All content copyright Katrina Hall 2008 through 2025

Monday, March 11, 2013

two handfuls of berries





The chicken I bought today has vanished - it never made it home from the supermarket.  I searched the car, the bags, and my all-purpose canvas bag:  not to be found.  While mourning over my loss of dinner ( poulet with tomatoes and olives) and sorting through the fridge just in case I had missed the package of chicken , I found the half-empty containers of strawberries and blackberries in the fridge .  Hmmm, I thought, two handfuls of berries?

Two handfuls of berries equals winter jam, perfect for breakfast on toast or stirred into yogurt.

And here it is, not dinner, but it will do,  scented with vanilla and fresh lemon juice.  It will have to do, I think, as I eat a sandwich for dinner :)

To make:

2 handfuls of berries ( about 1/1/2 - 2 cups berries)
1 drop of vanilla
1 cup warmed sugar ( the microwave is fine - 1 minute will do)
3 T. fresh lemon juice





Trim the strawberries and cut in half.  Place berries in a heavy bottomed saucepan, along with the lemon juice and vanilla.  Bring to a simmer, then add the warmed sugar.  Simmer for fifteen minutes or so, then pour into glasses or jars.  Let cool, then cover and place in fridge.


And now, back to another biography of  Winston Churchill, which doesn't look promising.



6 comments:

Sue/the view from great island said...

I love the way you think! The heck with the chicken, this simple jam more than makes up for the loss!

katrina said...

Almost, Sue - almost:)

diary of a tomato said...

Fine compensation though I suppose the best scenario is if the chicken vanished for good, rather than turning up at some later date... ;)

katrina said...

Debra, the chicken did vanish for good, but the supermarket very kindly replaced it. I figure it got left on the bagging counter, and went home with someone else, who got a very happy bonus in their grocery bag.

Barb said...

"Wanted: one lost chicken!"

You could drive yourself crazy wondering what happened to it, couldn't you?

katrina said...

Barb - so many strange things have appeared ( one red pepper and a bag of onions, a bunch of parsley - all of which I returned, like an honest person should)), or disappeared (the chicken, a loaf of bread, a jar of olives) that I am no longer surprised by my closest supermarket, which is a Shaw's - which has to be the most expensive supermarket ever. They are very quick to accept my complaints, thank heavens, but when I was standing in line at the service center, an English lady loudly complained that "every single time , my register tape is wrong. EVERY time." But I'm still a little ticked that they had no bone-in chicken breasts the next day, and I had to do with a tiny whole chicken as a replacement. What supermarket doesn't have bone-in chicken breasts? Not my Shaw's:)