httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lofnzU4q-qI
Hey, Food Friends, got an unusual episode this week! We’re serving up jams and jellies!! HOOOOOOLD the phone; what’s this about, you ask?!?
Sometimes, after a hard day [insert something that you find difficult or stressful like … work, life, writing, shopping, cleaning, cooking … lol, you get the idea], wouldn’t it be a pleasant change just to relax with a nice glass of wine, a good friend and some … jams and jellies?
Well, that is exactly what happened in this episode where Helenka and I sampled some (dare I say it) vintage jams and jellies she’s been collecting for many years.
Suffice it to say, we have not died (yet) from the experience [Evil editor groans and it’s NOT due to food poisoning, either], so I can safely say that preserves such as these, if done right, will last a very (um, that’s VERY) long time.
Which were my favourites? Well, I was quite impressed with the savoury jellies and especially relished them with the Brie and crackers.
This show was also one where I – for once – got to sit down and view things from Helenka’s perspective. I think we had so much fun doing it that I just came up with a plan to do something similar in a future show. [Helenka likes that idea VERY much.]
I also had a surprise for Helenka in that our business cards arrived. They were part of a promotion by YouTube and from Moo .
How did this come about? Well, in our travels, when people we meet find out what we are up to at BrianUpward.com and the YouTube channel , they always ask if we have business cards…. Well, now we do and, boy, does it feel official!
I would also like to welcome some new viewers to the show: you know who you are. 😉 You keep watching; we’ll keep making ’em.
We do get comments on my website, but it is hard sometimes to tell if they are legit or just spam. So, if you don’t see a comment that you left for us, here are some suggestions to ensure it gets published.
-
Full name or first name – I’ll accept a nickname too. 🙂
-
Email address is required; however, your email address will not be shown nor shared ever. I know a lot of folks have separate email addresses that are for newsletters, etc., so use that one if you wish.
-
If you have a website that is related or something that you believe we should take a look at, list it in the website box (and I may even link to you).
-
In the comments box (which I hope is self-explanatory), leave an appropriate comment. If I cannot figure it out, then – unfortunately – it will not be published.
If you would like to contact us directly, please use our contact form.
Till next time, have fun with your food and invite some friends to join in, too!
Enjoy!
B & H =;)
Review: Gift of Jams and Jellies!
Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)
Even the most dedicated and determined team can begin to flag in the middle of the summer, so I thought we both deserved a bit of a reprieve. When I was busy moving (my … uh … castle) and Brian did a solo episode (okay, okay, with guest ::coughs in an exaggerated manner:: aliens), I started finding jar upon jar of home-made jams and jellies. I’d been collecting these for up to twenty (20?!?) years. And yet had never opened them. But I remembered being intrigued by the flavours when I bought them at church fairs and from friends who make them for a living or a hobby.
So I rounded them up and suggested to Brian that we have a fun “tasting” episode and that all he’d need to provide would be a small round of Brie (because we love-love-love it) and crackers. As we wouldn’t have time to allow the Brie to soften before filming, Brian left the round, still in its original packaging, on the kitchen counter all day. The cheese was simply divine! The crackers he had on hand were rosemary/olive oil and plain melba toasts, so we used the flavoured ones with the savoury jellies and the plain with the sweeter choices.
I had already sorted the flavours in advance and thought (just as in wine tastings) we should proceed from savoury to sweet.
The flavours were:
- champagne
- sweet tomato chutney
- rosemary and garlic
- millennium hot pepper jelly
- raspberry
- three-fruit marmalade
- cranberry
- orange-cranberry relish
You’ve already seen our reactions on the show, but it wouldn’t hurt to reiterate some of them. First of all, we were most impressed by the savoury ones. We could still taste the champagne. The rustic texture of the tomato was very appealing. The garlic ::swoons:: was amazing. And what’s not to like about hot pepper, millennium or not?
Variations
Brian asked me about variations if people don’t like the taste of Brie, but would still like to serve similar jellies with crackers as a super-simple appetizer. Well, there is cream cheese and, of course, goat cheese. But I doubt that any hard cheese would pair well, as the flavours usually are too specific and would compete rather than complement. It’s also a pleasing taste and texture sensation to have the jelly smushed (yup, there’s another one of our fancy trademark cooking terms) into a softened cheese.
I could see serving all of these jellies with cold cuts, especially in open-faced sandwiches. Forget about butter, mayo or mustard for once. Also as a garnish on eggs: poached, scrambled … eggs-every-which-way. So we’ve got lunch and brekkie covered. As for dinner, once again I’m swooning when I think of having the rosemary-garlic jelly accompanying roast lamb. Oh, definite yum! Also, dressing up a burger with the tomato chutney or hot pepper would be quite classy.
I could also see roasting something (chicken, beef, etc.) plain for most of the indicated time and then brushing on a thin layer of the chosen jelly closer to the end and getting a lovely caramelized crust. For some inexplicable reason, I’m picturing ham with a champagne glaze. Well, for me it’s not too outrageous, as I’ve made ham with a rye’n’sugar glaze before.
We really had so much fun presenting this episode and, no, it wasn’t just because we were giddy from alcohol consumption (a mellow Merlot). After the camera was turned off, we made ourselves very comfy on the balcony with only the savoury jellies (and, of course, more Brie and crackers). As we will have a couple of episodes outdoors (BBQ!!!), I’m looking forward to using them in that context as well.
I would encourage everyone to do a bit of collecting (if not at a local church fair, then at farmers’ markets, harvest festivals or gourmet/specialty shops to see what unique flavours you can find. Because, once again, you can have so much fun trying new things. And who would have figured that champagne or rosemary-garlic would be proper flavours for jellies. Indeed, who else … but the two of us! And, of course, the wonderfully inventive people who created them!!!
Microformatting by hRecipe.