Kip does not mess around when it comes to jam. The figs were washed, mashed, cooked, bottles and voilà – fig jam. And to be honest it should be that easy.  No muss no fuss. What I liked best is that the jam is not too sweet, he avoids the trap of saturating it with sugar, so that you can still taste the fruit. And just wait till your try this on a piece of hot bread, or with yogurt as a desert.

Here is another fig desert recipe to try!

RECIPE : ERIKA ALLISTON - Sweet Pea Blog

• 1.7kg whole ripe figs
• 900 gr white sugar
• juice of one lemon

Wash and dry the figs. Place in a large / deep saucepan, and mash (see image)

1. Add sugar
2. Slowly bring to the boil.
3. Cook for about 8-10 minutes (the temperature should reach 105°C if you want to be exact)
4. While waiting sterilise the jam jars & tops
5. Check the goute test
6. Add lemon juice cook for another minute.
7. Pour jam into hot jars almost to the very top, screw on the top and turn the jar so that it sits on its lid to cool.

Sliced ham recipe

SLICED HAM RECIPE :  Just back from a great weekend in the English countryside. I was visiting Kip & Elise, my Aunt & Uncle and managed to fit in a spot of cooking. There is something about their kitchen that leads to cullinary experimentation and this time it was trying my hand at making pressed ham for sliced cold meats (luncheon meats).

Kip has made it for us in the past and we agreed that the taste, texture and reduced salt content will convert you in a heart beat. You can really taste the bay leaves, juniper berries and cider in the ham, which shaves perfectly into paper thin slices, just wonderful in a sandwich.

Not only does it taste better but making your own sliced ham is far more economical than buying it at the supermarket or butcher and stays fresh longer without that nasty oxidised taste, as you slice it as needed. Kip even keeps the stock and uses it to make wonderful green split pea soup, which will post in the future.

RECIPE : ERIKA ALLISTON – Sweet Pea Blog

• 1 kg unsmoked gammon ham joint (cured ham)
• dry (brute) apple cider to cover ham
• 2 laurel (bay) leaves
• 1 medium white onion
• 6 black peppercorns
• 6 juniper (gin) berries

1. De-salt the ham by soaking it over night in cold water, then discard the water. Or, place the ham in a large saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and discard water.
2. Peel the onion and cut in half.
3. In a large saucepan place the de-salted ham, bay leaves,  onion halves, peppercorns and gin berries. Add the cider till it covers the ham completely.
4. Bring the cider to a simmer and cook  for 45 minutes
5. Drain the cider stock and keep it to use in soup.
6. Remove the rind of the ham (see picture) and press the ham into a container smaller than its size ie) a bowl. This will compress the meat. It will be difficult to force the ham into the container, you will have to put some muscle into it! Place a cutting board on top and then some weights ie) cook books.
7. Leave to cool completely.
8. When cool, remove the weights, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for 2 hours.
9. Remove the ham from bowl and cut off the excess jelly that has formed. Tie three strings around the waist of the ham, this will make cutting it easier.
10. Using a very sharp knife cut a few thin slices!!

PUMPKIN SOUP

It is pumpkin season again! I hadn’t quite realised to what extent until last weekend when we were driving through the Swiss countryside and came across huge stalls of every size, shape and colour of pumpkin imaginable. The food bells went off in my head and after much shrieking I had Olivier turning the car around to make a pit stop.

Here things work on the honour system – you take a pumpkin and leave money in the penny jar. If you forget, the headless horseman will come after you that night to remind you. Kidding! So we loaded up the boot, settled the account and drove home with 5 extra ‘friends’.  Now it was a question of what to do with them – soup seemed like a good start.

The secret to this recipe is the use of two different types of pumpkins:

1. The potimarron (aka Hokkaido squash or kuri pumpkin) a small, intense orange pumpkin with dense bright orange flesh and sweet taste with a hint of chestnut (marron = chestnut in French).
2. The muscade of Provence which is a large pumpkin, orange/grey in colour with lighter orange flesh, contains more water and has a less sweet taste.

The mix of the two makes the perfect soup. This recipe will also come in handy for my brother who recently bought a second-hand bicycle in Rotterdam which came with a hand blender (don’t ask)!

RECIPE : SWEET PEA Blog

• 2 medium onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 5 whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon whole pepper corns
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1 laurel (bay) leaf
• 600 gr potimarron pumpkin (see picture)
• 600 gr regular pumpkin (see picture)
• 600 mL vegetable stock (1 1/2 bouillon cubes)
• 20 mL light cream
• Grated nutmeg to taste

Potimarron pumpkin  (above)

Muscade of Provence pumpkin (above)

1. First put all the spices (cloves, pepper corns, coriander & laurel leaf ) into a large closed tea strainer. Set aside
2. Next prepare the potimarron pumpkin: do not peel, just cut in half, remove the seeds etc, and cut the flesh into small chunks. Set aside.
3. Next prepare the muscade pumpkin. Peel this one, and cut into small pieces. Set aside.
4. Now prepare the onions and garlic. Peel and chop into large pieces.  Heat the olive oil & butter in a large / deep soup pot and cook on medium/low heat until soft (approx. 5 minutes)
5. Add 50 mL of the vegetable stock, cover  and simmer until the pan is almost dry
6. Add the two types of pumpkin, stir, cover and cook for another 10 minutes.
7. Add the remaining 550 mL of stock and tea strainer with spices, cover and cook for 20 minutes or until the pumpkin is cooked.
8. Remove the tea strainer with spices.
9. If you have time, strain and keep the stock, blending the vegetable 1st and gradually adding the stock till prefered soup thickness.
10. Add grated nutmeg to taste.
11. Add cream.

***NEWS : ROASTED CHESTNUTS (MARRONI)***

The appearance of roasted chestnuts, or marroni as they are called here, is the sign that Autumn has arrived in Switzerland. Dotted around the city of Geneva, are little wooden huts with steaming cauldrons of roasting chestnuts, wafting their sweet nutty scent into the cold air.

This is a popular snack, which draws passersby into the lines of anxiously waiting people, for a paper cone of these toasty warm nuggets.

When I enquired about how they were made, the lady told me it was simple:

• Ingredients = chestnuts!
• They are normally from the chestnut-growing region of Ticino in the Italian part of Switzerland
• Directions :cut a small slit in the shell for the steam pressure to be released & pile them into a cauldron. Cook at 100°C for 25 mins
• Eat while warm

NOTE : The slit in the shell is particularly important, otherwise imagine popcorn, but on a larger scale!! When I was a little girl, I found this out the hard way, after placing a tray of perfectly plum chestnuts into the oven, only to have them exploding half an hour later. Needless to say I learned my lesson.

The taste of roasted chestnuts is tender and rather sweet. It gives you a warm and comforting feeling like being curled up in a thick blanket. So the next time you are strolling around Geneva or another Swiss city, from September through to December, I highly recommend treating yourself to few.

EMILY THE GREAT’S CARROT & PEAR SOUP

First there was Catherine the Great of Russia (1729 – 1796), and then a few hundred years later, came Emily the Great, my good friend, who proudly gave herself this name at the ripe old age of 2, for surely one great lady in history deserves another!

And a great lady she is, one who I am proud to know, and who was a lifesaver (the pink kind with a gold star) at my wedding this September 6th. So how does the soup fit in you may ask - well in amongst the dress fittings, dinners, last minute ribbons, welcome packages, speech preparations, vows etc, we all had to eat…. so each member of the family took turns putting something delicious together.

Emily’s contribution to the soup pot – was in fact soup, her version of fresh garden carrot, autumn William pear, and spicy Cayenne pepper. Top that with oven baked, olive oil & garlic croutons, and you have a great fall dish, that I couldn’t wait to put on the blog. Afterall today is the 1st day of autumn / fall.

RECIPE – SWEET PEA BLOG

This a new taste for me, a sweeter soup than I am used to, but one that I have fallen in love with. What is nice is that you can taste each individual ingredient – the sweetness of the pears & carrots, nicely offset by the spicy cayenne pepper & brought together with the tangy yogurt.

Ingredients:

• 6 large carrots
• 4 medium William pears
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 medium onion
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cups chicken broth (approx 1L)
• cayenne pepper to taste

Preparations:

• peel & cut the carrots into small rounds
• peel & cut the pears into small pieces
• peel the garlic and chop into small pieces
• peel & coarsely chop the onion

Directions:

1. In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil and add the chopped onion & garlic. Let cook on a medium low heat until the onions become slightly soft (approx 5+ minutes)
2. Next boil the 4 cups (1L) of water and add a bouillon cube to make the chicken broth. Add this to the onions & garlic.
3. Now add the chopped pears & carrots, and simmer until they are well cooked.
4. Using a hand blender, mix the soup well, until it is evenly blended and slowly add cayenne pepper to taste.
5. SERVE: topper with a spoon of thick greek yogurt & homemade croutons.

HOMEMADE CRUTONS:

• cut1/2 a bagetteinto 2cm (1 inch) cubes, toss with olive oil and crushed garlic.
• Evenly spread onto a lined baking tray.
• Bake for approx. 10 mins in a 180°C oven, turning ever so often so they cook evenly