Pepper Jelly

My mother and I make Jalapeno Pepper Jelly every year to give to friends during the holidays.  Straight out of our garden we pick  peppers and prepare the kitchen for jelly making.  This takes quite a bit of time, but is worth the wait.  You can find the recipe we use here.

Most folks only know one way to consume this delicate and spicy jelly- with cream cheese and crackers.  Yes, that is one of my favorite ways as well, but there are a lot of other options to be aware of.  Such as using the jelly as a marinade or basting sauce for pork and chicken.  Pepper Jelly is perfect with grilled meat – give it a whirl this weekend.

You can find many local farmers selling Pepper Jelly at area markets, made from peppers from their own gardens.  Ask your farmers what their favorite way to use Pepper Jelly is- I bet they can provide a wealth of knowledge.

Here is one of my mother’s favorite recipes that uses her homemade jelly as a baste.

Jalapeño Pepper Jelly Glazed Chicken with Corn and Zucchini
Recipe from 1997 Gourmet

6 plum tomatoes (about 1 pound)
1 pound zucchini
1 cup packed fresh coriander sprigs
1 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/2 cups fresh corn (from about 3 ears)
2 tablespoons jalapeño pepper jelly
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 1/2 pounds chicken cutlets
2 tablespoons cream cheese

Prepare grill.

Seed and chop tomatoes and cut zucchini into 1/2-inch pieces. Finely chop coriander. In a heavy skillet cook onion in oil over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened. Add tomatoes, zucchini, garlic, corn, and salt and pepper to taste and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

While corn mixture is simmering, prepare chicken. In a small saucepan melt jelly over moderate heat, stirring, and remove pan from heat. Stir in lemon juice and chili powder and divide jelly mixture between 2 small bowls (to prevent the potential contamination caused by uncooked meat juices). Pat chicken dry and brush with jelly mixture from 1 bowl. Season chicken with salt and grill on an oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals until just cooked through, about 4 minutes on each side. With a clean brush, coat chicken with jelly mixture from other bowl.

Stir cream cheese into corn mixture until melted and stir in coriander and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve corn mixture topped with chicken.