From the Demo, Saving the Season- Fall Demo
Recipe courtesy of Kevin West
15 oz cranberries
1 hard apple such as Arkansas Black, peeled, cored and sliced into 1/2″ chunks (this is optional, but it’s my father’s way of doing it and I like the added contrast of texture and flavor)
1 cup water
2 cups sugar (for an approximate 1:1 ratio of fruit to sugar)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger or crystallized ginger
3″ cinnamon stick
zest of 1 orange in finest possible threads
1 tsp vodka (I used vodka that that I had previously flavored with a few slices of fresh citron peel, but plain vodka would work be fine. Brandy, Cointreau or even gin would be other options)
1/4 cup chopped pecans — or you could also use walnuts or pistachios if you prefer
1 — Rinse cranberries and put in a kettle with water, cubed apple, ginger, cinnamon stick and orange zest. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes until berries pop.
2 — Add sugar to the kettle and return to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. Once the sugar has fully dissolved, add alcohol and nuts and cook for 2-3 minutes more, stirring carefully to prevent scorching. Because cranberries have so much pectin, the mixture will quickly reach the jell point, so once it begins to thicken in the pot, turn off heat and test for a jell set.
3 — Once a jell set is achieved, remove cinnamon stick and ladle hot jam into prepared 1/2 pint jars and seal. (Work quickly! You won’t believe how fast the pectin in this recipe sets up.) Process sealed jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
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