Hi everyone,
Today I made my Mango Jam and Lilikoi Jelly.
I’ve been dreaming about it for days.
I had tons of big beautiful mangos just waiting
to be made into preserves.
I also like to add lilikoi juice to the mangos
for additional flavor.
Lilikoi has the most unique flavor.
It is bright, tangy, tropical, refreshing and
quite frankly amazing!
In Hawaii we pick them off the vine,
bust them in half and suck em right down.
It is a taste of Hawaii.
To prepare for making jam is easy.
I just peel the Mangos, slice them and
place them into a bowl.
I aslo squeeze about ten lilikois and
the juice of three lemons.
I measure exact amounts of fruit to
put into my stainless steel pot.
Since I discovered the
wonderful product called Pomona Pectin
I use nearly half the sugar
it used to take to gel the jam or jelly.
I wanted to create low sugar products
for my diabetic patients and for my self and family.
I discovered Pomona pectin while doing a web search
on Mother Earth magazine.
I order it by phone and get the wholesale price.
The smaller package is the monocalcium Phosphate.
The calcium water is sort of a catalyst
that makes the pectin work perfectly.
The Citrus pectin is a gem.
It works perfectly every time.
The lady on the jamline guaranteed
that I could do batches up to 32 cups.
Normally, I was doing only 4-6 cups at a time
so this was great news.
So here’s what I did today.
I cut up my mangoes
and measured 6 cups of fruit into the pot.
I add 6 teaspoons of calcium water to the 6 cups of fruit.
(1 tsp. for every cup of fruit.)
The Pomona pectin is added to the bowl of sugar
on the side before I add it to the fruit.
This helps it disperse better.
(1 tsp. for every cup of fruit.)
The sugar can be 1/2 as much of the fruit.
I added 4 cups of sugar.
Normally it required bringing the fruit
to a rolling boil for 15 minutes.
With this Pomona pectin I only need
to bring it to a boil for 2 1/2 minutes.
If I boil it any longer I might undo the thickening process.
So I have to trust the formula and it works!
I have experimented with slightly less pectin powder
and calcium water with good results.
I do not like my jams and jelly too hard or too loose.
I want them Perfect!
The jars have been prewashed in the dishwasher
but can be done with soap and hot water and dried.
I used to boil my jars before use,
but realized that this was overzealous.
The lids and rings must be kept in hot water
brought to nearly a boil then turned off.
After I ladle the jam into the jars,
I wipe each rim with paper towels
dipped into the boiled water.
Then I place the rubber sealed lid on and
screw on the rings finger tight.
This batch came out awesome!
Now the next step involves the deep water bath.
I place my jars into the canning pot and cover
with water at least two inches above all the jars.
It has to boil for at least five minutes.
It takes a while to bring this much water to a boil.
(about 15 minutes.)
Cover the pot to speed it up.
I boil for five minutes then turn off the heat.
At this point today, I left to take a walk in the park.
When I returned, I removed the jars
to place on a towel to set.
When cooled you must unscrew each ring
to check if the lid has a good seal.
Then dry each rim and ring and tighten again.
It seems tedious, but there is something
so Zen about making jam and jelly.
The act of repetition in the step by step process
and doing something
so old-fashioned really feels good.
So I hope you try it sometime.
I am creating a new video series
that will really show you how easy it is.
Next it’s lilikoi jelly!
August 27, 2009 | Categories: mango jam, Mangoes | 3 Comments
Aloha everyone,
On Maui, in the summer months, mangoes are happening! The hot dry sides have the big ones we love called Hadens. There are many varieties like Fairchild, common, cigar, and small ones in Hana. When Mangoes are plentiful we eat them like crazy but then we have to do something so I love to make Mango Bread and also Mango Jam. Some people pickle mango in thin slices and others do crack seed mango which is the fruit that is left on the seed broken into pieces. It’s really good to suck on.
This week I baked about 24 small loaves. It took me three batches to perfect it. The first batch had only 2 cups of mango. Was moist but not awesome. The second batch I added Papaya and was really good. The third batch I increased the mangoes to 2 and a half cups of fruit and this was to die for!
Here’s the recipe and pics below.
Sift together:
2 cups flour (unbleached all-purpose)
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
into a large bowl..
2 1/2 cups mango slices crushed
3 eggs lightly beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
I crush the mango pieces with the whisk to make sure they are evenly distributed. Whisk all this together quickly and add 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes to the mix.
If you like nuts now is the time to add your 1 cup of crushed walnuts, macadamia nuts or pecans and then pour into your baking pans. Either two loaf pans or 8 mini loaf pans. I have a Martha Stewart non-stick 8 pan piece. I love it. Though it is non-stick, I still oil it lightly before adding the batter to the pans. Leave about a half inch below the top if you want to make sure the loaves don’t stick together. Otherwise you’ll have to cut them apart.
Martha Stewart Non- stick Mini loaf pans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes or until a bamboo skewer comes out clean. Larger loaves may take 50-55 minutes, but these mini loaves cook much faster. Check at 35 minutes.
Cool, then slide a butter knife around the edges, tap the pan to loosen and remove breads.
Bon Appetit!
Slice them and ENJOY with a good cup of coffee or milk. So ono!
So tell me readers what do you think of my mango bread?
Aloha until next time, I’m making Portuguese Bean Soup a favorite here in Hawaii.
Marilyn
Kihei, Maui
Coconut Palms at Kalama Park, Maui.
August 19, 2009 | Categories: Hawaii cooks, Mangoes, Maui | 2 Comments
The Artful Hawaiigirl 