Strawberry-Rhubarb Jimmies

You may think that jimmies are the oblong sprinkles that you enjoy putting on your ice cream sundae. And you'd technically be correct. However, Jimmies are what I call pâte de fruits. (I've also seen them called gelées.) The first jimmies I made were plums. Some neighbors gifted us with about twenty pounds of plums. I made plum pie. Granny made plum grind-grind (pretty much just what you'd imagine). I also decided to try my hand at confectionary.

This time around, Mom ordered some rhubarb from SPUD (a local grocery delivery service specializing in organic, locally-produced foods). I stole a bunch, along with a lemon and the rest of her strawberries, to try again with another fruit. Clean and trim the fruit and put it into a pot. I wound up with about three cups each of strawberries and rhubarb.

Add the juice of one lemon and 2-3 T. of sugar. Right now, you're just making the puree, so it's okay if this is quite tart. Bring it to a simmer until everything gets mushy. 

Pour the mixture into a strainer that you have set over a large bowl and begin to press it through. If you have a Foley mill, this will be significantly easier. It will probably also be easier if you stick it in the blender and then strain it. (Note to self: don't use your giant, heavy copper pot for this if you don't have a buddy to scrape the pot out while you hold it.)

When you're done pressing it through, you'll wind up with a wad of fiber in the strainer. The bowl will be full of deliciousness. 

Throw this goo away or toss it into your compost bin. If you have a worm bin, you can try it, but worms generally don't appreciate things that are acidic or pure fiber. (They also don't like scalding hot fruit mush, so if you do try it, make sure you let the goo cool.)

Put your puree back into the saucepan, and cook it over medium-low heat until it thickens to an applesauce-like texture. 

Once it is thickened, measure the puree. Put it back into the pot with an equal amount of white sugar. Turn it on over low heat and give it a stir every once in awhile. You have to reduce the heck out of it. It will take at least an hour, probably two. You'll know it is ready because it's really thick and sticky. If you drag your spoon or spatula through it, it will take a few seconds to re-cover the bottom of the pan. 

Pour this mixture into an 8x8 pan that you have lined with parchment or plastic wrap. You will need to smooth it out with a spatula. (It isn't going to spread out that far on its own.) Cover it with more plastic wrap and pop that bad boy in the fridge to set. 

Do a quick check to make sure that nobody poisoned your puree while you weren't looking. 

I later checked the saucepan as well. 

After the stuff is set, you get to do the sticky, messy part. Pull the wrapped Jimmies out of the baking dish and set on a cutting board. Get some white sugar ready on a plate. 

Flip the Jimmies over into the sugar. You want to cover the top with sugar as best as you can. This will help prevent the Jimmies from sticking to the cutting board and making you curse. 

Ta-da! It's a lot like flouring a surface that you will use for kneading. Next, make your sugar sack. You'll be using it to toss the candies around in. It's an easy way to coat them. 

Hello, sugar!

Flip your Jimmies over onto the cutting board so the sugared side is down. Cover the top with a fairly generous coating of sugar as well. This will cut down a bit on the sticking-to-the-knife thing. However, you will still want to have a wet paper towel and a dry paper towel (or a damp sponge and dry dishrag if you are eco-friendly) on hand to clean your knife up when it gets gummy. 

Cut a slice about one inch wide off of the big cake of fruit paste. 

Next, cut that into squares and place them on a plate onto which you have sprinkled some sugar. (These guys will absorb more sugar than you expect them to.) As you set them on the plate, try to make sure they aren't touching. Having room for the air to circulate around them is a good thing.

You'll notice that I have a fairly deep sprinkling of sugar. I wanted to make sure that all sides of my Jimmies had a bit of sugar on them before they went frolicking in my sugar sack. Speaking of which. . . after you've cut all of your fruit paste into squares, drop them (3 or 4 at a time) into your sugar sack and toss them around. Fish them out and put them on another plate. 

After this, wait a few hours (overnight is okay, too) before giving them another toss in the sugar. Repeat once or twice as necessary. Jimmies are done when the sugar coating is not absorbed and the Jimmies stop being sticky to the touch. These Jimmies (above) aren't quite ready yet.