Apricot Preserves and Giveaway!

In my last post, I mentioned my recent cookbook review of Frugal Foodie. As promised, I'll be posting a few recipes from the book so you can try them out. You'll also have the chance to win your own copy of Frugal Foodie at the bottom of this post. Up first, though, is the apricot preserves. Here's what I said about the recipe in my review:

I’ve always been really intimidated by canning, but when I saw three pounds of apricots on sale for ninety-nine cents at the grocery store, I knew this was the time to be daring! I messed up the recipe, accidentally leaving out the last-minute addition of lemon juice until the jars were already in their hot-water bath, so the jam had to be refrigerated or frozen to be safe to eat. However, even with the error, the preserves were still absolutely delicious! I definitely look forward to doing more preserving in the future…and next time, hopefully I’ll get it right so I can have shelves lined with beautiful jars!

Isn't it cute?! We've steadily been eating through the jars of jam in our freezer, so I think the canning failure was not too much of a problem. While the jam isn't as "gelled" as one that uses pectin, it's still mighty delicious and tastes excellent on morning toast or a PB&J. It will also be nice to have this taste of summer once stone fruit season is over. My canning experiment also inspired me to get my own canning supplies (now that our summer sub-letter has moved out and taken hers back to St. Louis), so you shold expect more canned items on Cupcake Muffin in the future!

Apricot Preserves (from The Frugal Foodie)
Makes about 4 jars plus apricot syrup

2 1/2 pounds apricots
5 apricot kernels
3 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
juice of 1 lemon

1. Halve the apricots and remove the pits. Reserve 5 pits for the apricot kernels (smash the pits to get out the kernels).
2. Cut the apricots into 1-inch chunks. Combine them with the kernels, sugar, and water in a large, heavy-bottomed pot.
3. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook until thickened, about 15 minutes. As the apricots cook, skim off the foam with a spoon and save it in a clean glass jar. It settles into a yummy syrup (I used it in my latest Daring Bakers challenge).
4. Remove the apricots from the heat, remove the apricot kernels, and stir in the lemon juice. (Don't forget this part like I did!)
5. Ladle the preserves into warm, sterilized jars. You can store the preserves in the fridge for up to a month, or process them in boiling water for twenty minutes for longer-term storage (see below).

Canning Instructions

Sterilize the canning jars first, by simmering them for 8-10 minutes. Add the lids just after you turn off the flame to soften the rubber seals. Fill the jars while still warm to within 3/4 inch of the rim. Wipe off the rims with a clean, wet cloth and seal the jar with the lid and metal ring. Place on a cooking rack in the bottom of a large pot of boiling water, not touching. Cover the pot and boil for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, remove the jars and let cool to room temperature. Check the seals after 24 hours; they should be completely concave and not pop back under pressure. If any of the jars aren't sealed properly, just freeze the jam or keep it in the fridge for up to one month.

Frugal Foodie Giveaway

Lara Starr (author of The Frugal Foodie) was kind enough to offer up a copy of the book as a giveaway for my readers. Thanks, Lara! To enter, just comment on this post telling me your favorite frugal foodie-style dish. What do you love to cook or bake that doesn't break the bank?

For those on Twitter: You can also get a second, bonus entry in the giveaway by tweeting about this contest and including a link to this post (I'm @cupcake_muffin). Then leave a second comment here letting me know you did so for your second entry into the contest.

Fine print: U.S. addresses only, please. You must leave a way for me to contact you with your entry (either your website address, email, or twitter username). This contest will run until September 12, and then I'll draw a winner using random.org.