Lightly Spiced Dried Fruit Chutney

Homemade gifts are a fab way to save money at Christmas time.  This chutney is SO simple and fairly quick, you'll have people thinking you are a domestic goddess in no time at all!  It tastes fab and you can make it as spicy or as tame as you like.  Don't buy chutney for hamper gifts, make your own!

250g dried apricots

250g sultanas

250g dates

250g dried apples

1 litre of boiling water

500ml cider vinegar

440g brown sugar

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 - 1 tsp mild chilli powder

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 crushed clove of garlic

Chop the dried fruit into smallish chunks then cover with the boiling water, cover with clingfilm and leave overnight to soak.  Don't be too bothered about chopping the fruit really small as you can blend the chutney later on.  When you are ready to make your chutney, combine the undrained fruit mixture with all the other ingredients in a large saucepan or preserving pan.

Stir over a medium heat until the sugar has all dissolved then turn up the heat and bring to the boil.  Simmer the mixture fairly hard for about 1 hour 15 minutes until the mixture is thick. 


I blended the chutney on the right side of the pot, the left side of the pot is still chunky  



The blended/whizzed up chutney

At this point I whizzed mine to a chunky pulp with a handheld blender, don't make it too mushy, leave a few chunks in it. Once the chutney is blended to your satisfaction, put the chutney into sterillised jars. I normally wash, dry and heat the jars in the oven for the last 30 minutes of the chutney simmering time.



All ready to find a home!

This recipe has been submitted for the Let's Make Christmas - Foodie Blogger Gift Swap organised by the most fabulous cookbook author and blogger Vanessa Kimbell.