Homemade sun-blush tomatoes

Sadly I can't grow my own tomatoes, but instead I bought a big bag of juicy ones for just a pound at the market! Far tastier and more economical than the overpriced anaemic rubbish you get in supermarkets.

A great way to deal with a glut of tomatoes is drying them. I love sun-dried or sun-blush tomatoes, they're delicious in a rocket salad, with pasta, in sandwiches, a whole array of different uses! Sadly in the UK we don't have that blazing Mediterranean sun to dry things in the air, but instead, it's quite simple to put them in a very low oven for a few hours.

If you want oven-blush tomatoes, take them out when they're still juicy, keep in the fridge and use them in a few days. Otherwise leave them til they've shrivelled but not too dark, and pack them in jars of olive oil. The tomatoey oil is delicious for cooking, salad dressings or with bread dipped in it!

Recipe

• Lots of tomatoes (say 300-500g)
• Oil
• Thyme or oregano
• Salt
• Few cloves of garlic

1. Cut your tomatoes in half across the middle.
2. In a bowl, mix them with 2 tbsp oil, herbs and salt so they are all coated.
3. Pack them into a baking dish or tray, cut side up.
4. Put your oven on a low heat (80-100C), and cook for about 3 hours or more until they've reached the consistency you require.
5. Remove and cool.
6. Slice or thickly chop a couple of cloves of garlic.
7. Take a couple of sterilised jars and pack the tomatoes and garlic inside.
8. Top up with good olive oil.

Variations

Add as much garlic as you like, personally I love the garlicky oil. Sliced or dried chillis also add a good kick.

A food dehyrator is obviously a good way to dry tomatoes, but if you're lucky enough to have sun hot enough to actually dry things, prepare them as above then put on racks in full sun. Cover with muslin to keep the flies off and bring in at night. They'll dry in a couple of days. Apparently leaving them in a hot car also works!

Ruby Grapefruit Marmalade

Just showing off my Ruby Grapefruit Marmalade! I love hot buttered toast and marmalade in the morning, and the fragrant tang of grapefruit is just perfect. Using red, pink or ruby grapefruit gives it a lovely colour too.

But marmalade isn't just for toast - it's great as a glaze on duck and ham (see, I can do meat suggestions!), in a marmalade sponge cake, or as a glaze on top of a rich fruit cake. It's also tasty with a sharp cheese!

Cook it just like my plum jam recipe, equal amounts of sliced fruit and sugar but I add the juice of a lemon but to make it sharper. I love a chunky marmalade, but if you don't like "bits", whizz up the cooked fruit with a hand blender before adding the sugar.

Summer teatime: Plum jam & Scones

The downside of loving food is eating too much of it! I've been on a diet lately hence not posting in a while.

Today I had a basket of juicy black plums. To be honest I'm not keen on eating plums, but I love plum jam. And what's the best use for plum jam? Scones! A perfect teatime treat for a summer's day.

I was always rather afraid of jam making, it always seemed mysterious and complicated. But once I started, I discovered how easy it is once you summon up the courage.

My tips are, get a sugar thermometer, and make sure you keep stirring so it doesn't burn on the bottom! Jam tends to bubble and splash when cooking, so I recommend using a large pan that's only a third full to minimise mess. Rubber gloves also protect your hands from sugar splashes!

Plum Jam

Jam uses roughly equal amounts of fruit and sugar. I always try to use less sugar (say 60/40), but it just makes it trickier to set.

• 750g plums, chopped and stoned
• 750g sugar
• 1 small apple, peeled and chopped
• Juice of half a lemon
• 100 ml water

1. Add the fruit, juice and water to a pan, bring to the boil and simmer for half an hour or so until the fruit is cooked.
2. Take off the heat, and stir in the sugar until it dissolves.
3. Return to the heat and crank up to maximum. I have a sugar thermometer which hangs on the side of my pan so you can always see the temperature.
4. Stir gently every so often so that it doesn't stick to the bottom.
5. Keep checking the temperature. When it rises to 104C, that's the "setting point" at which it turns into jam.
6. To test whether it's set, the traditional method is to put a couple of saucers into the freezer. Drop a small dribble onto a cold plate and poke it with your finger. If it "wrinkles" or just feels jelly-like, it's set. If it stays runny, you need to cook for longer.
7. Once it's reached setting point, take off the heat. Leave to cool for a few minutes. It will thicken as it cools so don't worry if it still seems runny, but if it's very thick while it's still hot, you might want to add a splash of water from the kettle.
8. Pour into sterilised jam jars. I always label my jars so I remember what they are and when I made them!

Scones

Scones are one of my store-cupboard staples. If I was a glamorous housewife I could claim I only make them when unexpected guests pop by, but the truth is I make them for myself because they're so quick! I tend to leave out butter but add 50g for more indulgent scones. Serve them with butter and/or clotted cream for full-fat luxury, or just with greek yoghurt for those watching their waistline!

• 225g self raising flour 
• (or, 225g plain flour plus 1.5 tsp baking powder)
• 150 milk
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• Handful of dried fruit (optional)

1. Mix it all together in a bowl.
2. Bring together into dough, you just want to mix it so everything is incorporate into a ball.
3. Preheat your oven to 220C.
4. Transfer to a floured surface, and roll so that it's an inch or more thick.
5. I'm greedy and like big scones so I use a large pastry cutter to make 4 scones. A smaller one should make 6, or 8 for bite-sized ones.
6. Punch the cutter straight down, trying not to twist the sides.
7. Pop each one onto a baking tray. You can leave them plain or glaze with milk.
8. Whack into the hot oven and cook for 15 mins.