I find myself increasingly facing a dilemma when sharing our recipes as so many of them are reliant on preserves we made and, while substitutions can be made, the same results just won’t happen without them.  Do I post recipes that everyone can cook or post recipes that rely on previous recipes we’ve shared and are passionate about?  The decision was pretty easy for us – share them as we’ve made them knowing that people can make their own substitutions (including some of their own awesome preserves) or perhaps they’ll come back to make some of those ingredients when they are in season.

I’m also a person who rarely follows a recipe as it is written so I am biased that others are ok to mix and match (or enjoy doing so) as well!

Todays recipe features our Wild Bluberry Maple Crack.  It’s a pectin-free preserve that runs halfway between jam and syrup and it’s a signature of our kitchen.  This is, without question, the preserve that Dana most covets (I’m not far behind).  It’s fabulous with pancakes, chevre or eaten out of the jar.  We used it last night as the basis for a fluffy lemon curd (that has a few twists of its own) and it was phenomenal.

This recipe makes enough for 2-4 people

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy (whipping) cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Pinch of salt
• 3 Large eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten until a single consistency
• 1/3 cup of fresh lemon juice
• 4 tablespoons of butter at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon (or more) of lemon zest (organic prefered)
• 1/4 cup (or more) blueberry maple crack (or fresh seasonal berries lightly crushed and macerated in maple syrup) or other preserve with berries

Directions

1. Using a whisk, whip the cream until stiff peaks result.
2. Add vanilla and salt (don’t skip the salt even though it may sound odd) to the whip cream, fold in.
3. Place whipped cream, covered, in the fridge.
4. Create a double-boiler by placing a stainless steel pan on top of a pot filled partially with water.  Bring just to a simmer.  This will ensure that the eggs don’t cook through and that the heat resonates evenly across the bowl.
5. Pour the eggs, sugar and lemon into the stainless bowl.
6. Stir constantly until the mixture becomes thick like sour cream.  This will take 10-15 minutes.  Periodically check that the water has stayed at a simmer, using caution as the steam is hot.
7. Pour the mixture through a fine strainer to remove any solid chunks.
8. Mix the curd with the zest.
9. Add the butter, stir until melted and incorporated.
10. Allow the curd to cool for 15 minutes.
11. Fold the whipped cream into the curd.
12. Pour the blueberry crack into the bottom of a bowl.
13. Cover the berries with curd.
14. Wrap and place in fridge until cool (it will continue to get thicker).

Serve in bowls:

I dare you to try to NOT lick the bowl at the end.

How do you feel about reading recipes that you might not have all the ingredients for (like this one)?

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