Bumbleberry Port Jam

Bumbleberry Port Jam

I've been cleaning out the freezer again and one of the things that always seems to be there, especially now during the winter months are partly used bags of frozen berries. We regularly buy these in the winter months when fresh are not available or are prohibitively expensive. When I begin to question how long the bags have been open is when I decide to throw them all in together and make a batch of bumbleberry jam.

I am not a big maker of preserves, I'm afraid but it is something I'd like to get into this summer. A couple of friends are dedicated canners and bottlers of summer's bounty. I mostly make jams in small batches, usually no more than a couple of mason jars at a time and consume them quickly within a week or two. If it nears the end of that time, the jam usually gets used for dessert like a simple, classic Victoria Sandwich Cake.

There are no rules to my freezer cleaning bumbleberry jam. In this particular batch I used blueberries, strawberries and raspberries but blackberries, cranberries or local partridgeberries  (lingonberries) have been known to be used in the past too; whatever yo have. I like to use a proportion of  2:1 crushed berries to sugar and 2 ounce of lemon juice for each 4 cups berries. This is less sugar than most jams but you will get more of the natural fruit flavor, which is what I prefer.

When making simple jam without pectin, I like to use a candy thermometer to make sure the mixture reaches a syrupy stage or 220-225 degrees F so that you don't have runny jam.

This time around I had on hand a bottle of beautiful port wine that I had been given which had beautiful notes of cherry and plum so I decided to add some of it to my jam. The result was outstanding. What started as a simple way to use those leftover berries  turned into a more complex, deeply flavored, elegant jam that would be as welcome at a formal afternoon tea as it would at a casual weekend brunch.

Makes about 4 cups jam

• 4 cups crushed mixed berries (the jam pictured used strawberries, raspberries and blueberries)
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good port wine

Bring all ingredients to a slow boil. Watch it carefully, jams always boil over easily. Simmer until almost all of the liquid has boiled off and what remains has reached the syrup stage on a candy thermometer, 220 - 225  degrees F.

While still hot, pour into sterilized jars and seal with sterilized lids. If keeping for longer than a week, use the canning method recommended by the jar manufacturer as in this step-by-step guide.

Raspberry Cream Profiteroles with Three Dipping Sauces

Raspberry Cream Profiteroles with Three Dipping Sauces

We’ve reached the finale in our 3 course, video recipe dinner menu for Valentine’s Day. We’ve partnered with CBC Newfoundland and Labrador once again for this series which has included some succulent shrimp cakes as an appetizer and a tender pork main course with Madeira sauce.

Today’s romantic dessert is one that’s perfect for sharing with your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day. The tender, fluffy choux pastry profiterole shells get filled with a raspberry infused whipped cream and comes with a choice of chocolate and raspberry dipping sauces. Now wouldn’t a glass of bubbly be lovely as you feed these sweet treats to your Valentine? 

Here are the links for the other two courses in this Sweetheart Dinner:

Shrimp Cakes with Lime Cilantro Aioli

Prosciutto Pork Tenderloin Marsala

See how it's done by watching the video below.

For mobile users, if the video does not load below please click here.

Raspberry Cream Profiteroles

Makes about 18

For the cream puff pastry combine add to a saucepan:

• 1 cup water
• ½ cup butter

Bring to a boil. Reduce to medium flame and add, all at once:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• ¼ tsp salt

Cook this mixture stirring constantly for an additional 3 minutes. Allow this mixture to cool slightly for about 10 minutes before adding, one at a time:

• 4 extra large eggs

Beat well after adding each egg until batter is smooth
Cover and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls ( or pipe small mounds using a piping bag ) onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until the puffs are golden brown and do not collapse when removed from the oven. These should be uniformly golden all over with no pale sides and sound hollow when tapped. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Raspberry Cream Filling

Beat to firm peaks:

• 2 cups whipping cream
• 3 rounded tbsp icing sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Gently fold in:

• 3 to 4 tbsp raspberry puree ( I press it through a sieve to remove the seeds)

Place the raspberry whipped cream in a piping bag with a star tip or large round tip. Push the tip into the cream puff shell and fill the entire inside of the shell with the cream. If you do not have a piping bag you can also split the cream puff shells in half with a serrated knife and spoon the filling into the top and bottom halves and then putting them back together.

Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar, raspberry coolis and white or dark chocolate ganache.

Raspberry Coolis – half a cup raspberry purée + 2 tbsp sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved.

White or dark chocolate ganache – melt together ½ cup chopped chocolate and 3 tbsp whipping cream.

Shrimp Cakes with Lime Cilantro Aioli

Prosciutto Pork Tenderloin Marsala

Raspberry Cream Profiteroles with Three Dipping Sauces

Raspberry Velvet Cake - No artificial color or flavoring

Raspberry Velvet Cake - No artificial color or flavoring

The velvet cake collection grows today with a new flavor, raspberry...and without any artificial color or flavoring. We try very hard to limit the amount of fake food at our house, preferring to cook and bake from scratch with real ingredients and avoiding preservatives and chemical based food colorings and artificial flavorings as much as possible. My son and I love anything raspberry so I set out to try incorporating some raspberry puree into the batter which with it's intense natural flavor and color seemed like a good choice. 

In terms of flavor, there was not much difference but the frozen berries produced a darker pink color if that matters to you. The cake is as moist and light as the others in our Velvet Cake Collection with good raspberry flavor coming through. Some additional puree added to a raspberry buttercream frosting would add even more great raspberry flavor but we liked it with this fluffy marshmallow frosting. Get that frosting recipe by visiting our recipe for Black and White Cake.

 

Click the photo at the bottom of the post for our other velvet cake recipes, Red Velvet, White Velvet,  Orange Velvet and Lemon Velvet.

Raspberry Velvet Cake

Recipe by Barry C. Parsons

Raspberry Velvet Cake - developed from an outstanding Red Velvet Cake recipe, this beautiful cake is a perfectly moist and tender crumbed cake that would make an ideal birthday cake.

Prep time: Approximately 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: Approximately 1 hour.
Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening at room temperature
• 1 tsp good quality pure vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup undiluted evaporated milk
• 3/4 cup raspberry puree

Directions

1. Make the raspberry puree by mashing fresh or frozen raspberries and pressing them through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. You will need at least 2 cups of raspberries or more to make sufficient puree
2. Grease and flour 2 nine inch round cake pans and line the bottom with 2 circles of parchment paper. 
3. Sift together both flours, baking soda. baking powder, salt and sugar, Set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer beat together the vegetable oil, shortening and vanilla. Beat well at high speed with whisk attachment until light and fluffy
5. Beat the eggs in one at a time.
6. Stir together the undiluted evaporated milk and raspberry puree.
7. Fold in the dry ingredients alternately with the raspberry and milk mixture.
8. I always add dry ingredients in three divisions and liquid ingredients in 2 divisions. It is very important to begin and end the additions with the dry ingredients. Do not over mix the batter. As soon as it has no lumps in the batter, pour into the two prepared 9 inch cake pans.
9. Bake at 325 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pans for 10 minutes before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely.
10. I've frosted this cake with Marshmallow Frosting but any good vanilla frosting is great on this cake. Find the frosting recipe with our Black and White Cake. 

Click the photo below to see the other outstanding recipes in our 

VELVET CAKE COLLECTION

Gluten Free Chocolate Souffle Cake with Raspberry Fool

Gluten Free Chocolate Souffle Cake with Raspberry Fool

We had our nieces, Terrie and Stacy over for dinner last night along with Stacy's boyfriend, Nick. Since Terrie eats a gluten free diet, I was planning to make a fruit tart to experiment with a gluten free crust. As I was looking online for a non wheat flour pastry recipe, I stopped to browse Facebook for a minute and discovered that it was actually Nick's 23rd birthday! That of course changed plans; we had to have a birthday cake!

Since we still had to have a gluten free dessert, I went to my default cake for those occasions but make no mistake, the selling point of this cake is not that it is made without flour, it is the delicious, rich taste and melt-in-your-mouth texture that are the real highlights here. The texture is dense with an almost brownie-like texture but it really does melt in your mouth due to the meringue base of the recipe. Trust me, nobody complains that this cake doesn't have a normal cake-y texture and with the addition of the whipped cream raspberry fool, fresh berries and extra drizzle of chocolate ganache, even folks like me who don't need to eat gluten free will be putting this at the top of their favorite chocolate desserts.

Gluten Free Chocolate Souffle Cake with Raspberry Fool

Recipe by Barry C. Parsons

A gluten free dessert cake for any occasion, topped with a raspberry whipped cream fool, fresh raspberries and a drizzle of chocolate ganache.

Prep time: Approximately 30 minutes.
Cook time: 30-40 minutes
Total time: Approximately 3 hours including cooling time.
Yield: One 12 inch or two 9 inch round cakes.

Ingredients

• 1 pound + 1/2 cup dark chocolate, chopped or chocolate chips(at least 50% cocoa)
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 10 extra large eggs
• 1/2 tsp fine salt
• 3/4 cup sugar (divided into 1/2 and 1/4 cup)
• 1 tsp + 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 3 cups + 2 tbsp whipping cream
• 4 tbsp icing sugar (powdered sugar)
• 2 1/2 cups frozen raspberries
• 1.2 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp corn starch

Baking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease a 12 inch spring form pan and dust with cocoa. Line the bottom with parchment paper to easily release the cake when baked. (The cake can also be baked in two 9 inch round pans if you prefer.)
3. Melt the butter and chocolate in a double boiler just until melted, set aside to cool almost to room temperature. Stir in the cocoa, vanilla and salt until smooth.
4. Separate the eggs and beat the whites to soft peaks. Slowly beat in the 1/2 cup of sugar to form a meringue. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. 
5. Beat the egg yolks and 1/4 cup sugar until light and foamy and fold into the meringue along with the chocolate mixture.
6. Pour the batter  into the prepared cake pan and bake at 350 degrees F for about 30-40 minutes or until the center of the cakes spring back when lightly touched. Cool in the pans for about 20 minutes before removing them from the pan and cooling completely on a wire rack. NOTE: this cake will fall somewhat in the pans as it cools, this is perfectly normal for this recipe.
7. Prepare a raspberry coolis by simmering together the frozen raspberries and 1/2 cup sugar for about 15 to 20 minutes
8. Press the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the raspberry seeds. Return to the pot and simmer again.
9. Add a thickening slurry by dissolving the 1 tbsp corn starch in a little water. Add it to the simmering coulis, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and cool completely, stirring occasionally as it cools so that he surface does not solidify.
10. To prepare the raspberry fool, beat the 3 cups whipping cream, 2 tsp vanilla extract and 4 tbsp icing sugar together until firm peaks form.
11. Fold the cooled raspberry coolis through the whipped cream. You don't need to completely incorporate the coolis, just swirl it through.
12. Frost the top of the cake with the coolis.
13. Garnish with fresh raspberries and a drizzle of chocolate ganache if desired.
14. A chocolate ganache can be made by melting together the 2 tbsp whipping cream and 1/2 cup chocolate chips.  
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    

Raspberry Vanilla Butter Cookies

This is another example of what my mother calls a "cuppa tea cookie". It's the kind of cookie that goes perfectly with a hot cup of tea or coffee but I have to say I had 2of them with a tall glass of cold milk yesterday and that was totally delicious too. These are soft and almost cakey in texture but oh so buttery and not too sweet. A simple, easy, perfect cookie.

Sift together:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream together until light and fluffy:

1 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar

Add and beat well:

2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Fold in the dry ingredients until crumbly. Press dough into one inch balls (roll in demerara sugar if desired).  Place the balls on a parchment lined baking sheet and press down lightly with the bottom of a water glass. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.

Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. When completely cool, sandwich 2 of the cookies together with one teaspoon of raspberry jam.