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Saturday, March 21, 2009

Saturday job well done

 

Well I hope it is well done. I can’t be sure the apple butter I made today is really good until Camillo likes it.  If he doesn’t, I will have to eat it all myself or give it away.

While in the USA in October last year, I made apple butter for my daughter’s family and I thought I would try it for Camillo. Of course, we all know that apple butter is the best on whole wheat bread (store bought) with peanut butter and here we will eat it on Brazil's version, Pão Integral, which is not the same at all and forget the peanut butter which here taste like oily wax.   We will work with what we have.

It has been quite a process to replicate this recipe but after nearly 4 months and the use of some ‘jetinho’,  I think I have had some success (I won’t know till I get Camillo’s approval). Lets assume he will love it – here is the recipe.

So-Easy Apple Butter (given to me by my sister Candy – taken from her Midwest Living Magazine.)

  • Prep time is 30 minutes (if your fast at pealing apples) Cooking time 5 hours – cool time 1 hour
  • 4 pounds cooking apples, peeled, cored and sliced (12 cups)   ( I used 2 kilos granny smiths)
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 TBS cider vinegar (I used Vinagre de Maçã  /  Maçã = apples, cider is made from apples – close enough?)
  • 2 Tsp. ground cinnamon (Canela da china em Pó)
  • 1/4 tsp. Cloves (here it got sort of tricky – I could not find ground clove only Cravo da Índia (whole), I needed it em Pó or ground - I looked everywhere then decided to grind it in my coffee grinder – well we will see. By the way don’t do this - it left some type of residue in the grinder that may effect the taste of my coffee forever) ***have since found ground cloves here in Zona Sul
  • 1/8 tsp. ground allspice  (defined as Allspice, also called Jamaica pepper, pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta,[1] or newspice, is a spice that is the dried unripe fruit ("berries") of Pimenta dioica)  I brought mine from the states.
  • 1/8 tsp. nutmeg (Noz-Moscada)
  1. Place apple slices in a 3 1/2-4 quart slow cooker   {This is the part that took two months. When in the USA and I got this bright idea I didn’t buy the slow cooker – thought I’d seen them here – also needed 220v not 110v. After much searching in Rio and Friburgo, I couldn’t find one here so I ordered from the internet, a special site with 220 small appliances, and had Camillo bring it back from Houston on his trip in Feb. – then the plug didn’t fit our plug – so it took another trip to Rio to a specialty store in centro – finally I was ready to go.}
  2. Stir in sugar, water, vinegar, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and nutmeg.
  3. Cover, cook on high setting for 5-6 hours. Stir, cool at least 1 hour or cover and chill overnight. Ladle apple butter into half-pint storage or freezer containers, (I use sterile used jars and store in the refrig.), leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Seal and label. Store 3 weeks in the refrigerator or for 1 year in the freezer. Makes 4 – 1/2 pint containers.
  4. Great on toast – fresh biscuits – gram crackers or as a sandwich with peanut butter.

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6 comments:

  1. That looks so good. Willow had some bread and soup on her site the other day. I had to make some.

    Yesterday, I shot...well, I can't tell you, as it is my secret post for tomorrow. But I went back today to get some of what I shot after I finished uploading it from camera to computer. They were closed.

    I am going to the kitchen.

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  2. who is Willow? what soup? I always need new SIMPLE recipes.

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  3. Oooh that looks good! I adore apple butter. And now that fall is coming here, it does feel like the time to make it. Get the knitting out and cook up some apples! (Oh, okay I know we don't get deep into Fall weather here, but we can pretend a little, right? I miss that season!)
    Hmmm... the slow cooker (lack of one) is going to be a stumbling block for me. I wonder if I could do it in a crock pot in a low oven.
    I see you brought allspice back from the states! I have no idea what that is called here even if they have it.

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  4. All I can say is hmmmm! I have not been able to find Nutmeg (Noz-Moscada) or brown sugar here in Rio! I'll have to look again though, because you got me excited about this recipe!

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  5. in alt leblon - the last street before the canal (dias feirias??) there is a pizza place called 'Pronto' on the next corner is a vegie market called 'Horta Fruita'(please forgive my spelling but is close and unmistakable) if you go there in the back of this market to the left with the greens is spices and even further back a good brown sugar - make sure it is light colored and squishes (moist) (not the greenish-dark brownish one this is just granulated sugar that has been dyed and gross to cook with).
    let me know if don't find it I will bring you some from Friburgo next wednesday.

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  6. THANK YOU for the translation for Nutmeg! Big step forward for my cooking (I like to use a tiny bit in quiches for that secret ingredient touch - among other things.)

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