My love affair with apricots continues as I work my way, with pleasure, through the fruit I picked up at Eve’s Fresh Produce. Chutney is an essential condiment at my home. It goes with cheese, can be served with curries, and be added to the humble sandwich lifting it to new heights. Chutney is also extremely easy to make. You simply add the listed ingredients together, stir and cook till thickened.

This recipe is my basic chutney recipe, using ingredients I always have on hand. I just add the fruit that I want. Apricots this time, but next month, I could use the same recipe, and substitute plums for the apricots. Being a basic recipe does not mean that it is not delicious. Some of the most amazing foods are made with a few ingredients and this chutney is no exception. Perfect for beginners to home preserving.  

Ingredients:

• 1.5 kilograms Apricots, stones removed and roughly chopped
• 500 grams of brown onions, diced
• 2 cups of white vinegar
• 750 grams of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon of curry powder

Instructions:

• Prepare your 250 ml jars and lids by sterilising them in boiling water for ten minutes.
• The sterilisation step can be skipped and you can use washed, rinsed, hot jars if you are processing for 10 minutes or more in the boiling water bath at the end of the recipe.
• Combine all of the ingredients in a large, heavy-based pan and bring to a boil, stir until the sugar has dissolved.
• Reduce heat and continue to simmer for one to one and a half hours or until the chutney thickens.
• Remove from heat.
• Using a ladle and jar funnel, place your jam into your hot, 250 ml jars, leaving a one-and-a-half centimetre headspace.
• Clean the rims of the jar, to ensure you get a good clean seal, and cap with your new lids. I reuse my jars many times, but I always use new lids.
• Process your filled jars in a boiling water bath for five minutes. Alternatively, if you did not pre-sterilise your jars and lids, process them in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

• Once the processing time is achieved, remove the jars using your jar lifter and allow them to cool on the kitchen counter.
• Label with the contents and date.

I will never get tired of the feeling of competence and contentment I get at the end of a day in the kitchen when I can look at all the jars of food I have successfully preserved. Knowing that you can fill your pantry is an amazing feeling. I truly believe that it is the simple things in life that are the most meaningful. Getting back to basics can be good for your physical and mental health, giving you a break from the hectic world we live in.

So take a break. You deserve it

As always, live well.