RECIPES FROM 1979
Imitation Raspberry Jam
Tomatoes that somehow taste like raspberry jam.
BETTER THAN EXPECTED
1 HOUR + COOL
MAKES 500ml
ABOUT THE RECIPE
This Imitation Raspberry Jam contains no raspberries at all. It is made with equal weights of tomatoes and sugar, plus jam-setting mix and raspberry extract. For this smaller batch, I used jam sugar as the modern equivalent of the sugar and King Jam Set Mix. It sounds less like a recipe than a culinary confidence trick.
THE ORIGINAL RECIPE
THE MODERN CONVERSION
From 1979 to today’s kitchen.
The original recipe, reworked with clearer measurements, modern steps and everything you need to make it now.
Ingredients
450 g ripe tomatoes
450 g jam sugar
5 ml (1 teaspoon) raspberry extract
Method
1.
Place a small saucer in the freezer to use for testing the jam.
2.
Cut a shallow cross into the base of each tomato. Place the tomatoes in a heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water and leave until the skins begin to loosen. Drain, cool briefly, then peel and remove the cores. Chop the flesh into small pieces.
3.
Place the tomatoes in a medium, heavy-based saucepan. Do not add any water. Bring to the boil over medium heat, stirring regularly, and cook until the tomatoes are completely soft and beginning to break down.
4.
Add the jam sugar and stir over low heat until completely dissolved. Increase the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Boil for 15 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent the jam from catching.
5.
Stir in the raspberry extract and boil for a further 5 minutes, or until the jam reaches setting point.
6.
To test, spoon a little jam onto the chilled saucer and leave it for 30 seconds. Push it gently with your fingertip. If the surface wrinkles, it is ready. If not, boil for another 1–2 minutes before testing again.
7.
Carefully spoon the hot jam into clean, warm jars. Leave to cool, then seal and store in the refrigerator.
THE TASTE TEST
So, was it worth making again?
The honest verdict after cooking from the 1979 page.
I had already decided what this would taste like: very sweet tomatoes with raspberry extract floating over the top. The entire time it was cooking, I could smell the tomatoes, so I was preparing myself for raspberry-tinged tomato jam.
Then I tasted it. It tastes like raspberry jam. Not vaguely raspberry-adjacent, and not raspberry if you try very hard to believe it. Raspberry jam. I asked a friend to taste it too, after telling them exactly what was in it, and they said that if I had not told them, they would never have known.
SAMANTHA'S NOTES
Do not panic
Jam sugar for today
Let the Set Decide
The tomatoes remain extremely obvious while the jam is cooking. Wait until the finished jam has cooled before reaching a verdict.
In 1979 they used ordinary sugar and a packet of King Jam Set Mix. Jam sugar replaces both while keeping the original equal weights.
To know if the jam is done, place a spoonful on a chilled saucer and remove the jam from the heat if the surface wrinkles as you push it.
KEEP COOKING
More from the 1979 Archive
A few more vintage cookbook recipes to cook, save and come back to.
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