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torquillHave I really not posted my green apricot recipes? I thought I had.
Well, in any case, early summer will soon be upon us, and if we have any luck with flowering right now the apricot trees will be full of little fuzzy green fruit. Blenheim apricots in particular are known for getting overloaded to the point where they look like clusters of grapes; those clusters have to be thinned to avoid damage to the tree, not to mention a harvest of small and poor-quality fruit.
When I thinned a friend's tree last year, I ended up with three or four gallons of little greenies. I thought that it would be a shame just to toss them, so I looked online. Sure enough, you can cook them in various ways -- and as I discovered, those ways are often tasty. I like apricots just fine, but green apricots are almost better.
Don't try to pit them before cooking; it's a nightmare. I find the best way to handle them (since my food mill has trouble with anything larger than a cherry pit) is to cook them, cool them, and take the pits out with my fingers. I sit and watch TV while my hand is immersed in fruit pulp, which is not the worst way to spend a Saturday night. The whole fruit or the pulp can be frozen with no ill effect. As for how to cook them:
Green Apricot Jam
5 cups little green apricots, whole (about 100)
3 cups water
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp ground allspice
Combine the apricots, water, and sugar in a six-quart pot. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then reduce to medium heat. Cook for 30 minutes or until the fruit is quite soft. Cool. Pit them and return the mashed fruit to the syrup.
Add the allspice and cook gently until thick. Ladle into half-pint or 12-ounce jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
Green Apricot Chutney
(adapted from http://www.fahying.com/blog/2007/07/apricot_chutney.html )
720 g small green apricots, whole
1 cup water
125 g sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
180 g sugar
1 cup water
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp thin long strips of ginger
1/2 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 Serrano chiles, halved
4 brown cardamom pods, crushed
1 stick cinnamon
5-6 cloves
1/2 cup raisins [optional]
8 blanched almonds [optional]
Combine the first measure of sugar, a cup of water, and apricots in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes or until the apricots are soft. Cool, then pit the fruit and return the pulp to the pot.
Mix together the vinegar, the other cup of water, and the second measure of sugar in a 4-quart non-reactive saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add salt, ginger, garlic, onion, and whole spices. Return to a boil, then cover and remove from heat. Allow it to sit for at least a half-hour.
Add the apricots, almonds, and raisins and cook on low heat till it is thick and golden brown- reduced in volume by half, 45 minutes to an hour. Stir often during cooking (it will try to catch).
Pour into clean, hot jars leaving 1/2-inch headspace; process in a water bath 15 minutes.
Either one will keep in the fridge for a while, if you don't feel like canning. The chutney obviously keeps longer, and it gets better with age, ending up beautifully balanced with a warmth that won't bite anyone but the most heat-averse. The jam has a wonderful balance of tart, sweet, fruitiness, and the strong almost-bitter flavor apricots sometimes get; the allspice shows it off to great effect. You could also do straight-up candied apricots in heavy syrup, I expect. And I once made an incredible vindaloo using unsweetened apricot pulp and dates for the sweet-and-sour flavors -- the pulp is a decent stand-in for tamarind.
Bottom line: don't toss these guys. They're worth the effort.
Well, in any case, early summer will soon be upon us, and if we have any luck with flowering right now the apricot trees will be full of little fuzzy green fruit. Blenheim apricots in particular are known for getting overloaded to the point where they look like clusters of grapes; those clusters have to be thinned to avoid damage to the tree, not to mention a harvest of small and poor-quality fruit.
When I thinned a friend's tree last year, I ended up with three or four gallons of little greenies. I thought that it would be a shame just to toss them, so I looked online. Sure enough, you can cook them in various ways -- and as I discovered, those ways are often tasty. I like apricots just fine, but green apricots are almost better.
Don't try to pit them before cooking; it's a nightmare. I find the best way to handle them (since my food mill has trouble with anything larger than a cherry pit) is to cook them, cool them, and take the pits out with my fingers. I sit and watch TV while my hand is immersed in fruit pulp, which is not the worst way to spend a Saturday night. The whole fruit or the pulp can be frozen with no ill effect. As for how to cook them:
Green Apricot Jam
5 cups little green apricots, whole (about 100)
3 cups water
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp ground allspice
Combine the apricots, water, and sugar in a six-quart pot. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then reduce to medium heat. Cook for 30 minutes or until the fruit is quite soft. Cool. Pit them and return the mashed fruit to the syrup.
Add the allspice and cook gently until thick. Ladle into half-pint or 12-ounce jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
Green Apricot Chutney
(adapted from http://www.fahying.com/blog/2007/07/apricot_chutney.html )
720 g small green apricots, whole
1 cup water
125 g sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
180 g sugar
1 cup water
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp thin long strips of ginger
1/2 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 Serrano chiles, halved
4 brown cardamom pods, crushed
1 stick cinnamon
5-6 cloves
1/2 cup raisins [optional]
8 blanched almonds [optional]
Combine the first measure of sugar, a cup of water, and apricots in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes or until the apricots are soft. Cool, then pit the fruit and return the pulp to the pot.
Mix together the vinegar, the other cup of water, and the second measure of sugar in a 4-quart non-reactive saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add salt, ginger, garlic, onion, and whole spices. Return to a boil, then cover and remove from heat. Allow it to sit for at least a half-hour.
Add the apricots, almonds, and raisins and cook on low heat till it is thick and golden brown- reduced in volume by half, 45 minutes to an hour. Stir often during cooking (it will try to catch).
Pour into clean, hot jars leaving 1/2-inch headspace; process in a water bath 15 minutes.
Either one will keep in the fridge for a while, if you don't feel like canning. The chutney obviously keeps longer, and it gets better with age, ending up beautifully balanced with a warmth that won't bite anyone but the most heat-averse. The jam has a wonderful balance of tart, sweet, fruitiness, and the strong almost-bitter flavor apricots sometimes get; the allspice shows it off to great effect. You could also do straight-up candied apricots in heavy syrup, I expect. And I once made an incredible vindaloo using unsweetened apricot pulp and dates for the sweet-and-sour flavors -- the pulp is a decent stand-in for tamarind.
Bottom line: don't toss these guys. They're worth the effort.
