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Something that I do enjoy about this time of year, is the plates of cold meat with chutneys and pickles. Since I ended up with a large quantity of beetroot, it was suggested that I might make some beetroot and onion relish. I was a bit uncertain, as I could not imagine beetroot making a delicous chutney. Well it happened over the weekend, and the result was very pleasing, even my daughter likes it! I think this may become an annual thing now ...

Do other members have any favourite chutneys etc that they make ... ?

Derekthefox :D

I've only made fresh chutneys Derek (you know Indian style) which are not preserves - sweet tomato is gorgeous and goes well with Keema. 

I've got a jar of M & S spicy Christmas chutters which sounds a bit tasty (have resisted thus far).  That's got curry spices in it, dates and raisins too. I do like mango chutney anorl Derek.

Oh all this talk of food again.  I will never be thin  ;D  Great portions of pumpkin pie and cream yesterday!

Another pickle which I have a hunger for is picalilli, the hotter the better, but I need large jars to store this in because I use so much of it ...

The recipe I have used is Mrs Beeton ...

Derekthefox :D

We currently have several on the go, and I love most chutters, so long as they are home made so I can be in charge of the flavour.  ;D  Plum chutters is delish, but on the sweet side, great smeared over duck before cooking, or yummy with a really really strong cheddar so the sweetness cuts through the sharp saltiness.  River cottage chutters is more like a traditional sweet chutters, altho my 2004 batch had more chillies in it than the 2005, and I did like the firey earlier batch...something to remember next summer!  The WI ratatouille chutters is yummy and tomato-ee, a cracker with the cold meats and bubble and squeak.  Delia (and Tims) sweet cucumber pickle is excellent, along with my own pickled shallots and pickled red cabbage, but I have to open and use them within 3 months as any longer and they become toooooo vinegary for me. And of course I have the wonderful Gavins recipe for pickled garlic....and I have one jar left for use over chrimble as I will be cooking my own ham so will have plenty of meat to work through!  ;D ;D ;D

Oh, and I forgot, the sweet chilli jelly I made, my darling Ava loves that with cheese.  We have just opened one, and I must have gotten carried away with the chillies that went in because it is soooo warming.  Fabulous!

Pickled beetroot is a fave, I have a readers digest green tomato chutney which I also like and the chilli pickle (Gavin's?) on Recipes for all is pretty good.

Jeremy

Can you post the recipe Derek, please? I usually make the River Cottage chutney which I enjoy with cheddar cheese. This year I used a load of pears to make spiced pickled pears (Delia recipe) and they're lovely with cold meats.

I will ask Jesseveve as it is not mine, but I don't think there will be a problem ...

Derekthefox :D

This thread got my mouth watering at the thought of real piccalilli.  One of the horrors of commercial piccalilli is the addition of turmeric.  It makes the pickle nice'n'yellow, but tastes quite intrusive.  I can't vouch for it, but this looks like a genuine recipe.  I might try it for something to do over the Christmas hols:

http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/spiced-mustard-pickle-piccalilli,933,RC.html

On my search round recipe sites, I came across several American recipes for piccalilli.  One was widely copied, and was obviously a very old recipe, based entirely on green tomatoes.  It was for 4 pecks of toms - that is, 8 gallons, with suitably large quantities of salt and spices.  Unfortunately one site had reproduced the recipe using 4 individual tomatoes, but the same enormous amount of spices.  It made one serving, they said.  You'd want to like VERY spicy pickles.  :o

It just shows that you can't trust everything you read on the Interweb ...  ;D

No really a pickle, but I made spiced plums in red wine in the summer.  We had the first ones last week and they were heavenly. 

The hardest bit about making them was fighting the OH off with a wooden spoon so he wouldn't tuck into them.

Derek - give the beetroot chutney a go.  It really is sooo good.

I'm munching through lots of beetroot and apple chutney - think it was DP'S recipe......................anyway its devine!

I like turmeric in my picalilli Melbourne ... I also like a generous addition of chillies ...

Derekthefox :D

Ok Jesseveve and others ...

Beetroot and onion relish, as sent to me ...

Beetroot & onion relish
Onions, white cut to chunks & put in processor to count of 15 until fine but not pulp. 1.2kg
100g dark Brown sugar, 500g white sugar, Malt Vinegar 1.14 litre
Rounded teaspoon mixed spice
800g of chopped precooked beetroot, chopped into 5/6 mmcubes approx by hand,
Cook onion and beetroot for around 45 mins in the vinegar and about ½ cup boiling water.
Stir in sugar to dissolve, brought back up to boil for about 20 mins to about 101 deg C
Made 16 ½ jars x 8oz

I did not have mixed spice, so used what I had, cinnamon and black pepper. I used moscavado sugar.

Recipe provided, courtesy of jennym

Derekthefox :D

Thanks for posting it Derek! :D

We have just dug up the last of our beetroot and wondered what to do with it, so that recipe looks great Derek.  Did anyone see the Rick Stein food programme last night, we really enjoyed it -  he made a piccalili, which looked delicious.  

I love chutneys and all of ours that I made this year are in full use.  I am looking forward to making plum chutney when our young plum tree starts producing enough. busy_lizzie

I watched it BL, really enjoyed it and inspired to make piccalily next year when I have a surplus of veg. I made brandied plums a few months ago, better get the jars out and see how they taste, had forgotten about them. :)

my favourite homemade chutneys thus far:

red onion and plum marmalade - very fragrant and goes well with sausages, meats and red cabbage - it spices up the red cabbage no end. super tasty

pineapple chutney - i can never make enough of this as all friends and family moan when they dont get a jar. very simple to make from the pineapple 'glut' that seems to hit out street market in september. goes well with ham, bacon, pork basically

autumn chutney - contains apples, pears, plums and raisins and spices - excellent with cold meats and cheese sandwiches. havent made this since 2002 and still have one jar. seems to store well and become better in flavour.

the book i mostly refer to is called 'sensational preserves' and boy, arent they just! covers sweet preserves too, as well as pickles, other forms of preserving like caramelising, drying etc. recommended that everyone should have one!

Sounds like a nice book Svea, does it have the recipe for red onion and plum marmalade, that sounds delish! :)

PINK PICKLES:
Pickle whole baby turnips, adding one slice of beetroot. Everything will turn a
shoking shade of pink!

I have just thought ... that would work with pickled eggs too ... ?

Derekthefox :D

Yes it does Derek and the marbling on the egg (which you can't normally see) gets picked out by the "dye"  Looks cute