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 | | | Beckeys Jam and Jellys are made without preservatives right in our own kitchen.
The secrets to making flakey pie crust are:
Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour to firm up the shortening or Butter so it doesn't blend in to much with the flour. When you
roll out the dough
don't over work it,
don't try to be perfect with it, it
will just cause the
crust to lose it's flakyness.
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How to make a flaky pie crust
The difference between Jam and Jelly
Put together by Beckeys Kountry Kitchen, a
Blissfield restaurant for families
a "Made in Michigan" business
Jam and jelly are two different types of fruit preserves,
and the difference between jam and jelly is quite
significantin terms of flavor, texture,and nutritional
value. In addition to jellies and jams, it is also possible
to see a range of other types of fruit preserves, including confit, fruit butter, conserves, marmalade, and fruit curds.
Both jam and jelly have been made for centuries, and as
far as we know they appear to be native to Europe.
The primary difference between jam and jelly involves
the contents. Jam is made from whole fruit, meaning
every edible part of the fruit is involved, while jelly is
made from fruit juices. Jam is a thick, chunky spread, while jelly is a thinner, more evenly-textured spread.
Jams may include things like seeds and pieces of fruit
skin which create a very distinctive texture, setting them
apart from jellies.
Because jam includes whole fruit, it tends to have more
of the vitamins and minerals found in the parent fruit,
and itis also usually only made with one type of fruit,
whereas jellies may involve a blend of fruits
There is also a difference between jam and jelly
in terms of preparation methods. Jam is made by
cooking fruit with sugar and water until the fruit
starts to soften and break up, releasing its natural
pectin. Pectin is the substance which makes jam firm
up into a gelatinous solid. Once the fruit is softened,
the jam can be canned and sealed, with some
cooks processing their jam to make the texture
more uniform.
Jelly can be made with fruit juice, or with liquid
leftover from making jam. Because whole fruit is not
involved, pectin must be added to jelly to ensure
that it firms. Jellies tend to be a bit sweeter than jams, because they do not have the natural tartness
of whole fruit, with sugar acting as a preservative in
both cases. Unlike jelly, jam does not need added
pectin, illustrating a major difference between
jam and jelly.
These fruit preserves can be used in much the same
way as spreads on baked goods, condiments, and so
forth. Some people think of jelly as a more processed
form of fruit conserves, preferring the coarse texture of
jam because it feels more “natural,” although both jam
and jelly can be produced with minimal processing. In
terms of end product, the major difference between jam
and jelly is the texture: people who dislike seeds
in their jam or chunky preserves will probably prefer
jelly, while people who like things a little more texture
may like jam instead Jam and Jelly Recipes
We thought it would be great to share some of our Jam Recipes
with everyone. Every once in awhile I will post a new one. So if you
get the gumption to be creative enjoy these jam and jelly recipes,
if the gumption just isn't there just stop on by our Restaurant and
pick up Beckeys made Jam and Jelly
Gooseberries
Gooseberry Jam
Goosberries are hard to find and when you do find them they can be
a bit pricey, but there is those people out there that believe it's worth
the effort and expense to make this Jam, so here is the recipe that we
use at the restaurant.
3 lb's fully ripe Gooseberrries
1/4 C. Powdered pectin
Goosberries are hard to find and when you do find them they can be
a bit pricey, but there is those people out there that believe it's worth
the effort and expense to make this Jam, so here is the recipe that
we use at the restaurant.
Wash, stem and remove the blossoms from the gooseberries. Chop
or put them through a meat grinder. A Blender will work just don't
puree the fruit in it. Put the fruit into a large non reactive pot,
and add the pectin mix well. Place the mix over high heat until the
fruit comes to a hard boil., then immediately stir in sugar and bring
slowly to a full rolling boil, stirring until sugar has completely
dissolved. Boil hard for 1 minute. Remove from the
stove and skim off the foam if any with a metal spoon. Ladle
into hot sterilized 1/2 pint jars and seal, process jars in a canner to seal properly.
Beckeys Banana Bread
Banana Jam
Banana Jam turned out to be a favorite at the restaurant, ya just never know what is
going to be popular or not. I have to say it's pretty good, now I haven't tried it on
our Beckeys made banana bread yet, that could be banana over load. Now while this
recipe is great tasting I wouldn't try canning or preserving it because pH level can be
lower or border line making it a risky candidate for preserving for any long period of
time. But it makes a great refrigerator jam so it's still worth the effort.
4 cups bananas about 10 bananas
6 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 package of liquid pectin
6cups Sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter
Combine bananas, lemon juice, and 3 cups sugar in a pan and let stand one hour. After
1 hour add the remaining sugar and place pan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly
until sugar is dissolved. Bring the mix to a boil for two minutes, remove from flame and
skim off any foam. Return pan back over heat and boil 1 more minute. Again remove pan
from heat and skim foam. Add butter and bring to boil again Add pectin and boil for
one minute stir constantly to avoid scorching mixture. Let jam cool slightly then store
in refrigerater
StrawberryJam
Strawberry Jam
This all time favorite jam beats them all in sales for us we try real hard to buy local farm's strawberries in the spring right around the Blissfield Mi. area if your looking
for a jam that will please just about everyone this is the one.
2Quarts strawberries
1/4 Cup lemon juice
7 Cups sugar
1 Package powdered pectin
Wash and drain strawberries and remove stems. Crush strawberries one layer at a time.
Combine strawberries, powdered pectin and lemon juice in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil stirring occasionally. Add sugar stirring until sugar has dissolved. Return to a rolling boil.
Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, skim if necessary. Ladle
hot jar into hot jars and process in canner.
Raspberry Jam
Raspberry Jam
This is my all time favorite jam I remember standing out in my Grandmothers raspberry
patch picking raspberries till my fingers hurt just so we could get the chance to take some raspberry jam home later. Of course we ate as many raspberries as we could while we
were picking also that was always a benefit. Because of the high pectin levels in
raspberries you can make the jam without pectin ( thats the way we do it at the restaurant )
. But I'm giving you the recipe with pectin of which is just as good and it's a fool proof
way to insure it sets properly.
2 Quarts crushed red raspberries
8 1/2 Cups sugar
1 pouch liquid pectin
Combine raspberries and sugar in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil over high heat,
stirring until the sugar dissolves. Stir in liquid pectin and return to a rolling boil.
Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly, then remove from heat and skim if necessary.
Ladle hot jam into jars and process in canner.
Come to Blissfield anytime to visit us at Beckeys Kountry Kitchen and enjoy what our
wonderful little village has to offer.
Beckey's Perfect Pie Crust Recipe
One of the secrets to a flaky pie crust is to work with very cold butter. Cut the butter
into cubes and freeze, at least 15 minutes, best over an hour or even overnight. The minute
I even think I might want to make a pie, the first thing I do is cut some butter into cubes
and put it in the freezer.
Ingredients
All Butter Crust for Sweet and Savory Pies (Pâte Brisée)
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 6 to 8 Tbsp ice water
Method
Dough is ready to shape.
1 Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse
6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal, with pea size pieces of butter. Add ice wate
r 1 Tbsp at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together. If you pinch some of
the crumbly dough and it holds together, it's ready. If the dough doesn't hold together, add a
little more water and pulse again.
2 Remove dough from machine and place in a mound on a clean surface. Gently shape into
2 discs. Knead the dough just enough to form the discs, do not over-knead. You should
be able to see little bits of butter in the dough. These small chunks of butter are what
will allow the resulting crust to be flaky. Sprinkle a little flour around the discs. Wrap each
disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days.
3 Remove one crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes
in order to soften just enough to make rolling out a bit easier. Roll out with a rolling pin
on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll
out the dough, check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. If necessary,
add a few sprinkles
of flour under the dough to keep the dough from sticking. Carefully place onto a 9-inch pie
plate. Gently press the pie dough down so that it lines the bottom and sides of the pie plate.
Use a pair of kitchen scissors to trim the dough to within 1/2 inch of the edge of the pie dish.
4 Add filling to the pie.
5 Roll out second disk of dough, as before. Gently place onto the top of the filling in
the pie. Pinch top and bottom of dough rounds firmly together. Trim excess dough with
kitchen shears, leaving a 3/4 inch overhang. Fold the edge of the top piece of dough over
and under the edge of the bottom piece of dough, pressing together. Flute edges using
thumb and forefinger or press with a fork. Score the top of the pie with four 2-inch long cuts,
so that steam from the cooking pie can escape.
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