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Dessert

Greengage Jam

A jam made from greengages, sugar, and water, boiled until set.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
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Greengage Jam

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the fruit

  1. Remove the stalks from the greengages.

  2. Remove the stones from the greengages.

  3. Set aside a few cracked kernels.

  4. Cover the bottom of a preserving pan with ½ cup of cold water.

  5. Add the fruit and kernels to the pan.

Cook the jam

  1. Bring the mixture to a boil.

  2. Boil gently for 15 minutes.

  3. While boiling, heat the sugar in the oven until thoroughly hot.

  4. Gradually add the hot sugar to the fruit.

  5. Continue to boil until the jam sets quickly when tested on a cold plate.

Pot and store

  1. Pour the jam into pots.

  2. Cover the pots with paper brushed with egg white.

  3. Store the jam in a cool, dry place.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Greengages
Provide the fruit, pectin and tartness that form the body of the jam.
Preserving sugar
Sweetens the jam and, at high concentration, helps it set and keep.

The step that matters

Continue boiling until the jam sets. Sugar must be fully dissolved before boiling, and the jam must be boiled until it reaches setting point. Undercooked jam stays runny and may spoil, while overcooking makes it stiff and dull.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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