Cooking Corner

STRAWBERRY JAM
INGREDIENTS:
1 kg   strawberries, washed and hulled
1 kg  castor sugar
 pectin, if required
 

METHOD:

Place strawberries in a 5-litre casserole dish. Cover and cook on HIGH for 5 minutes in micro wave oven. Stir in sugar and pectin if required. Cook on MEDIUM-HIGH for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.Check if the jam is setting. Cool and bottle in sterilised jars. Seal.

BLUEBERRY AND BANANA BREAD

 INGREDIENTS:
  1/2    cup self raising flour
  1/2    cup skim milk powder
   1/2   wheat germ
   1      teaspoon cinnamon
   2      teaspoon of vanilla extract
   1/2   cup of maple syrup or honey
   1/2    cup of dried banana
   2       ripe bananas, mashed
  250g  frozen or fresh blueberries
           Grated zest from 1 orange
   4       egg whites

METHOD:
Preheat oven to 180oc/ gas mark 4. Using a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, wheatgerm, skimmilk powder and cinnamon. Use a different bowl to combine the orange zest, mashed bananas, vanilla extract, egg whites and maple syrup. Add the mashed banana mixture to the flour and until well mixed. Gentle fold in the blueberries and the dried banana chips. Pour mixture into a greased loaf tin ( optional: for a crusty top add a little brown sugar ) and bake in oven for 50 minutes. Remove from oven when cooked ( test with a skewer, if the skewer is clean when removed it is cooked ) and allow it to cool.