Guest blogger: Olga from Mango & Tomato

While I am away on my holiday I have asked Olga, from Mango and Tomato to feature as my guestblogger. You know how those things go right, I meant to ask more of you out there so there would be regular posts coming up but I kind of forgot and before I knew it, holiday time was getting closer and closer and well… Let’s just say it didn’t happen! Olga had asked me previously to guestblog on her blog while she was away so that is why at least I have her lovely post to show you while I am enjoying blue skies and white sandy beaches (jealous yet?). But seriously if you haven’t checked out Olga’s blog yet, go and have a look. She has great recipes and her style of writing is witty and fun to read plus she is an incredibly nice person too! So all the more reasons to pay her a visit! Go on, what are you waiting for! To give you a preview of her blog here is a lovely recipe for black currant jam.

Monday when I came to work, my co-worker Danielle, asked if I’d like to have a container of black currants from her aunt’s farm, Dragonfly Farms Wine Vinegary  Flower Farm. Of course I said yes! I did not have any fruit for that day and was excited to snack on the berries.

Then I remembered that black currants are quite tart and decided that I should use them in cooking instead. I called my mom and asked for a quick jam recipe. My mom was more than happy to oblige. She actually used to have a few bushes of red and black currants and used to make jams from them (as well as many other fruits and berries a lot…in fact, years and years ago when we lived in Russia, we had a huge pantry filled with canned fruit and marinated vegetables).

Five minute Black Currant Jam

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons water, 1 cup black currants, stems removed, washed well



Directions

1. In a small saucepan combine sugar and water over medium heat.

2. Once the sugar “melts,” add black currants, bring the mixture to a boil and boil for five minutes (thus the name of the jam!).

3. Let the jam cool completely, transfer it to a glass jar and store in the refrigerator.

Of course you can make this jam with any other fruit or berries. Once I made this jam, I decided I had to make scones too! I will post those later this week, but if you cannot wait, here’s another scone recipe I made a while ago.Another great idea for this jam is to mix it with some sparkling water, champagne, or add it to your hot teas!