Peach Jam with Sucanat and Bourbon

(1 1/2 pints)

Sucanat was one of those things I had never tried although I knew what it was. I'm not really sure why I held out as long as I did, I'm usually pretty adventurous when it comes to food. The other day I found myself checking it out once again in the bulk food section at Whole Foods. I grabbed two scoops of it. The stuff is quite nice. It dissolves quickly and in my opinion it's much better tasting than brown sugar. According to wiki sucanat is dried cane juice which has been minimally processed. It has a deep rich flavour due to its molasses content.

I combined the peaches with a low sugar pectin, but made this batch sweeter than my last attempt at jam making with the strawberries. If I'm completely honest I prefer this peach jam, even though it ended up with a few more calories than I intended.


1 1/2 lbs peaches, about 5 peaches
1 tsp fresh finely grated lemon zest
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup sucanat
2 tbsp Ball's no or low sugar pectin
1/3 cup apple juice
1/4 tsp butter*, optional
1/4 cup bourbon

This recipe makes a small amount of jam. If you don't plan on consuming all of it within a month, I have provided a link at the bottom for instructions on how to prep the jars and can the jam in a hot water bath. I imagine you could also freeze it for up to year with much less fuss. Just give it a good stir after you thaw it out.

Bring a pot of water to boil and drop in the peaches for about 30 seconds. Remove them with a slotted spoon and briefly run them under cold water. Make a slit on each peach with a sharp knife and slip off the skins.

Remove the pits and coarsely chop up the fruit. You should have about 2 1/2 cups. Place the fruit into a heavy pot and using a potato masher, crush the fruit a bit.

Sprinkle the lemon zest, lemon juice, sucanat and pectin over the peaches. Leave for a minute or two until the sucanat has dissolved. Pour in the apple juice. Add the butter if using. *The instructions that came with the pectin suggest using the butter to keep the foaming to a minimum and it worked quite well.

Bring the fruit mixture to a boil. Continue to boil briskly, stirring from time to time to prevent scorching for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the bourbon.

Ladle into jars leaving a bit of space on top (this is especially important if you plan to freeze your jam) and cover with the lids.

See the instructions below if you are using a hot water bath. Otherwise allow the jam to cool completely, then refrigerate or freeze.

Hot water bath canning.

Gluten Free Zucchini Patties with Curry Sauce

(2 servings)

These patties turned out to be a great way to use up the leftover zucchini from yesterday. You can easily double this recipe if desired.

I served these zucchini patties with the creamy curry sauce for lunch.

2 packed cups grated zucchini, about 14oz
1 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2-3 tbsp rice flour
2-3 tbsp coconut flour
1 green onion, sliced
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 tsp minced ginger
freshly cracked pepper

2 tbsp sour cream
2 tbsp plain yogurt
1 tsp curry powder, or to taste

1 tbsp olive or coconut oil

Toss together the zucchini and salt and set aside for about an hour.

Wring out as much liquid as you can from the zucchini.

Whisk together the eggs and 2 tablespoons each of the rice flour and coconut flour. Add the zucchini, green onion, garlic, ginger and cracked pepper. Stir until well combined. If the mixture seems too wet then sprinkle the remaining rice and coconut flour over the mixture and stir again. I used all six tablespoons of the combined flour. The mixture should have some substance but it will still be on the wet side. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

While the oil is heating up stir together the sour cream, yogurt and curry powder. Set aside.

Divide the zucchini mixture to form 4 patties, scoop up and drop onto the hot skillet. Use a spoon to shape them, if needed. Fry for about 2 minutes on each side until they are golden brown.

Serve with the curry sauce.

Stuffed Zucchini

(4 servings)

This tasty Mediterranean dish is often made with lamb or beef. I used ground turkey thighs this time and thought they were quite good.  This entire recipe calls for only half a pound of meat!

3 medium zucchini, about 2 1/2 lbs

1/2 lb ground turkey, lamb or beef
1/2 cup raw long grain rice
2 tbsp currants
2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped or 2 tsp dried dill
2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped or 2 tsp dried mint
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 tbsp concentrated tomato paste

1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
1 tbsp fresh chopped mint or 1 tsp dried mint
2 cups chicken broth or beef broth if using beef or lamb
salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste


Wash the zucchini and cut each one into 3 or 4 sections. Using a melon scoop, scoop out the insides of each section leaving a "floor" in each one. You will end up with little zucchini "cups". Reserve the pulp for another use (I will post a recipe tomorrow). Set aside.

Combine the ground meat, rice, currants, dill, mint, salt, cardamom, allspice, pepper and tomato paste until well mixed.

Fill the hollowed out zucchini loosely with the meat mixture; the rice will expand during cooking and if the filling is too tight, the zucchini containers will burst.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot with a tight fitting container. Add the garlic and saute for a minute or so, then add the onion. Saute the mixture until the onion has softened and becomes translucent. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste and mint.

Place the stuffed zucchini in the pot with the tops facing up. Distribute the tomato mixture evenly around the zucchini.

Pour in the broth and cover the pot. Simmer over low heat for about an hour or until the meat and rice are cooked.

Remove the zucchini from the pot and increase the heat. Briskly cook the tomato mixture until the liquid has reduced by about half; about 10 minutes. Taste the sauce for seasoning and add salt and pepper, if needed. Return the zucchini briefly to the pot to reheat, then serve.

Khoresht-e Fesenjan; Chicken Stew with Walnut & Pomegranate

(4-6 servings)

I have been wanting to make this dish for a very long time but I could never find the pomegranate molasses I needed to make this. I could have used several cups of pomegranate juice, but I was really curious about the concentrated stuff. The other day I popped into a Kroger, and there it was, in the middle of the foreign food isle. I was thrilled because it was a brand someone had recommended.

Khoresht-e Fesenjan is a Persian dish which traditionally was made with duck, however these days it's often made with chicken. I used skinless and boneless chicken thighs.

Plan to make this a day ahead as it's one of those dishes that is amazing reheated.

adapted from a recipe at the Iran Chamber Society. 
2 tsp butter or olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3/4 lb walnuts, finely ground (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup pomegranate molasses
2-3 tbsp honey or brown sugar (optional)
2 lbs skinless and boneless chicken thighs
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp oil (high heat, such as coconut)

Use a heavy pot with a tight fitting lid and heat the butter or olive oil over a low flame. Add the garlic and onions. Stir the mixture well and saute slowly until the onions are a golden brown; about 30 minutes. You might have to stir the mixture from time to time and adjust the flame to keep it from burning.

Stir in the ground walnuts. Increase the flame slightly and cook for another 15 minutes or so until the walnuts become fragrant. The nuts can burn easily, so stir the onion and nut mixture frequently.

Stir in the turmeric, cardamom, coriander, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Cook for about a minute, then stir in the chicken broth and pomegranate molasses.

Bring the mixture to a simmer, then cover the pot with a tight fitting lid, lower the heat and cook for about 2 hours. Check and stir the mixture at 20-30 minute intervals otherwise it might burn. The colour will deepen as the sauce cooks.

Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Add honey or brown sugar at this point if the mixture seems too tart.

Cut the chicken thighs in half and trim any large pieces of fat. Sprinkle the meat with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Brown the chicken on both sides (you might have to do this in batches). It's not necessary that the chicken be cooked through as it will continue to cook in the stew.

Add the browned chicken to the onion and nut sauce. Cover the pot and over a low flame cook for about 45 minutes. Remove the lid and cook another 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Stir it from time to time so that it doesn't burn. Discard the bay leaf.

You can serve this right away or allow it to cool and reheat it tomorrow. It seems more flavourful a day later.

Serve with rice. Garnish with fresh pomegranate seeds (I didn't have any, they are out of season here), chopped walnuts or chopped cilantro.