueberries, sugar, water, flour, lemon zest and a dash of salt are combined and heated briefly on the stove.

Half of the fresh blueberries are set aside and sprinkled over the baked crust before adding the cooked berries.

This recipe is so easy to prepare. It is the perfect dessert for a small party. The tart is chilled thoroughly before serving and that means you can make it in advance. The recipe mentioned the tart is best eaten the first day however I found it is just as good the following day.

Delicious, crisp, crust.

Alice Medrich’s Easy Blueberry Tart

Adapted from ABC News

Makes one 9-inch tart

Ingredients

For the crust:

10 tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter, melted (I used Earth Balance Buttery Sticks)

1/4 cup (1.75 ounces) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups + 1 tablespoon (5.75 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

For the filling:

4 cups fresh blueberries (1 1/2 pounds)

3/4 cups (5.25 ounces) sugar

1/3 cup water

2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

grated zest of 1 small lemon

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the crust: Combine butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt, in a medium bowl. Mix the flour and baking powder together thoroughly, add to the butter mixture, and mix just until well blended. If the dough seems too soft, let it stand for a few minutes to firm up.

Press the dough over the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan to make a thin, even layer making sure to press the dough uniformly around the edges of the pan to avoid extra-thick edges. (The crust can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Wrap well and refrigerate until ready to use. Bring to room temperature before baking). Place tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 22 – 25 minutes, until the crust is fully golden brown all over. If the crust puffs up during baking, gently press it down with the back of a fork and prick it a few times. Set the baked crust aside while you prepare the filling.

Combine 2 cups of blueberries with the sugar, water, flour, salt, and lemon zest in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently. Then simmer, stirring, until the filling is thickened and translucent, about 3 more minutes.

Spread the remaining 2 cups of uncooked blueberries in the tart crust. Spoon the hot blueberry mixture into the crust, covering the raw blueberries evenly. Spoon enough liquid into the tart so that it just comes up to the edge of the crust. Discard excess liquid. Let cool, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until the filling is set.

Serve the tart cold. Remove the sides of the pan and transfer the tart to a serving platter. The tart keeps well, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Fruit, Gardening, Lactose Free, Recipes, Salad, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies

Lilikoi Vinaigrette

March 19, 2014

Now that the weather has turned a bit cooler, we have been enjoying Manoa and butter lettuce from the garden. During the summer it is impossible to grow lettuce in Kihei, it’s just too hot. We also planted radishes that turned out to be a tasty addition to our salads.

Our new lilikoi (the most fragrant of tropical fruits) are doing well. Their vigorous vines quickly claimed the fence as their home with their tendrils grabbing on to anything within reach. We even caught one reaching up to the sky and fastening itself to a mango branch. Our first season of growing lilikoi yielded a small, healthy, crop of fruit that we quickly used to make the best jelly ever. Lilikoi vinaigrette came to mind when I was picking those tender lettuce leaves from the garden. So with the few fruits left on the vines, the juice was frozen in small containers and will be enjoyed throughout the next few months.