Jujubes

Oh........ Childhood favourite again. . . Walking into Nilgiris,  picking up those brightly coloured sweets and just chewing on them............. hmmm. .. What a thrill. . And to now know that I can make them at home with just a little effort and lots of patience . BIG thrillllllllll........

So found this recipe in last year’s December issue of good housekeeping.... No idea why it sat in my food file for almost a year... So started the Christmas season making these irresistible jujubes........

All you will need

50 gms gelatine

400ml water

800 gms sugar

Juice of two limes

200 gm castor sugar

Food colours and essence of your choice

Soak the gelatine in 200 ml water for about 15 minutes. Now I was so impatient to try out this recipe that once I decided to,  I went ahead making it though I had just about 40 gms of gelatine. The jujubes turned out a little softer but they were just as yum.

Boil the sugar with the remaining 200 ml water to make a syrup, when the sugar melts add the soaked gelatine and cook for 10 minutes. Then add the lime juice and cook for another ten minutes.

Take off heat and divide into three equal portions. Add colour and essence of your choice into each. Here’s are the combinations I tried

Strawberry essence and pink colour

Mixed fruit and blue

Pineapple and green

Pour into separate greased trays. I used ice cube trays. It worked, the only extra effort is that when the jujubes had set I had to remove each from the tray individually. You can also pour the mix into greased cake tins. Leave them to set overnight and do not refrigerate. 

When set, cut into desired shapes and roll in castor sugar. I used granulated sugar, thought it tasted better. And there you go. Trust me , you are going to enjoy them.