It’s the
time of apricots in Romania, so today we offer a couple of suggestions on
how to prepare apricot jams, preserves or cakes. First, it’s the apricot jam. You need three kilograms of apricots and one kilo of sugar. Wash the apricots, then remove the pits. Using a saucepan, mix the sugar into the fruit until the
apricots release the juice. Boil on low heat for about half an hour. Stir continuously,
lest you get burnt-on sugar-and-fruit mix on the bottom of the saucepan. If the
case, mash the fruits, then mix them, so that the composition may become
homogeneous. You may want to test if the mix is ready to be poured into jars,
and for that, take a little bit of the composition, using a wooden spoon, and
pour it on a saucer. If you get little wrinkles and the mix flows very slowly, it
is time for you to remove the saucepan from the cooker. Pour the jam in jars.
Close the jars with a lid, very tight. Wrap the jars in a blanket, and allow
them to cool gradually. You may want your jars to have a long shelf-life, so soon as they’ve cooled, the jars need to be put in a
tray. Then place the tray in the cold oven.
For a quarter of an hour, use the
low heat to warm the jars in the oven. Remove the jars, then allow them to cool gradually. Wrap the jars in a blanket. The jars are usually stored in a pantry.
The jam may be served as such or used for the preparation of cakes. If you want
to prepare the apricot comfiture, first allow the composition to boil for about
half an hour. Then remove the apricots, using a skimmer. Allow the juice to
boil for another half an hour, stirring every so often. Pour the apricots back.
Allow the mix to boil for a couple of minutes more. Pour the comfiture in a jar,
doing the same as you did when you prepared the jam.
Apricots
can also be used if you want to cook a cake with a fluffy base layer. It is easy to cook, and for that, you need a quarter of a kilo of flour, 100 grams
of sugar, a glass of milk, 50 grams of butter. You also need two eggs, baking
powder and the apricots, of course. Remove the pits. Then in a pot, pour the
flour, the sugar, the butter and the baking powder. Break the eggs, then whisk them into the composition. Add a little bit of milk or sour cream. Whisk the composition long
enough until the dough you get becomes creamy. Lay a sheet of baking paper in a
tray, then pour the dough. Put the apricots on top of the dough. Oven-bake the
composition for about half an hour, on low heat. Sprinkle a little bit of sugar
powder on top of the cake. Allow the cake to cool, then portion it.
Enjoy!
(Translation by Eugen Nasta)