When it comes to RV cooking, things need to be pretty simple. But just because we live in a small space doesn’t mean we can’t cook wonderfully flavorful food.
On our daily walks through an abandoned housing development next to our RV park, we had noticed wild blackberries that seemed to have taken over much of the property, and as we watched them slowly ripen, I had devised a scheme in my mind for these berries!
The other day there were finally enough ripe ones to warrant a return trip with some Tupperware containers. In all, we probably harvested about 10 cups of fresh blackberries. And we didn’t even make a dent in what was ready to be picked.
So what do you do with that much fresh fruit?
I had been dying to try out an Instant Pot recipe I had found for making jam. It’s quick, easy and requires no pectin. It also isn’t overly sweet, which for us is nice. The taste of the fruit really comes through.
To make the jam, here’s what you’ll need:
- 4 cups of fresh fruit (I used the blackberries, but my mom has made it with plums)
- 1 cup of sugar (I used brown sugar. It will darken the jam, but it’s so good!)
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- 3 tbsp. lemon or lime juice
- 3 tbsp. corn starch
- 1.5 tbsp. water
Put the fruit into the Instant Pot. Add the lemon juice and sugar, then stir well. Allow to sit for 10 minutes while the sugar draws the juice out of the fruit.
Set the Instant Pot to pressure cook for one minute. Yep, only one minute does the trick! (After, of course, the preheat cycle)
Once the fruit is cooked, allow the Instant Pot to sit for 10 minutes and naturally release the pressure. At the end of 10 minutes, use the pressure release valve, if needed, to release any remaining pressure.
Mash the fruit with a potato masher. Make sure the fruit is thoroughly mixed and a good consistency.
Mix the corn starch and water.
Set the Instant Pot to Saute and add the corn starch. Stir continuously until the fruit begins to thicken.
Remove from heat and pour into prepared jars.
Refrigerate the jam until it solidifies.
Simple, right? I made our jam in about 15 minutes total.
Now to Make Some French Bread:
If you’re going to have fresh jam, you need something to put it on, right? A loaf of fresh, crusty French bread sounded really good, and it’s the easiest bread I’ve ever made. With this recipe you can have two beautiful loaves ready to eat within about an hour and a half.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 6 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp. active yeast
- 1/2 cup of warm water
- 2 cups hot water
- 3 tbsp. sugar (I used honey)
- 2 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/3 cup oil (I use olive oil)
- 1 egg for brushing on bread
Mix your yeast into the warm water and allow to stand 10 minutes to activate. Make sure the water isn’t too hot or too cold.
In a large bowl, mix three cups of flour with the hot water, salt, sugar and oil. Mix well.
Add the yeast to the flour mixture.
Gradually add in the remaining flour. When the dough starts to pull away from the bowl, it’s ready.
When all the flour has been mixed in, allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.
Divide the dough in half.
On a floured surface, roll each half into a 9 x 12 rectangle. I don’t have a rolling pin, so I just use a tall glass. I also put wax paper down, then flour it and roll the dough out on that.
Roll each 9×12 section of dough jelly roll style. Tuck the ends under and use a bit of water on your fingers to seal the seams as you pinch them together.
Place seam side down onto a baking pan. Using a sharp knife, make three diagonal slits on the top of each. Brush with the beaten egg if you want a shiny appearance to the finished loaf.
Let dough rise in a warm place for 40 minutes.
Bake at 375 degrees 18 to 22 minutes, or until the loaves turn golden.
That’s it!! Simple and easy.
If you make the jam first and get it into the fridge, it will be set enough to eat by the time your bread is finished baking.
Hot bread and fresh jam – what could be better?
