Zesty Blueberries???

Blueberries.. yum. Who can resist plump ripe blueberries? Of course their season goes all too fast and unless you preserve them in someway you are waiting a long time to enjoy them again. This year I decided to make some blueberry jam... I did not think this would be a hit with my kids.. they tend to be a bit picky and have their favourites that they rigidly stick by. I remind them often, when trying to get them to try something new, that it might be their new favourite thing..

Anyway, the appeal of this recipe was that it also had lime in it. I like zing.. sweet is ok, but with an added zing, it seems to have the right amount of kick. Having seen some rave reviews for it, I jumped in and tried it myself.  I was so happy I did. Not only is this jam low in sugar, it is also pectin free. I love recipes that don't call for a lot of ingredients!

The lime enhances the flavour so much. Everyone in the house had a spoonful to lick... even hubby. It received a resounding thumbs up from them all. This recipe is a keeper.

Here is the ingredients:
4 cups blueberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
zest of two limes
1/4 lime juice (this should be store bought to make sure it has the right acidity)

Combine in a pot all the ingredients.. Stirring often and making sure the berries are mashing to your liking ... simmer for about 20 minutes or till it sets.
Water bath for 10 min.

It made 2 and a half pints for me.. and we happily ate the half pint over the next few days.  I will definitely double or triple this recipe next year.

Jammin

I was oh so fortunate to be able to pick raspberries at a friend of mine's Mom's place.. plump juicy berries.. with nothing yucky sprayed on them.
My girls love raspberry jam. well lets be honest. .who doesn't love raspberry jam!?!
My friends Mom told me how she was making her jam.. with no pectin. Sounds good to me, so I gave it a try this round and was very pleased with the results.

• 8 cups berries
• 6 cups sugar (I have seen online there are recipes calling for equal amounts of fruit to sugar, I didn't think it needed that)

How easy can that be?? Seriously!

Get your jars sterilizing and the lids and rings in a pot heating.

Heat your berries and give them a good mashing.

Add your sugar and bring the whole mixture up to 220 degrees.

Fill your jars.. then put them in to the canner for their water bath. 5 Min after the water starts to boil (time from the point of boiling)

and voila

 

What to make next?... hmm stay tuned to find out :)

Day flying by

Today, after taking my daughter to school I ran a few errands. When I got home I used up the last of my blackberries from yesterday and made some more jam. I made blackberry/pineapple this time. It was a concoction I came up with yesterday. The little taste I had after it was finished cooking was delicious. Such a brilliant colour too. The yellow from the pineapple deepened the blackberry red and made it rich and yummy looking. Hmm, wonder how long those three jars will last :)
I had just got the girls to sleep when I heard a roaring in the sky. I just had the chance to grab my point and shoot and step out the door. Right over top of me, and I do mean RIGHT OVER TOP! Was the Snowbirds. I had only a split second to hit the button and get this picture.

We have been dazzled with their performances a few times but I had never seen them fly this low. I don't know what was going on today that had them in town. Other times we have been able to see them it was because of the Queen visitin, or a Canada day celebration.

* I found out that the Snowbirds are performing this Sunday.

Fruits of my labour

So yesterday I had an opportunity (thanks to my Mom, who watched the girls!) to go blackberry picking. I was able to get a bucketfull, which was more than I thought I would. This year hasn't been the best for blackberries around here. While picking I saw the biggest spider. I included a pic of it, none of the pics are very good. All were taken with my blackberry phone and it was windy. But because he was SO big, (and that is not an optical illusion, He really was that size in comparison to my hand)I had to include him. I am not terribly afraid of spiders, but that guy commanded some respect. I was a little less eager to stick my hands where I couldn't see after seeing him and the few relative that were around.
Now, I am trying to live a low carb lifestyle, so jam is not in the picture for me. However Kristin, loves jam so I have an excuse to make it. I have very fond memories of picking blackberries with my Grandma. We would walk up the road they lived on, past a lake and pick bucketfulls. Then we would head home and I would smell that sweet blackberry smell all through the house as she was cooking it. She made the best jam (and pretty much everything else!) and it tasted even better on her homemade buns. So it gives me warm fuzzy feelings to make it too.
This morning I got busy and made the berries into jam. I was going to can pears today too, but I am not sure if that is going to happen. I was up at the wee small hours with Hanna, so my energy level is dragging.
I drove my Mom to the bus yesterday evening and then took the girls to get an icecream cone. Beacon Drive in, it is the BEST icecream. We pulled over and watched a cruise ship leave port while they ate. Again the pics are off my phone, so they are not the best. But where else but Victoria can you see a sunset like that, a cruise ship leaving and a helicopter all in one pic lol.