The ending of summer sunshine months brings us a wealth of gorgeous fruits to make the most of. Hang on to the taste of summer right through the winter months with my simple summer preserve which uses all the goodness of the summer to make you smile all winter long.
This preserve contains a real mixture of fruits, in fact I really just emptied the fruit bowl and raided the fridge and larder to make this so it’s a great way to use things up.
I’ve used nectarines, pears, figs, passion fruit and apples for this plus sultanas and almonds. Throw in some brandy (gotta have some booze in there!), water and sugar and that’s it. Make sure you ladle it into sterilised jars and set aside for 2 weeks to let it mature and allow the flavours to develop before using.
You can mix and match with whatever fruit you happen to have around.
This is a great end of summer preserve. Making the most of all the goodness of late summer before the chill of autumn sets in.
Use your summer preserve on sandwiches, with a cheeseboard or with chicken and meat dishes.
K x
- 1 kilo nectarines peeled and chopped
- 1 litre water
- 800g sugar
- 1 star anise
- 2 pears peeled and cored
- 2 apples peeled and cored
- ½ cup sultanas
- ½ cup toasted almonds
- 4 figs chopped
- 3 passion fruits
- 120ml/1/2 cup brandy (optional)
- Chop all the fruit
- Heat water plus half the sugar for 5 mins and add all fruit and spices
- Bring to the boil then cover and simmer for 10 mins
- Remove fruit and discard the spices
- Toast almonds and put in a pan with 3 cups of the syrup and remaining sugar
- Boil to 219F/104C then cool slightly and add brandy
- Pack fruit into sterilised jars and pour over the nutty syrup and seal
- Leave for 2 weeks to mature before use.
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