Somerset Courgette and Apple Chutney

This is a new Chutney Recipe, devised to have a truly local chutney.  In what sense local?  Is it traditional....most probably not!  It does contain courgettes grown in my garden, and apples from Andrew opposite, and local Somerset Cider from Honey Pot Farm.  Organic onions bought locally and soft brown sugar from Mauritius.

Ingredients

1Kg small courgettes chopped to the size you would like to have in the chutney
500g cooking apples
600g brown onions, chopped small
6 cloves of garlic cut into slithers
500g soft brown sugar
700g organic cider vinegar
1.5 tbs cornflour

Spices:
1 tbsp ground turmeric
1 tsp whole coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp fenugreek
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp celery seeds
3 tsp light mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 chilli, chopped small.

Chop the courgettes, and put them in a bowl and toss with 1 tbs sea salt, and leave whilst you prepare the following, which allows for water to be drawn out.  Just before adding them to the preserving pan, put into a colander and press down to remove any liquid.

In your preserving pan, or large pan, or pressure cooker base, warm the vinegar and add all the spices...keep this on a very low heat whilst you chop the ingredients: Chop the apples small and the onion and garlic...putting them in the vinegar as you go along.  Remove a few tablespoon of the vinegar to a small dish or cup, and when cool stir in the cornflour.

Add the soft brown sugar to the preserving pan and stir until dissolved.  Boil up and then simmer gently for about five minutes, then add the drained courgettes.  Heat up till boiling again then reduce to a simmer for another five minutes or so. I like a tiny bit of bite to the vegetables, so keep an eye on the timings and the texture, stirring from time to time.

Add the cornflour to the pan, and stir carefully throughout the chutney, and the whole lot should be nicely thickened, but it will thicken more on cooling.

Pot up into sterilized jars.  I do this by washing the jars and rinsing them, then placing them in an oven at about 100 C for fifteen minutes.  The lids I add to a basin, add boiling water to cover, and place this in the oven at the same time.  I like to add the chutney to warmed jars, but the lids need to be dried off with a clean kitchen towel.

I love the way that by making chutneys, one can transform and preserve fruit and vegetables to make a tasty condiment, to be put in store, and used later. Using up plentiful local ingredients is one of the pleasures of preserving....living in a county where the art of cider vinegar making is being continued by even small orchard and cider makers, it would be remiss not to seek out different ones.  My current batch of chutneys are from a cider vinegar which is truly fruity.  I am sure that cider vinegars change from year to year, and from maker to maker and I look forward to seeking out different ones.