Wild Rose Hip and Chili jam

An afternoon of itching is worth it

Wild Rose Hips start to appear in the forest about this time, they're the fruit of the rose plant and ideal for autumn jams and jellies. Be warned though, the insides are covered with tiny hairs and I've been twitching all afternoon from them (the ones from playground itching attacks). They're a jewel bright red and slightly tart in taste and when simmering, smell a little like crab apples or gooseberries. This jam... is laborious what with the dismantling of the itching hairs but the afternoon of foraging for them makes up for it. It's also one of the prettiest and gives a good kick to keep winter blues at bay. Super with cheese.

What you need

This recipe makes 1 jar of jam! Sorry it's all the rose hips I picked. So multiply all ingredients by the number of jars you want to make.

                                      

185g rose hips (roughly 2 big handfuls)

1/2 cup of white granulated sugar

1/2 cup of water

juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp of dried chili flakes

What to do

Wash the rose hips. Put in a pan and just about cover with water. Heat gently for 5-10 minutes until soft. Remove from heat and let cool. Chop the ends off and take each hip in turn and squeeze, the seeds and little hairs should pop out. When you've done this for them all rinse with cold water. Add to a pan and put on a gentle heat for 15 minutes (until soft) then push all through a sieve. Then back on the heat and add 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of sugar, the lemon and chili flakes. Allow to simmer gently and keep stir regularly. If its too thick add some water. Cook for about 20 minutes. Then pour into pre-sterilised jar (heat jar in oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes).