Apricot Preserves
We start with the apricot jam. You need 3 kilograms of apricots and one kilo of sugar. Wash the apricots first and then remove their seeds. Place them in a pan together with the sugar, long enough for the apricots to release their juice. Boil over medium heat for about half an hour. Stir frequently to make sure the jam does not stick to the pan. If needed, mash the fruit into a homogeneous mixture. To check whether the jam is ready, take a half spoonful of the still boiling mix and pour it on a plate. If a membrane is formed and the mixture has a thicker consistency, turn off the cooker, pour the jam into jars and close them tight. Allow the jars to cool gradually, wrapping them in a blanket.
Ștefan Baciu, 26.07.2014, 17:58
If you want to have jam for a long time, after they have cooled, put the jars on a tray and put it into the cold oven. Turn on the oven on low heat and leave it like that for about half an hour. Remove the jars and wrap them in a blanket, allowing the jars to cool gradually. Store the jars in a cool storage room. You can have the jam as such, or you can use it as an ingredient, whenever you want to prepare cakes.
You may also want to prepare apricot comfiture, and for that, after having allowed the mixture to boil for about half an hour, remove the apricots with a slotted spoon, allow the syrup to boil for yet another half an hour, stirring often. Then pour the fruit back and allow the mixture to boil for yet another couple of minutes. Put the comfiture into jars and close the lids tight.
You can also use apricots to make a sweet and balmy alcoholic beverage, easy to prepare. Cut three kilos of apricots in half, remove the seeds, crash them softly, then pour them into a demijohn. Make sure a layer of sugar covers a layer of fruit. Also make sure the top layer is all sugar. Allow the mix to macerate for a week, stir the content and pour enough alcohol to cover the fruit layer in the demijohn. Allow the mix to become even for about a fortnight. You can have the drink, known as “caisata” as an appetizer, just like the sour cherry drink or the blueberry drink.
Enjoy!
