Pepper and carrot jam, slightly spicy

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 500 g carrot(s), peeled and weighed
• 1 kg bell pepper(s), red, cleaned, weighed
• 300 ml water
• 200 ml rum, to taste
• 2 tsp citric acid
• 2 tsp, heaped paprika powder, hot
• 1 tsp chili powder
• some nutmeg, freshly grated
• 600 g gelling sugar 3:1

Instructions

Working time approx. 40 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 40 minutes

Chop the carrots and peppers into small pieces or put them through a food processor. Place them in a large pot with the water and cook over medium heat until soft. Stir frequently to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom. This can take a while. No, I didn’t check the time; I just do it by feel. Purée the mixture until smooth using a hand blender. I don’t think it makes any difference whether you add the spices right away or now. Pour in the rum and slowly stir in the gelling sugar at a slightly higher temperature. Boil briskly for at least 3 minutes according to the package instructions, stirring frequently. Otherwise the mixture will burn on the bottom. Do the plate test by putting a dollop on a plate and waiting a bit. Hold the plate tilted; if nothing runs away, the jam should be good. Pour into clean jars, screw on the lids, and leave on the lids for at least 5 minutes. Goes well with cheese or a roast that you might otherwise have used cranberries for. Also great on sandwiches for those who don’t like jam that sweet. Note: I found the spiciness more noticeable when warm. It could have been more pronounced when cooled. Just give it a try. If you omit the rum, you’ll need less preserving sugar.