Peach Preserves with Vanilla and Reduced Juice

Ingredients

• 6 kg peaches (peeled and pitted; approximately 8 kg before cleaning; partly finely chopped and partly cut into larger pieces)
• 180 g sugar
• 6 g salt
• 1 laska vanilla (vanilla pod)
• 240 g erythritol
• 35 g amidated pectin
• 130 g lemon juice (120–140 g)

Steps

1. 1

   Briefly blanch the peaches, then immediately cool them in ice water. Peel the fruit, remove the pits, and cut it into pieces: some smaller and some larger, so that the pieces remain noticeable in the finished preserves.

2. 2

   Add the sugar and salt to the chopped peaches. Mix, cover the container, and leave the fruit in the refrigerator overnight to release its juice.

3. 3

   In the morning, pour only the juice from the fruit into a wide pot. Add the vanilla pod.

4. 4

   Heat the juice with the vanilla and reduce it by approximately half. Do not cook the fruit yet; the key is to evaporate some of the juice before combining it again with the peaches.

5. 5

   Add the chopped peaches back to the reduced juice.

6. 6

   Add the erythritol, amidated pectin, and 120–140 g of lemon juice. Mix thoroughly so that the pectin is distributed evenly.

7. 7

   Heat everything to approximately 87°C. Do not cook the peaches for several hours—they should retain their pieces, fresh flavor, and delicate texture.

8. 8

   Transfer the hot preserves to clean jars. Wipe the rims, seal the jars, and place them in an oven preheated to 120°C with both top and bottom heat switched on.

9. 9

   Pasteurize the jars for 20 minutes at 120°C. Then carefully remove them and leave them to cool.

Notes

The recipe specifies oven pasteurization for 20 minutes at 120°C, using both top and bottom heat. Do not cook the fruit for a long time, as reducing the juice alone helps preserve the peach pieces and fresh flavor. The stated quantity is sufficient for a large batch of homemade preserves; the yield depends on the degree of reduction and the size of the jars.

Nutrition per serving

• preserves
• fruit preserves
• dessert
• peaches
• vanilla
• pasteurized
• winter
• low sugar