Nebraskaland

18 Nebraskaland • October 2021 IN THE FIELD Plum jelly flavored with habanero pepper and ginger. GERRY STEINAUER, NEBRASKALAND By Gerry Steinauer DUCK CAMP JELLY In September 2020, my friend Scott Wessel of Bloomfield invited me on a late fall Sandhills duck hunt. Scott is not only an avid duck hunter, but also a connoisseur of wild plum jelly. With a harvest of wild plums ripening on our kitchen counter and in appreciation of the invite, I decided to make a plum jelly apropos for duck camp. But how should I flavor it? Early mornings at duck camp and sitting in a blind can be cold, so including a tinge of habanero pepper for warmth was a must. Although habaneros are a super hot pepper, in jelly, their heat is moderated. They also enhance the fruit flavor while leaving pleasant lingering heat on the tongue. What else should I add? Whiskey! At a Wessel duck camp, sipping whiskey during evening cribbage games is tradition. This flavor would be appreciated by my fellow hunters, and the taste of bourbon on their breakfast toast might provide the kick needed to stir groggy hunters to life. I called Wessel for advice. He recommended I use Jim Beam, saying, "If your jelly is a flop, at least you'll still have a decent bottle of whiskey to drink." Lastly, I needed a spice to bring it all together. I pondered cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger and then went online for input from fellow jelly makers. On one site, a gentleman raved about the unique flavor of his domestic plum, whiskey and ginger jelly. Also, I recently read that in folk medicine, a dose of ginger is recommended to relieve flatulence. Perhaps, including this spice in my jelly would help maintain a pleasurable ambiance in the confined duck blind. Ginger it would be. With a plan in place, I went to work. With a bit of water in a pot to prevent scorching, I boiled the whole, ripe plums for about 30 minutes at a moderate heat until the skins split open and the plums had formed a thick pulp. I then ran the pulp through a colander to remove the skins and pits and ended up with 6 cups of thick juice. The juice was returned to the pot and brought to a rolling boil. I then stirred in 5 tablespoons of pectin and about two-thirds of a habanero pepper, finely chopped and seeds excluded. After a minute of boiling, I stirred in 3 cups of white sugar and 2 tablespoons of powdered ginger. After an additional 4 minutes at a rolling boil, with occasional stirring to prevent scorching, I added 1/2 cup of whiskey and boiled the jelly for another minute before taking it off the burner. The piping hot jelly was immediately ladled into canning jars. The jars were sealed with lids and boiled in a water canner for 10 minutes. I must admit, the jelly was pretty darn good. The ginger and whiskey flavors came through and the habaneros added an enriching warmth. It was duck camp worthy. Gerry Steinauer is a botanist for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

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