Blackcurrant jam that is lower in sugar than most traditional recipes

Picking blackcurrants in the garden

Some juicy specimens

Our untreated blackcurrant bushes, possibly organic?

Every year we are usually lucky enough to have a wonderful crop of the most gorgeous and juicy blackcurrants you have ever seen. These bushes have been here for years (as it was a former fruit farm) and to my knowledge have never been treated, they are left to their own devices and yield crop after crop. So over the last five or so years I have been perfecting my blackcurrant jam recipe in order to produce a conserve that is lower in sugar than the typically shop bought variety but contains an abundance of fruit and I think I have come up with the ideal recipe!
The lovely Delia Smith uses more sugar than fruit, but I have managed to come up with a recipe that uses more fruit than sugar so has a more tart yet fresh taste. One of the key differences is to use preserving sugar instead of normal granulated sugar, by doing so the extra pectin that is in this sugar helps to give you a set so you need less sugar. I have actually used even less sugar than what I'm going to specify here and managed to get a set which has created a jam which I feel confident my mother-in-law (who is diabetic) can indulge in and enjoy from time to time. Nevertheless, the following recipe has a nice balance of fruit and sugar which you'll find has gone in no time because it is so moreish!

Marianne's Blackcurrant Jam

3lb (1.3 kg) blackcurrants
2 1/2 lb (1.25 kg) Preserving sugar (Silver Spoon do a version which is recommended for blackcurrants)
1 1/2 pints (855 ml) water
5 or 6 jam jars with lids

Blackcurrants simmering in water

Boiling the jam

Checking for a set

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade. Place the sugar in a heat-proof bowl and allow to warm through in the oven. Also place the jam jars and lids in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes to sterilise. Place two or three saucers/small plates in the freezer.
2. Slowly cook the blackcurrants with the water for about 15 to 20 minutes until the fruit is tender.
3. Add the hot sugar from the oven to the blackcurrants and let it dissolve - this should take about 15 minutes.
4. As soon as the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat right up and boil rapidly for between 20 to 35 minutes. You can check for a set by getting a saucer from the freezer and spooning a little on to the plate. If you get a crinkly skin you know it is set.
5. When the jam is ready, add a knob of butter as this will remove any scum from the jam, you can also remove any with a slotted spoon



Yummy bread and jam, mum!



Jam-packed with fruit blackcurrant jam!

6. Leave the jam for 15 minutes to settle and then pour in the jars and seal with a waxed disc and the lid. Label the jars when the jam is cold.

   

   The finished article
   
   
   
   

   

   
   

   
   

   
   

   
   

   
   

   
   

   Next time: A lovely dinner party starter which uses blackcurrant jam: Warm Fig Blue Cheese and Hazelnut Salad from the Bonne Maman Cookbook.

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Cookery book roundup

Here are all the cookbooks I have cooked from so far each with the name of the corresponding recipes: 

1. Strawberry Jam

2. Peach ice cream

3.  Chicken Chettinad

4. Polenta and Ricotta Cake with Dates and Pecans

5. Sticky Peanut Butter Cake

6.  Sachertorte

7.  Parsley and Bacon Soup

8. Potato Bread with Roasted Garlic

9.  Slow-roasted Duck with Cabbage and Gooseberry Jam

10. Chocolate Digestives

11. Custard Creams

12. Cheese and Nut Balls

13. Mini Eve's Puddings

14. Blackberry Ice Cream

15. Wild Mushroom Bread Pudding

16. Thai-style Chicken With Chillies and Basil

17. Sesame and Maple Syrup Flapjacks

18. Flatbread, Chicken with Cardomom and Coconut-Coriander Chutney

19. Instant Chocolate Mousse

20. Little Mincemeat Souffle Puddings

21. Soup Flamande with Creme Fraiche and Frizzled Sprouts

22. Maple Rice Pudding Pots

23. Lamb, Spinach and Potato Curry

24. Millionaire's Shortbread

25. Sesame Prawn Toasts

26. Moist Chocolate and Rum Squares

27. Easy Chocolate Cheesecake

28. Sinkers Mousse , and Boozy Chocolate and Prune Terrine

29. Swedish Chocolate Coffee Lamb

30. Rhubarb Crumble

31.  Chocolate Marmite Caramel Cake

Chocolate and Marmite Caramel Cake: even some of the hardest sceptics will change their minds once they've tasted this!

The Clandestine Cake Club Cookbook  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Clandestine-Cake-Club-Cookbook/dp/1782060049/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_har?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375036838&sr=1-1&keywords=clandestine+cake+club  is fast becoming one of my favourite baking books and I've only owned the book less than six months! In case you are unfamiliar with the concept of this cake club, it's all about meeting up with like-minded amateur bakers in your area and sampling some of their delicious home-cooked delights. The simple rules of the club are: cupcakes, brownies, cookies or pies are not allowed as this defeats the whole ethos of getting together and sharing proper cake! The club was founded by Lynn Hill who has spread this wonderful concept across the United Kingdom and further afield. Anyone interested in setting up a club can get details from this address: www.clandestinecakeclub.co.uk.

The book features all the favourite recipes of the club, with chapters on Classic Cakes, Victorian Cakes, Fruity Cakes, Chocolatey Cakes etc. I have already tried a number of recipes including one of my favourite the Elderflower Cordial Cake on page 48 - this is a divine concoction of dreamy sponge, elderflower buttercream and a white chocolate ganache covering. The Passion Fruit Cake on page 85 is another delight to behold: aromatic sponge cake with a passion fruit curd and white chocolate icing. In case you'd forgotten how to do a Swiss roll, the Strawberry Swiss Roll on page 28 is another winner with a simple strawberry and whipped cream filling...

The Chocolate and Marmite Caramel Cake on page 176 was a real success when I baked this as part of a get-together with friends and it was fun to try and get them guessing what the 'secret ingredient' was (I didn't tell them about the Marmite!)

Slicing up the cake ready to serve my guests. Decorated with some chocolate rose leaves.

Chocolate & Marmite Caramel Cake (Recipe supplied by Becs Rivett, copyright Lynn Hill 2013)

Serves 8-10
175g dark chocolate (broken up)
175g butter, softened
175g caster sugar
4 large eggs, separated
90g ground almonds
90g plain flour, sifted

Caramel Marmite Buttercream

In case you've never seen a jar of Marmite!

120g butter, at room temperature
440g soft light brown sugar
180ml milk
2 tsp Marmite, or more to taste
480g icing sugar, sifted

Creaming the butter and sugar

The completed cake which can be decorated however you like

1. Preheat the oven to 180

   

   Combining the chocolate and almonds

   degrees. Grease and line two 18cm sandwich tins.
2. Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir gently and remove from the heat.
3. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add the melted chocolate and ground almonds.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. Using a large metal spoon, gently fold in the egg whites and sifted flour into the mixture bit by bit until completely incorporated. Divide the mixture between the tins and spread evenly. Bake for 18-20 minutes until springy to touch. Leave to cool for a few minutes in the tins and then turn out on to a wire rack to cool.

   

   Silky melted chocolate

   
     

   

   Folding in the whisked egg whites

   Make the buttercream. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over a low heat, then mix in the brown sugar, milk and Marmite, stirring until it comes to the boil. Boil for a minute, then remove from the heat and transfer to a large bowl. Check and add more Marmite if desired (remember the flavour will be diluted with the icing sugar).
5. Whisk in half the icing sugar and then leave to cool, checking and stirring regularly to to regulate consistency. Once cool, whisk in the remaining icing sugar. If it is still runny, sift in enough icing sugar to reach a spreadable consistency.
6. Assemble the cake by spreading a third of the buttercream over one of the cooled cakes, then sandwich with the other cake. Cover the top and sides of the whole cake with the remaining buttercream.

   

   Making chocolate leaves using washed rose leaves and painting on melted chocolate.

   

   Cake  ready to go out and be served, no time to fiddle about and set up artistic photos!

   This really is a rich and chocolatey cake. The saltiness of the Marmite in the buttercream adds that extra depth and reveals the taste of caramel rather like the ever-popular trend of salted caramel. I did find I had to add extra icing sugar to reach a good consistency for the icing to be spread though.

Next time: seasonal recipes using black currants and gooseberries