Apricot Grapefruit Jam

2-3 cups grapefruit contents (see below) 7-8 cups (to add up to 10) ripe apricot halves 5 cups sugar bag o' seeds & membranes (also see below, less gross than it sounds) Supreme grapefruits (http://chefinyou.com/2010/01/how-to-supreme-fruits/) roughly chop segments, squeeze juice out of membranes.  Tie membranes and seeds into a piece of cheesecloth and add to the pot. Cook apricot, grapefruit and bag over medium high heat until at least half the apricots have dissolve and it looks like apricot halves floating in orange soup. Let cool on stove then refrigerate over night. Let it sit out for a while then squeeze bag to get out as much of the pectin goo as you can and set aside. Add sugar and bring to a boil over med-hi heat stirring occasionally. Cook over a low boil for 15 to 20 min till it passes the plate test. Fill sterilized jars, lid and process for 10 min.  plate test: So the grapefruit on this is more of an aftertaste I think. I liked it quite a lot, the bit of sour/bitter bite at the end kept it from tasting super sweet.

Apple Spice Cake

Apple Spice Cake

4 large apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar
2 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter
1/2 cup apple sauce
1 3/4 cups brown sugar
1/4 cup boiled down apple juice/cider
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bunt pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks (square centimeter). Toss with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, melt butter and mix with apple sauce, juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated. Fold apples in with batter.

Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean.

Lime and Strawberry Swirl Cupcakes

For the Cupcakes

1 ½ C Self-raising Flour

1 ½ tsp Baking Powder

Pinch of Salt

2 TBSP Poppyseed

1 Stick of Unsalted Butter

1 C Granulated Sugar

2 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

3 Lime Juice & Zest

½ C Milk with ½ TBSP of Lemon Juice

For the Strawberry Compote

Pack (250g) of Fresh Strawberries

2 TBSP Granulated Sugar

1 ½ TBSP Lime Juice

For the Frosting

1 Stick of Unsalted Butter

1 ½ C Icing Sugar

2 TBSP Lime Juice

FIRST: Turn on the oven to 180 C !
THEN: Add the ½ TBSP of Lemon Juice into the Milk and set aside.

Make the Strawberry Compote!

Simmer together the Strawberries with Sugar and Lime Juice over low heat in a small sauce pan.

(It will start to look like jam!)

Now the Cupcakes!

1. Mix in the Flour, Baking Powder, Salt and Poppyseed into a bowl and set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the Butter and Sugar until soft, then add the Eggs in, one at a time.
3. Combine the Dry (Flour mix) and Wet (Butter mix) mix together and mix while adding the Vanilla, Lime Juice and Zest, then finally the Milk.
4. Fill half of each cupcake tin with the dough, then swirl in the Strawberry Compote, topping it up with another spoon full of the dough.
5. Once all tins are filled, bake in the oven (170 C) for 25 mins.

(Don't open the oven while it's baking!)

Make the Frosting!

Mix together the Butter, Sugar and Lime Juice.

Once the cupcakes are baked and have cooled, swirl on the Frosting and garnish with a piece of Strawberry!

* The Lime can be replaced with Lemon and the Strawberries with Raspberries to make Lemon and Raspberry Swirl Cupcakes! 

Gooey Cinnamon Rolls

Seastar Cinnamon Rolls

AKA Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Rolls adapted from Smitten Kitchen Dough: 1 C milk 3 Tbsp butter (salted) 3 1/2 cups (or more) unbleached all purpose flour, divided ¼ C white sugar ¼ C brown sugar 1 egg beaten 2 ¼ tsp instant yeast** ¾ tsp salt Filling: ½ - ¾ C apple butter 1 C brown sugar 2 ½ Tbsp cinnamon 6 Tbsp butter (salted) pinch each of nutmeg and clove Frosting: 4 oz cream cheese 1 C powdered sugar ¼ C butter (salted) ½ tsp vanilla ** If you don't have instant yeast, let the milk mixture cool to a warm room temp and add yeast right too the milk mixture, let sit a couple minutes then proceed the normal way from there. Dough: Microwave the milk and the butter till the butter is melted. Should be hot but not so hot you can't put your finger in it. About 120 to 130 F. Put 1 cup flour, sugar, yeast and salt in a bowl, mix. Dump milk mixture in, mix some then add egg and beat for 3 minutes. Add remaining flour and knead about 8 min, try not to add too much flour, the dough will be soft and somewhat sticky but good and stretchy. Let rise in an oiled bowl covered in plastic wrap for about 2 hours, till almost doubled. Push dough down, press/stretch into an 11 by 15 inch rectangle, stopping to let it rest occasionally if it fights back too much. Fill: Spread butter all over, keeping back ½ inch on one long side. Mix brown sugar, spices, and apple butter together and spread on top of the buttered area. Roll without stretching starting from the long side that has goo all the way to the edge. Place so that the seam edge is down. Using a serrated blade with long sawing motion with very little downward pressure cut into 1 inch sections. Place in 2 9x9 or 1 9x13 inch oiled pans. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge overnight. Take rolls out about 30 minutes before baking. Bake at 375 about 30 min, a bit more for the 9x13 pan. The rolls should be very lightly browned on top in some places. For the Amber version, use ½ to 2/3 whole wheat flour or white whole wheat.