LOW-SUGAR FRUIT CONSERVE

This conserve is my take on the Scandinavian low-sugar spreads often made with excess summer fruit. It’s a soft-set conserve and, because it’s low in sugar, needs to be refrigerated once opened and consumed within a month.

It’s important to use fleshy fruit for this recipe, such as apricots, ‘Omega’ plums or ‘Golden Queen’ peaches, as the lower moisture in this fruit will produce a thick, syrupy consistency. The apple and lemon juice add pectin to help thicken the conserve for these otherwise low-pectin fruit. Makes about 3 x 250ml jars Ingredients 1kg stone fruit (apricots, plums or peaches), stones removed and flesh cut into 1cm cubes 1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped into 1cm cubes juice of 1 lemon ¾ cup sugar or 2/3 cup honey Wash 3 × 250ml jars in hot, soapy water and rinse well, or run through the dishwasher. Set aside to dry on a dish rack while you prepare the conserve.

Combine the fruit, lemon juice and sugar or honey in a wide-bottomed saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, on a low heat for about 1 hour until thickened. Stir occasionally then more frequently as it thickens, so it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pot. Once thick and syrupy (it’ll also thicken a bit as it cools), the conserve is ready to bottle.

Use the water bath or open pan preserving method (see right) to bottle into jars. Once the completely cool, check the lids to make sure they’re properly vacuum sealed. Name and date the jars and store in a cool, dark pantry for up to 6 months.

Tip: If you like thick conserve, stir in 1 teaspoon chia seeds when you open the jar. The seeds will swell and thicken the conserve, and provide an omega-3 and fibre boost.