Cherry-cranberry-orange conserve with Grand Marnier (OMG yum!)

My besties and I have a girls’ weekend every year at my little corner. After 30+ years of friendship, you might think the three of us could run out of conversation – but you’d be oh so wrong. It’s a relaxing, bucket-filling, nourishing balm to our souls. Naturally, there is nourishment of the actual food type as well. Some of it even healthy! (Not really this recipe, mind you.)

This year, we tried an amazing conserve that I had picked up at one of the many, many road-side fruit markets in the Chatham-Kent area. We had it with cream cheese on crackers, and maybe a couple of spoonfuls straight from the jar. It would be amazing on vanilla ice cream as well. The below recipe is my attempt at replicating, and I did a pretty good job if I do say so myself.

You’ll need:

• 7 cups fresh cherries, pitted

• 2 cups frozen whole cranberries, thawed (I might use 1/2 cup less next time)

• 3 oranges

• 1 cup sugar (more if you are using tart/sour cherries)

• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

• 1/2 cup Grand Marnier

• 8 half-pint (250 ml) mason jars

• 8 lids and rings

Directions for cooking and canning:

1. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. This step should not surprise you!

2. Measure your cherries and cranberries, and place in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. No need to chop! (If you are using pre-pitted cherries from a bucket like I did, you can include some of the juices from the bucket as well.

3. Peel your oranges. I sliced off the peel with a knife to get rid of all the pith and because they were very thick-skinned organic oranges. Squeeze each orange over the pot to release most of the juice. Chop the remainder of the now somewhat dry oranges, being sure to remove any stringy bits, and throw the chopped oranges in the pot as well. Stir, stir, stir.

4. Add sugar and continue to cook the mix gently, softening the cranberries and cherries. Taste for level of sweetness. You can add more sugar as you wish. I started with 1/2 cup which wasn’t enough to balance the tartness of the cranberries. If you are using sour cherries, you’ll almost certainly want more than what I used.

5. Stir in the spices and continue to cook until the cranberries and cherries are burstingly soft, and the conserve is thick.

6. Probably a good time to get your jars ready and start heating your water bath. I put a splash of white vinegar in the water bath when I’m canning in Waterloo to counteract our very hard water’s desire to scale.

7. Remove from heat and stir in the Grand Marnier. Taste for overall flavour profile and balance between sweet and savoury. If you add more sugar, be sure to cook for a little longer so it’s well-incorporated. If you cook it for quite a while longer, add another little splash of liqueur so it’s not all cooked out.

8. Put the snap lids in hot water for a couple of minutes to soften. It doesn't have to be boiling. I stick them in the water bath canner which I’ve had heating up for the last 20 minutes or so.

9. Ladle conserve into half-pint jars, leaving about 1/2 inch (1 cm) headspace. 

10. As usual, "bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel, dampened with white vinegar to really cut through any stickiness on the rim. Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on fingertip tight.

11. Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the canner lid on and return to the boil for 10 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling.

12. After 10 minutes, rescue your jars from the bath – or don’t, just shut the heat off and let them rest for a bit – and listen for the glorious pops as the lids seal.

Strawberry dessert cups

I made the strawberry pie filling last year, and it was a certified hit. To be quite honest though, I’m not sure if any of the jars’ contents actually made their way into pie. Maaaaaybe once? Much more often, it was scooped into a bowl for dessert – or out of my range of vision, directly from jar into mouth. So this year, I decided to preserve them in smaller portions so that if the teenagers (looking at you, Aaron) in my house were on the quest for a sweet treat, they could enjoy the whole thing without falling into a sugar coma. I was also so pleased with the jam flavour I made yesterday, I used similar flavours here too. 

You'll need:

• 11 cups halved or chopped strawberries 

• 2 1/2 cups sugar (you can up or lower the amount of sugar to your taste)

• 1 cup, 2 T ClearJel (do not substitute!)

• 2 1/2 cups water

• 5 T lemon juice

• 3 T balsamic vinegar

• 1 T vanilla extract

• A pile of 1/4 pint  (125 ml) or 1/2 pint (250 ml) Mason jars: I used 11 of the wee ones and 8 1/2 pints  

• Equivalent number of snap lids and rings

Directions for canning:

Mise en place. Hey, don't judge. Messy, yet clean.

1. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. 

2. Make sure your jars, water bath, and everything else are ready because it comes together quickly.

3. Combine sugar, ClearJel, water, vinegar, lemon juice, and vanilla in a large pot. Whisk it all together thoroughly until well combined. Heat on medium until mixture thickens and begins to bubble. The balsamic vinegar gives it a bit of a caramelly colour, but the strawberries brought it back to red. (I was worried for a minute.)

4. Heat water to the almost boil in a small pot and place your snap lids in there to soften.

5. Fold strawberries, a few cups at a time, into the hot mixture.

6. Scoop hot strawberry dessert filling into jars leaving a good 1.5 cm room. Jam needs headspace. Anything with Clear Jel seems to need a little shoulder room too. (Badum tss!)  

7. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim thoroughly with a clean paper towel, dampened with white vinegar.  Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

8. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil for 30 minutes. I had enough filling for two batches – 13 jars in the first canner load and 5 in the second. You know you can't do two layers in a water bath canner, right? Just checking. 

Use it as dessert on its own, as a topping for ice cream or angelfood cake, as a pie filling, or in a tart. You can eat it on a bus, you can eat it with a friend, you can.... (oh no, the Seuss is loose)

Slow cooked, super-tasty peach preserves

You'll need:

Peaches
White sugar (if you wish)
Lemon juice (a Tablespoon or two)
Buncha ½ pint (250ml) jars
Buncha lids and screw tops

I love preserving peaches because they are just so perfect as they come off the tree. I wanted to make preserves that captured that summery flavour, while being more integrated and less watery than the canned peaches I've made before. (Which are delish, mind you, just not what I was looking for this year.) 

I should also mention that I made this recipe in August so if you're wondering where I found quality fresh peaches in abundance in Ontario in October, I didn't. 

One source I consulted for this recipe called for a whopping 4 cups of sugar to 11 lbs of peaches. I am honestly not sure how many pounds of peaches I started with - no measuring needed for this recipe - but I believe it was a half-bushel, which wouldbe roughly 25 lbs. And for that, I used maybe a half cup of sugar. Really relying on the natural sweetness here. 

This recipe is easy-peasy but you'll want to do it when you're planning to stick around the kitchen for a couple of days in a row. Read the instructions, and you'll see why.

1. If your peaches have a very clingy skin, you'll want to blanch them before peeling. Mine were quite ripe and I found them quite easy to peel with a veggie peeler so I skipped this step. 

2. Peel, peel, peel. Chop 'em up and put them in a large pot. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice.

3. Bring the uncovered pot to a light boil, stirring occasionally and throughly to prevent scorching. Once the reaches a light boil, simmer for 10 minutes and turn off the heat. Let the pot stand uncovered until it is just warm to the touch or reaches room temp.

4. Have a little taste and add sugar if you wish. 

5. Bring the pot to a light boil, simmer for 10 minutes, and cool down again.

6. Do that again. 

7. And again. For those counting, that's four times you bring to a light boil, simmer, then cool down.

8. Now, get your jars ready. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. 

9. Heat water in a small pot and put your snap lids in there to soften.

10. Aaaaand one more time with the boil of the peaches. EXCEPT this last time you bring them to a boil, you won't be cooling them down before ladling them into your clean, room temperature (or hotter) jars. 

11. Scoop peaches into each jar, leaving about 1/2 inch head space. 

12. "Bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean paper towel, dampened with vinegar. Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight. 

13. Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the pot lid on and bring to the boil for 10 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling.

Use them as preserves on toast, as a topping for vanilla ice cream, or as an absolutely dreamy filling for homemade biscuits. Really, you can't go wrong. 

Aaron made the biscuits, and I think he used this recipe from Cook's Illustrated, Talent kid I've got, eh?? (Apologies, it's behind a pay wall.)

Strawberry pie filling

I said I was going to make strawberry pie filling, and I did indeed do so the first week of July when strawberries were in their prime. I'm really behind on posting because I've been in a making-not-writing kind of mindset. That said, when strawberry season rolls around again, here's the recipe just a-waitin' for you. 

A berry nice haul...

You'll need:

• 15 cups halved strawberries 

• 3 cups sugar (you can up or lower the amount of sugar to your taste)

• 1 1/2 cup ClearJel (do not substitute!)

• 3 cups water

• 12 T lemon juice

• 6 or 7 pint  (500 ml) Mason jars

• 6 or 7 snap lids and rings

Directions for canning:

1. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. 

2. Make sure your jars and water bath are ready because it comes together quickly.

3. Combine sugar, ClearJel, water in a large pot. Whisk it all together thoroughly until well combined. Heat on medium until mixture thickens and begins to bubble.

4. Heat water to the almost boil in a small pot and place your snap lids in there to soften.

5. Fold strawberries, a few cups at a time, into the hot mixture.

6. Scoop hot strawberry pie filling into jars leaving a good 1.5 inch headspace. 

7. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim thoroughly with a clean paper towel, dampened with vinegar. (The vinegar works really well to clean up the sticky, sticky filling.) Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

8. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil for 30 minutes. 

Ta da! I plan to use one pint of strawberry filling with one pint of rhubarb filling per pie. Haven't tried it yet, but that is the plan, man.

Rhubarb pie filling

Since I still have a jar or two of the delish rhubarb chutney I made last year, I wanted to do something different this rhubarb season. And, of course, rhubarb is a classic, often combined with strawberries in tart-sweet-glorious desserts, so my mind quickly turned to pie.

The apple pie filling was a nice proof of concept. Turns out, we're really enjoying having the option of a quick homemade baked dessert. The challenge is that our rhubarb season and strawberry season don't quite overlap. Here's where Dave's brainstorm came in. Why not can rhubarb pie filling in May, then strawberry pie filling in June? One pint of each, et voila! you have a perfect strawberry-rhubarb pie.

So that's the plan. Here's the recipe for rhubarb. Stay tuned for strawberry.

You'll need:

• 8 cups chopped rhubarb 

• 1 3/4 cups sugar

• 1/2 cup + 2 T ClearJel (do not substitute!)

• 2 cups water

• 6 T lemon juice

• 4 pint  (500 ml) Mason jars

• 4 snap lids and rings

Directions for canning:

1. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. 

2. Blanch your rhubarb in a large pot of boiling water for 1 minute. Put drained rhubarb in a covered bowl or pot. You may need to do it in more than one batch.

3. Make sure your jars are ready to be filled cause it all happens pretty quickly from here on out.

4. Combine sugar, ClearJel, water in a large pot. Whisk it all together thoroughly until well combined. Heat on medium until mixture thickens and begins to bubble.

5. Add the lemon juice to the thickened mixture and bring it back up to bubble.

6. Heat water to the almost boil in a small pot and place your snap lids in there to soften, if recommended by the manufacturer.

7. Fold drained rhubarb, a few cups at a time, into the hot mixture.

8. Scoop hot rhubarb pie filling into jars leaving a good 1.5 inch headspace. 

9. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim thoroughly with a clean paper towel, dampened with vinegar. (The vinegar works really well to clean up the sticky, sticky filling.) Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

10. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil for 30 minutes. 

Remove jars from the canner. Repeat with the next batch. Commence beauty shots.

Edited to add instructions for lemon juice. Oops!

Zesty cranberry chutney

This post has been waiting since DECEMBER. Yeah. It's been 2 full months since I canned anything. 'Tis not the season for anything around here. But fresh cranberries were in grocery stores in December, and I made something with them. And without further ado, here's what I made. 

You'll need:

• 36 ounces (3 x 340 g bags) fresh cranberries

• 4 cups chopped white or yellow onion (the onion I used was massive)

• 3 cups (or less) raisins (I might omit these the next time, though I guess then it wouldn't be a chutney...)

• 2 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed

• 2 1/4 cups white sugar

• 6 fresh serrano or jalapeno peppers, stems and seeds removed, finely minced (I used four of the giant jalapenos from my garden that I froze this fall, and they worked great) 

• 3 cups white wine vinegar

• 1 1/2 cups orange juice

• Zest of an orange

• 3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

• 4 cinnamon sticks

• 12ish  1/2 pint (1 cup/250 ml) mason jars [I didn't have enough matching jars so I used what I had on hand: 8 1/2 pint  jars; 2 pint  jars; 1 1/4 pint (125 ml) jar]

• Enough snap lids and rings

So pretty, aren't they?

Directions for cooking and canning:

1. Wash your jars  in hot soap water and rinse well. 

2. Combine all of your ingredients in a large pot. 

3. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently.

4. Once it comes to a boil, drop the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes or so, until most of the cranberries have popped and the rest are quite tender.

5. This is where I usually get a small pot out to heat water for the snap lids. This year, Santa brought me a nifty little gadget to lower the snap lids into the canner and use that water. Handy dandy! If you have one of those, heat water to the almost boil in the canner and place your snap lids in there to soften.

6. Scoop chutney into jars leaving a centimetre or so headspace. 

7. Bubble each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim thoroughly with a clean damp paper towel. (This recipe suggests using a paper towel dampened with vinegar, and it works like a charm to remove the stickiness.) Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

8. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil for 15 minutes. 

9. Remove jars from the canner. Repeat with the next batch if you have more jars. 

Obviously it would be lovely to serve with a holiday turkey dinner. The mild heat and tartness of the chutney would compliment a typically rich festive meal quite nicely. 

It's also delish on a roast beef sandwich. Enjoy!

I adapted this recipe from a fabulous canning cookbook I got this year for Christmas. If you're looking for some interesting recipes and a thoughtful approach to canning, check out Not Your Mama’s Canning Book by Rebecca Lindamood. 

Apple pie filling

The idea of home-canned apple pie filling is new to me. To be honest, I don't think I've even seen apple pie made out of store-bought pie filling. My mom uses her extra apples to assemble and freeze pies prior to baking, so she almost always has a homemade pie available to whip out and bake in no time flat. (She's fancy like that.)

But we bought 20 lbs of apples to support a school fundraiser, and I made applesauce with half of them, have zero extra freezer space (fruitcake, yo), and wanted to try something new. Enter the Google machine and a trillion ideas for canning apples. This recipe is simplified from the Ball version. I got two full batches and a third-sized batch out of the 10 lb bag of apples. 

You'll need:

• 12 cups apples (about 12 or 13 medium) 

• 2 3/4 cups sugar

• 3/4 cup ClearJel (click through to the kind I used; it's not easy to find in stores but it's not substitutable with other similar things like cornstarch. Cornstarch can cause uneven heating and affect food safety so do not substitute because science)

• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

• 2 1/2 cups unsweetened apple juice (I used cider)

• 1 1/4 cups cold water

• 1/2 cup lemon juice

• 8 pint  (500 ml) Mason jars

• 8 snap lids and rings

Directions for canning:

1. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. 

2. Peel and slice your apples. There are several companies that will happily sell you some sort of product to prevent your apple slices from browning. If you love to purchase extra things to clutter up your cupboards, go nuts. If you do not, soak your apple slices for at least 10 minutes in a cold lemon water (1/4 cup lemon juice per 4 cups water) or salt water (1 teaspoon per 2 cups water) bath. I used lemon water, but I just read that salt is better so I'm going to try it next time. Either way, rinse them in fresh water before using.

3. Combine sugar, ClearJel, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large pot. Whisk it all together thoroughly until well combined. 

4. Make sure your jars are ready to be filled cause it all happens pretty quickly from here on out.

5. Stir in apple juice/cider and cold water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, and cook until mixture thickens and begins to bubble.

6. Add 1/2 cup lemon juice, return to a boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

7. Immediately fold the apple slices, a few cups at a time, into the hot mixture.

8. Put the pot back on the stove and heat, stirring, until apples are heated through.

9. Heat water to the almost boil in a small pot and place your snap lids in there to soften.

10. Scoop hot apple pie filling into jars leaving a good 1.5 inch headspace. (Apparently canned apple pie filling is notorious for oozing out from under the lid, so I left extra head room and that seemed to avoid the problem.)

11. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim thoroughly with a clean damp paper towel. Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

12. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil for 25 minutes. 

13. Remove jars from the canner. Repeat with the next batch. Commence beauty shots.

Criss-cross applesauce

You'll need:

• Apples, any kind really - I used a 10lb bag of Jonagolds 

• 1/2 pint (250 ml) jars

• Snap lids and rings

Directions for cooking and canning:

I brought all my empty Mason jars up from the pantry to take a head count and give them all a good bath. 

1. Wash your Mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse well.

2. Rinse your apples well with water. 

3. Chop 'em up. When you're going to use a food mill to blend them, everything but cores and stems goes in the pot. So easy and I enjoy the pinkiness the peels contribute to the colour of the finished sauce. I added a splash of apple cider to the pot with the first of the apples to provide a bit of liquid to start. Totally not necessary though. 

4. Cook gently on low-med heat until nice and squooshy. Stir occasionally. 

5. When nicely squooshy, scoop apples into the food mill and blend to extract all the delicious applesauce into a fresh pot. The skins will remain behind. Start heating your waterbath canner anytime now. 

6. Taste your applesauce and add sugar or cinnamon to your preference. I prefer to leave it plain. 

7. Heat water to the almost boil in a small pot and place your snap lids in there to soften.

8. Put your applesauce back on the stove and heat to the boil. 

9. Ladle your applesauce into jars, leaving about 1/2 inch head space. 

10. As usual, "bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel. Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.

11. Put the filled jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. Boil quarts for 20 minutes, pints for 15 minutes. I didn't have any officially tested times for half-pints, so I went with the time for pints. If you're mixing jar sizes in the same load, process to the longest requirement. 

12. Remove jars from the canner. Repeat with the next batch.

Peaches come from a jar (in the winter)

You'll need:

Freestone peaches (I used New Havens; I think it was a 6 quart basket)
White sugar
Lemon juice
½ pint (250ml) jars (I used lucky 13)
Lids and screw tops

No strict measurements in this recipe. Since peaches are acidic, they are in and of themselves safe for water bath canning. Makes it simple!

Naked peaches!

Directions for canning:

1. Make sure you have plenty of ice or very cold water. Wash your jars in hot soapy water and rinse well. I didn't bother to pre-sterilize them because I’ll be processing them in boiling water for more than 10 minutes.

2. Rinse peaches well, and take a sharp paring knife and cut an X into each peach. (I do it with tomatoes so it makes sense for peaches.)

3. Put a good-size pot of water on to boil. Put ice and/or very cold water in a large bowl or your clean sink.

4. Working with about a half-dozen or peaches at a time, put them in the boiling water for about a minute, then remove them to the ice bath.  

5. Once they've cooled, their skins will slip off quite easily, especially if you've given them a starting place with that X.

6. Slice the naked peaches and put them into a bowl with water and lemon juice (about 1 T lemon juice per gallon of water).

7. Prepare your syrup by heating sugar in water until sugar is dissolved. It’s your choice of how sweet to make it. You can also use plain water or juice. See below for suggestions.

8. Remove peaches from their lemon-water bath. Strain them well. I was clever and put them in a strainer in the lemony bowl. Verrah easy for draining! Add them to the pot with syrup and heat them through.

9. Heat water in a small pot and put your snap lids in there. They don't have to come to a boil. It's just to soften them a smidge to help them seal.

10. Pack peaches into each jar and top with hot syrup. Leave about 1/2 inch head space. 

11. As always, "bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel. Place a heated snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight. 

12. Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the pot lid on and return to the boil for 20 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. 

Ta da! Gorgeous, summery peaches you can enjoy all through the winter.

Canning season starts with rhubarb chutney

Yay! Finally, there's fresh local produce again. Makes me so happy. And kicks canning season into gear too. 

You'll need:

• 5 cups rhubarb, chopped

• 3 1/4 cups white sugar

• 1 1/4 cup white vinegar (I bet apple cider vinegar would rock too)

• 4 teaspoons curry powder

• 10 or so shakes of Tapatio sauce (or other hot sauce or a generous pinch of cayenne powder - follow your heart)

• Generous 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 5 half-pint (250 ml) Mason jars 

• 5 snap lids and rings

Directions for cooking and canning:

1. Wash your Mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse well.

2. Fill your canning pot halfway-ish with water and put it on to heat. You can place your Mason jars in there for a good sterilization. (It's my understanding that you don't need to pre-sterilize jars if they'll be in the water bath for at least 10 minutes, but I often do it anyway. Belt and suspenders, people!)

3.  Wash and chop your rhubarb and put it in and the vinegar in another pot on medium heat.

4. Throw in the sugar. Admire it.

5. Add the salt, curry powder and Tapatio or whatever peppery element you're using. Stir it well. 

6.  It'll get really watery as the rhubarb releases its moisture. Cook it down. 

7. You might want to take a little taste to check for spice level. Add another shake or two of hot sauce if the spirit moves you. Cook it down some more, stirring occasionally. I think this part was at least 30 minutes. 

8. Rescue your Mason jars from the boiling water at some point while your rhubarb cooks. You can shut off the burner under your canning pot. It'll stay hot for quite awhile. 

9. When your chutney is nicely cooked down, ladle it into your nice clean hot jars. A wide mouth funnel makes this step much easier and neater. Leave about 1 cm headspace. Reserve any extra to enjoy as soon as it cools.  

10. Scoop some of the still-very-hot water into a small pot and put your snap lids in there to heat. (Apparently this step is also not necessary, but I do it anyway.) 

11. "Bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel. Place the snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight. 

12. Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the pot lid on and return to the boil for 10 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling. 

13. Remove jars from the canner (or let them sit in the canner until everything calms down). Listen to the music of the lids as they pop! pop! pop! sealed. 

Now, relax and enjoy! This chutney is great as a spread on cream cheese and crackers, as a condiment with pork or chicken, or as a chutney with a robust Indian dinner.  

Stoned wheat thins (heh heh), chutney, and cream cheese and an icy cold 67 on a hot, sunny May 2-4 at the beach. Heaven.