CWA Damper with Clear Apple Jam

Why hello!

It's a hard life, isn't it? Popping over to New Caledonia pour ameliorer ma francais pendant une semaine, coming back to find that your dear mother has bought you an AMAZING PRESENT - the County Women's Association Cookbook (eeeek!), and proceeding to bake... and bake... and bake.

Ah, what a life I lead - oh wait, school goes back tomorrow. Waah! Too much of a good thing, right?

Seeing as my AMAZING mum bought me the CWA cookbook (of biblical standards in the world of Australian baking), and seeing as it's ANZAC day on Wednesday, I thought I would make something simple, and quintessentially Australian - damper. Damper is so easy to make, filling, and goes with a lot of things - this is why it has remained a traditional Australian food for the past 200 or so years. I can just imagine my Nan making it for her 5 kids while Pop was away at war. 

To accompany this glorious bread, I decided to make an Apple "Jelly", or "Clear Apple Jam". We had heaps of apples, and I adore making homemade jams, so I figured, what they hey? I didn't have a muslin cloth to strain the juice through, so it's just a teensy bit cloudy, but I call that 'rustic'. There's a word for everything, you know! So if you do have a muslin cloth, feel free to strain it so the jam is crystal clear!

The flavour of the jam is so fresh. I love bits of fruit in jam, but I really don't think this one needs it. It has enough self-confidence to get by on its own! It complements the damper perfectly - soft, dense bread with the not-too-sweet jam spread on top - perfect for breakfast, lunch or tea!

To tell you the truth, I could just eat the jam on its own! But for the sake of common courtesy, try to refrain from doing so!

CWA Damper with Clear Apple Jam

Makes one large loaf/ 1 1/2 cups of jam

{Recipes from CWA Cookbook "Jam Drops and Marble Cake", and David Lebovitz' Apple Jelly}

Ingredients:

Damper:

450g self-raising flour

1 tsp salt

310ml milk

Jam:

1 kilo red apples

3 cups water

1 cup caster sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice

Method:

We'll do the jam first, because it takes longer.

Peel apples, chop into large chunks, and put into a large, deep saucepan, cores and seeds included. Add the water, cover and bring to the boil. Once bubbling violently, reduce heat to a simmer, leave the lid askew, and let cook for 30 minutes, until apples are soft and cooked through.

Using a fine colander/sieve (with or without a muslin cloth on top) set over a deep, large bowl, sit the apples and liquid over it so that the liquid drips through. Leave for minimum 3 hours WITHOUT PRESSING DOWN ON THE APPLES.

Measure out the juice after the time. I had about one cup, but you might have more if you leave it overnight. Pour into a saucepan, add sugar and lemon juice, and bring to the boil.

Chill a plate in the freezer for 5 minutes. Once you've been boiling the mixture for about 5 minutes, turn the heat off. Now the testing begins. Drop a dab of the jam onto the chilled plate, and place back in the freezer for about 5 minutes. If the jam shrinks and is firm to touch, rather than a liquid, your jam is ready! Pour into a sterilised jar and refrigerate.

Damper:

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees celsius. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add the milk and mix with a butter knife to a dough, not too sticky and with no flour remaining.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead to a smooth round. Place on the baking tray, and cut a cross in the top of the dough. Bake for 30 minutes on the bottom shelf of the oven.

Spread warm damper with jam!

Scones with Burnt Fig Jam

Salutations, friends!

 

Listen, I know it's been a while since I last posted, but fear not, for I have returned! Like I've said, this year is going to be crazy, busy, and at the moment rowing is at its peak - we go to Nationals over in Perth in like, two weeks! Scary, but exciting too. AND on top of all this training, racing etc., I've got mountains of work to do. Please forgive me, peoples of the Internet - I have baked this for you!

Usually, I suck at scones. Like, really, really suck. Like, my previous scone attempts have all turned out like rocks in appearance and taste. So I was both scared and raring to have another attempt at these country classics.

One of my absolute favourite blogs, raspberri cupcakes, has a fabulous recipe for Country Women's Association Scones, who, as we all know, are the masters of floury treats such as these. So I decided to pinch that perfect recipe (because I was hoping that it would be incredibly hard for me to stuff up), and paired it with some Burnt Fig Jam that I made.

I got the idea of Burnt Fig Jam from Maggie Beer, the grandmother of Australian cookery, but I didn't have a recipe, so I kind of just made it up. I also bought a jar of her jam to compare taste, but I found hers a little too burnt (maybe it would pair nicely with savoury dishes?). So I went for cooking my jam until dark and caramelized, but not to the point of being bitter.

I also used beautiful fresh figs that we had grown on our tree in our backyard. YUM FIGS! They appear only for a short time, and they are perfect to eat for an even shorter time, so I thought that making a yummy jam would preserve their summery deliciousness for a little while longer.

The scones turned out amazingly! Points to the CWA, and raspberri cupcakes for making a foolproof (ahem, me) recipe! They're light and fluffy, and with the burnt fig jam and whipped cream they are... well, you'll just have to make them, won't you!

CWA Scones

Makes about 12 scones

Ingredients: 

4 cups self-raising flour

1/2 tsp salt

300ml pouring cream

1 1/3 cups milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius. Sift dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Pour cream into bowl, and using a butter knife or spatula, cut the cream into the dry ingredients until just combined. Gradually add in the milk and continue to cut until a soft dough forms.

Handling the dough as little and as quickly as possible, gather the dough onto a flour bench and pat into a flat rectangle about 3.5 cm thick. If you knead too much, the scones will be hard (take it from me!)

Using an egg ring or cutter about 5-6cm in diameter, push down into the dough and remove the circles from the mass. Pack closely together in a lined baking dish that has sides. Lightly brush the scones with milk and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Serve immediately with whipped cream and Burnt Fig Jam.

Burnt Fig Jam

Ingredients:



1 kilo ripe fresh figs

500 grams caster sugar

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Sterilised Jars with lids

Method:

Trim figs and chop into small pieces. In a large saucepan, combine sugar and figs and over high heat, stir constantly while bringing to the boil. Add honey.

Reduce heat to mediuma nd cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom, for 40 minutes, until thick, dark golden, and almost burnt. To get the perfect caramelized taste, you will have to watch the jam closely AT ALL TIMES, and perhaps taste a bit (cooled down first) before turning off the heat.

Pour into clean jars, and seal. Label and store in the fridge for up to a month.

Enjoy on scones!