Stovetop Jam

Am I the only one who was scared witless at the thought of jam?
I only imagined long hours on my feet, sweating buckets, risking my life with pots on pots of boiling water and pressure cookers. Oh, the horror.

But, then there's easy peasy stovetop jam!

Seriously, this is magic. It's two steps, frozen fruit, lemon juice and sugar. The uses are boundless. Eating it straight out the pot is my personal fave. Best part, if you use a heavily seeded fruit, ie blackberries/strawberries/raspberries, it makes you jam and preserves = #winning.

INGREDIENTS

1 bag 16 oz frozen fruit of your choice (Blackberries are my favorite!)
1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
1/2 cup water
juice of one lemon (strain to remove seeds)

Tools
fine mesh strainer
immersion blender

1. Pour your fruit, water and lemon juice into a saucepan over medium low heat.
2. Leave this cooking uncovered until all ice de-crystallizes (is this a word??) from fruit

3. After fruit is completely defrosted over heat, add evaporated cane juice and stir to blend completely.
4. When fruit is very soft, approximately 20 minutes, immersion blend.

5. Let cool for one hour after removing from heat & then eat!!

PS. If you want to separate your preserves and jam, just strain the mushy parts of fruit and seeds and leave the juicy part for jam!

Faux pho

Who doesn't love Pho?
If you don't love Pho, kindly exit this page, most immediately.
       jayyyyykayyyyy....... ahem. anyways.



Pho is like the much improved Vietnamese-ed version of the ever classic (yet un-impressive) chicken noodle soup. Let's call it Chicken Noodle Soup 2.0 Plus++ And, I'm sure it's healthier with rice noodles, and green veggies instead of the starchy counterparts- potatoes, carrots- often featured in chicken noodle.

One thing, that gives Pho it's distinctive taste would be the anise seeds used in the broth. I didn't have any and I added broccoli and soft boiled eggs for extra protein and iron- hence Faux Pho.

I apologize in advance, there are not any pictures because I didn't plan on posting this recipe. Sorry!

INGREDIENTS

Package of rice noodles

2 eggs

1 cup bean sprouts

10 basil leaves

1/2 cup cilantro

1 cinnamon stick

6 oz thinkly sliced beef

1 cup diced broccoli

40 oz beef broth

1 onion

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 lime

1 jalapeno

salt and pepper

1. Add sesame oil to pot and heat over medium heat. Finely slice onion while oil is heating. Add onion to pot and cook for 3-5 minutes, until clear. Add garlic and saute for a few minutes, until fragrant. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Add broth to onions and garlic. Add broccoli and cinnamon stick to broth. Broccoli must be chopped very small to cook as quick as the rest of the soup.

3. Start boiling a second pot of water to make soft boiled eggs. Cook eggs for 3-5 minutes. Then immediately remove from pot and place in ice cold water.

4. Remove cinnamon stick from broth. Add beef to broth pot and cook for 5 minutes.

5. Cook your rice noodles as instructed on package. Place directly in serving bowls.  

6. Pour completed soup over rice noodles. Top bowls with bean sprouts, cilantro, basil leaves, jalapeno, and juice of lime. Peel and cut egg in half and place in bowl. 

Makes 4 generous servings.