Two ingredient jam ~ in minutes!

I was so excited when my friend Lisa told me that Epicure has come out with their own 'quick blend' Chai Jam seasoning ~ allowing for two ingredient jam ready to serve in minutes!

 Epicure Chai Jam

 

What You Need

• 2 cups of chopped fruit. Fresh or frozen  (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, peaches, mango, apples you choose or mix them up)
• 2 tablespoons Epicure Chai Seasoning blend

What You Do

• Prepare your fruit ~ remove stems, pits, seeds and skin as needed. Chop into small pieces to speed cooking and make it easier to 'puree' later.
•  Cook the fruit until it is able to be pureed with ease using a spoon. Either on the stove top 5-10 minutes or in the microwave ... only needed 3 minutes for the frozen option!

• Mash with a spatula or fork or using a handheld immersion blender to get your desired 'fruit puree' ~ we like chunks in our berrie jam so just use the fork to mash but with mango/peach we puree with the handheld.
• Add in 2 tablespoons of Chai seasoning blend stir until mixed. Let cool to room temperature and than transfer to a glass storage container ~ keeps 2 weeks in fridge if it hangs around that long! I made a batch today and served it to the crew over our two ingredient ice-cream so will need to make a second batch for the weekend!

Look how yummy it looks served over the homemade ice-cream we made with the daycare crew for a snack this afternoon!

If you are not fortunate enough to have an Epicure rep who can make your life easier and shave off time measuring and guessing in the kitchen ~ here is the 'traditional' from scratch method for Chai Jam ... it is awesome too but sometimes when chasing 5 kids around and trying to eat clean finding ways to shave off a few minutes in the kitchen is a godsend!

Regular Chai Jam

What You Need

•  2 cups of chopped fruit ~ fresh or frozen (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, peaches, mango, apples you choose or mix them up)
• 1-2 tablesppons of lemon juice - to taste
• 1-2 tablespoons of sweetener to taste (I prefer NONE but you can add honey, agave, maple syrup or regular sugar)
• 2 tablespoons chai seeds ~ plus more if needed

What You Do

•  Prepare your fruit ~ remove stems, pits, seeds and skin as needed. Chop into small pieces to speed cooking and make it easier to 'puree' later.
•  Cook the fruit until it is able to be pureed with ease using a spoon. Either on the stove top 5-10 minutes or in the microwave 4-6 minutes
• Mash with a spatula or wooden spoon or using a handheld immersion blender to get your desired 'fruit puree' ~ we like chunks in our berrie jam so just use the spoon but with mango/peach we puree with the handheld.
• Stir in the lemon and sweetener ~ taste test to get the flavor you desire. Add more sweetener as desired
• Stir in your chai seeds let stand 5 minutes on the counter. If you'd like 'thicker' jam add more chai seeds which might be needed with particularly 'juice' fruits. Add 1 teaspoon at a time until you get the desired consistency.
• Transfer to a glass jar with air tight seal when cooled to room temperature and store in the fridge. It will last for about 2 weeks in fridge or 3 months in the freezer.

 Have an amazing day!

Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much! 
Be Totallyawake4-life



 

Two Ingredient Icecream ~ YES PLEASE!

Dairy free ice-cream alternatives in the store are RIDICULOUSLY priced ~ which led me to look for homemade alternatives when I enrolled a 'dairy free' friend in my daycare and are specially helpful now that I myself and being more committed to respecting my dairy allergy to get my health back on track!

What You Need:

• 4 large very ripe bananas
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter

 

 

 What You Do:

• Peel bananas and slice into 1/2 inch discs. Arrange banana slices in a single layer on parchment paper lined tray. Freeze for at least 1-2 hours.

• I like to keep a large quantity of the frozen banana in the freezer in a zip log bag and than I can just pull out what is needed for use in ice-cream, smoothies or banana bread. Great way to use up those bananas that have gone 'too ripe' by accident or when they are on 'sale' to get them for cheaper because they are actually 'sweeter' so your ice-cream or smoothie or recipe will need less sugar! 

• Place the banana slices in a food processor or powerful blender. I love my BLENDTEC for this it is one of the many reasons I bought one. 

• Pulse the banana slices, scraping down the bowl as needed. Continue to pulse until the mixture is creamy and smooth* Add the peanut butter and puree to combine.  Some machines, like the Blendtec, actually have an 'ice-cream' button you can just press and it will puree and pulse for you!  

Baking Tips

* if you have a hard time creating a creamy consistency, you can add 1-2 tablespoons of coconut, almond or regular milk to help puree the banana slices. 

Serve immediately for soft-serve ice cream consistency. If you prefer harder ice cream, place in the freezer for a few hours and then serve so that you can get a nice 'scoop' presentation such as this one.

Make sure you use a powerful food processor or blender for this ~ I have tired this recipe before my Blendtec and it did not work ~ had to add way too much almond milk and it ended up being a milkshake that when I put it in the freezer to firm up did not have the same creamy texture I get from my Blendtec!

 

 Have an amazing day!

Margaret
Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
Totallyawake4-life