Tomato Jam with Cosmos Muffins

Tomato Jam with Cosmos Muffins, exclusively Skirt in the Kitchen 

I cannot imagine summer rolling into fall without tomatoes, and I can’t imagine not making a batch of tomato cinnamon jam with Cosmos muffins before it gets October!  It might be the last thing I put off doing, squeezing time for these fruits referred to as vegetables last minute to put up in jars before the first freeze creeps through the garden.

I have to put the cinnamon in the large pot of boiling brew, the actual stick, every time I make tomato jam-maybe two spice sticks!  When this happens, it’s magic.  All of a sudden, the kitchen explodes with the scent of holiday aroma, then it spreads into the house to the front door.  It’s come-to-mama time.

The cherry tomatoes work the best for jam since the skins of them are more tender, they’re not as thick-skinned as the other tomatoes.  Plus, they’re impeccably sweet.  If you’ve got black cherry tomatoes, you’re in business, because these babies make the best tomato jam, and I mean, the BEST!

If stubborn, you get persistent in cooking with the large tomatoes for jam, just know that you’ll have to blanch them before you make them into preserves because of their toughened skins.  They’re not petite and baby-faced, you know.  They’ve had their days in the sun; in the summer sun, that is!

So, to save on more work than necessary, to unravel you of any needless bother, I hope you will opt for the tiny marvels; those ruby-pleasant small tomatoes, the cherry ones.  The darkened, more blackened ones, the better.Place 4 pounds cherry tomatoes in a large heavy pot.  There’s no need to add water because the tomatoes will make their own liquid that will be sufficient.  Set the range on a medium heat and keep it there throughout the duration of jam-making.  This will take a while.

To that, immediately add 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, 2 teaspoons allspice, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt.Freshly squeeze and add 3/4 cup lemon juice which is approximately 5 lemons.

Next, Add 1/4 cup rose sorghum.  You can find my recipe here.   Click on the link.  I accentuated honey with sweet Don Juan roses over the summer, but I also did up a jar of sorghum in the same manner!  It’s a treat to have, good in every way.  You may use regular sorghum.  This  just happens to be better.  I hope I can put up enough jars of rose honey and sorghum for winter, not just jam.Stir in 2 cups packed dark brown sugar and 3 cups granulated sugar.  Stir off and on and keep the jam cooking to a simmer, though a good heat that boils.  Do not cook it over high heat; either medium or medium-low.

I find that the oven method of canning jams and jellies work the best, so you might like this way of canning instead of the traditional water bath.  It’s a lot cleaner, no water mess, making it more enjoyable.

For oven method:  Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit, then place clean jars, flats and lids on a steady surface like a heavy oblong pan for in the oven.  Heat and sterilize all the contents that are needed, for 30 minutes, then ladle jam into funneled jars, filling up to a fourth-inch head space in the top of each jar.  If there is “scum” around the circumference of the jam, scoop out with a clean and sterilized spoon.  Always use stainless for canning, never wood or plastic, to prevent bacteria.

Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean wet kitchen cloth, then put on the lids.  Place carefully with oven mitts into the oven for 10 minutes.  After allotted time, remove from the oven and screw on the canning rings.  Put them back in the oven, but upside-down, for 5 minutes.  If they are in the oven longer, they will possibly bust; most probably.

When the preserves cook down to being halfway from the original amount of tomatoes you began with, pour in 1 1/2 pouches of liquid fruit pectin, the Certo brand by Sure Jell.  Stir and turn up the heat to a full boil for only 1 minute, then quickly turn off the heat while continually stirring.  Glide a stainless large spoon over the top to remove any debris of scum.  Spike with 1 tablespoon Wild Turkey 101  before pouring into sterilized jars for canning.  Wipe jars clean from any sugary drips.For Cosmos Muffins, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line 6 to 8 muffin holders-pan with cupcake liners.Making a well, combine 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar.In a separate bowl, whisk 1 large egg, then 3/4 cup milk, freshly squeezed juice of half of a lime, and 1/3 cup coconut oil.  Throw in 100% organic seeded and raised Cosmos petals.  The coconut oil will solidify.  Stir liquid into flour mixture just until moistened.Fill cupcake liners and bake until lightly golden, when tops are puffy and cracked along the sides.The Cosmos flower is a native of Mexico.  It’s name means order and harmony.  It is the flower for the birth month of October.  It attracts butterflies, and the Finches are drawn to the seeds that fall to the ground when a bloom is spent, reseeding itself.

The nutritional value of the Cosmos is that it lowers uric acid, improves blood circulation, and is a good source of vegetable fiber.jammin’ muffins