White currants are another fruit with a lovely tart flavor, which makes them just perfect for jam making. This jam, with its additional chili kick, is subtle enough to eat on sourdough toast for breakfast but could also be taken up a
notch, by adding more chili to taste, and serving as a relish to go with cheese. And if you have a few red gooseberries to add to the currants, they’ll give this jam a beautiful rose hue.
Makes about 3½ cups
INGREDIENTS
- 3 pints white currants
- 4 red gooseberries (optional)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 2 red chilies (or more if you wish), deseeded and minced
- warmed sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Strip the white currants from their stalks by running the tines of a fork over their stems. Place the currants and gooseberries, if using, in a pan along with the lemon juice and ⅝ cup water. Simmer until the fruits are soft and bursting.
- Push the fruit through the fine disk of a food mill, or a sieve, collecting the resulting purée in a measuring pitcher.
- Allow ¾ cup sugar to every 1 cup purée.
- Gently heat the purée and add the minced chilies, then the warmed sugar. Stir the jam over a low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Turn up the heat and boil rapidly to reach setting point. Skim if necessary.
- Pour the jam into hot, sterilized jars and seal.
