I love peppers, and I am always looking for ways to use my homegrown peppers in something besides salsa ... even though that is great, too. I came across a recipe a while back, and have no idea where I got it, although I have found similar ones on the Internet. It is for a Dried Apricot Pepper Jam! It is sooooo good. It is kind of like regular Hot Pepper Jelly, but with a fun twist — besides, it is beautiful.
I made some the other day, and we gobbled up half of it before I even got it bottled. I also taught it at a "jams and jellies" canning class and they loved it, too, so I thought I would share it with you. It is terrific over grilled meat. We had it on our grilled chicken yesterday. Yum!
Dried Apricot Pepper Jam
- 1 ½ cups dried apricots
- ¾ cup chopped sweet red pepper
- ½ cup chopped red or green jalapeno pepper
- 2 ½ cups cider vinegar
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 box powdered pectin
- 6 cups sugar
In a blender combine apricots and half the vinegar and water, add peppers. Blend until finely ground. Pour into a heavy saucepan. Rinse blender with remaining vinegar and water, and pour into saucepan. Stir in pectin and bring to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Add sugar and bring to a full rolling boil, boil hard for one minute. Skim off foam. Ladle into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Wipe rims and add rings. Process 15 minutes in a boiling water bath.
Pepper Tips
Peppers can be frozen and chopped, without blanching! Yeah, just wash, seed and chop, and throw them into a freezer bag. They are good to go into casseroles, sloppy joe mix and other cooked foods straight from the freezer.
Always wear plastic gloves when working with hot peppers! If you get pepper burns, wash and rub hands in cold milk or yogurt to help take the "burn" out.
Roasted peppers are a terrific option in your salsa recipes — you can char roast your peppers on a grill, under the broiler, or over your gas burners. Once charred, lay damp towels over them until they are cool enough to peel. Chop and freeze these, too.
When growing your own peppers, feed them with a couple of teaspoons of Epsom salt mixed with a quart water just before the plants flower. This apparently helps put lots of blossoms on.
Peppers can be pickled or dried. Both are easy to do. Check out the National Center for Home Food Preservation's website for "how to's" on both options. www.uga.edu/nchfp
Usually, the wider and bigger a pepper is the milder it is … so a Poblano and bell pepper are going to be quite mild. As the peppers get smaller and narrower, the heat goes up — like a Serrano or Habanero. (This is a general rule of thumb, not an exact science.)
A Chipotle pepper is actually a red jalapeno that has been smoked and roasted and is often dried as well. You can find them canned or dried in the Latino foods section of most supermarkets.
An Ancho pepper is actually just a dried Poblano pepper, and is used for making mole.
My very favorite way to eat my fresh-roasted long green chilies is in a New Mexican Baked Omelet … here is the recipe:
- 6-8 fresh roasted and peeled long green chilies
- 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
- 10 eggs
- 1 cup skim evaporated milk
- 1 tablespoon flour
- Seasoning to taste
Place whole green chilies opened and flat with seeds removed on the bottom of a lightly oiled 11 x 7 ½ inch baking pan. Cover chilies with cheese. Combine milk, eggs, flour and seasoning of your choice in a blender, mix well. Pour over chilies and cheese. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes, or until center is set. Cool slightly before cutting. Garnish with salsa and sour cream.
ENJOY!
