Jam Session

This week I've been jammin' in the kitchen!  I have a great new (for me) way to make jam without the tons of refined sugar I usually add to my fruit jam.  My friend, Hope gave me a pack of Pomona Pectin last year to try.  I must say I wasn't hooked right away because the taste of sugar is hard to beat, but I've come around slowly.  I figure, why try so hard to cut out refined sugar, and then smear jam with loads of sugar all over my toast?

So, I'm going to try many different ways to use Pomona Pectin this year. So far, I made strawberry jam using only white grape juice concentrate and apple juice concentrate as sweetener.  We had a busy jam session that day!  My friends, Laura and Lisa came over, which always makes jam sessions more fun.  The jam was still tart, but good.  I think I could have added some honey to help make it sweeter.

Then, on Saturday, the kids and a friend decided to shake the mulberries out of some trees.  I remember doing this when I was little.  They put sheets under the trees and shook down the mulberries.  It worked fantastically!  That evening, we made mulberry jam with only one cup of sugar per batch (rather than the normal 5-7 cups).  We just made one large pot because you can double or triple the recipe.  All in all, it took a lot of work, but the mulberry jam is delicious!

If you want to try Pomona Pectin, they have it at many health food stores and you can order it at  www.vitacost.com

Next time, I want to add 1 cup of honey per batch.  It sure beats 7 cups of sugar!  Let me know what works for you!

Happy Jammin'!

Meal Ideas as the Weather Turns Hot

Last week, I made black beans and rice for lunch and no one felt like eating it.  I was a little bummed, but Michael had been out in the hot sun all morning.  All he wanted was something cold.  So...here are some ideas for you and me, as it gets HOT (and I say that with a smile because I am happy to feel the sun)!

Click on the meal idea for the recipe:

Veggie Sandwiches and Hummus with 100% Whole Wheat Bread
Potato Salad



Egg Salad Sandwiches (Hard-boiled eggs with mayo, salt, and pepper)






Garden Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing
(add cold garbanzo or black beans, nuts, cheese, onions, radishes, avocados...)

Fresh veggies ready for a salad, purple radishes, swiss chard, spinach, spring onions

Scarlet Globe radishes, great for salads or veggie sandwiches

Quinoa Salad (cold cooked Quinoa with parsley leaves, tomatoes, olives, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper)

Veggie Burgers on rolls from the 100% Whole Wheat Bread recipe

Stir-fry with radish tops added.  My mom just told me you can eat the tops too!  I put some in "spinach" lasagna and a stir-fry, and they were good.  Thanks, Mom!

Speaking of meals...I better make supper!  Maybe pizza?!  I better get to it.  Happy Eating!