Hot pineapple chutney

Hello Campers,
Well, I've had a very pleasant afternoon making hot pineapple chutney & I thought I'd kick in my recipe in case anyone else has any hot pineapples going spare or a boring sandwich which needs some summer sparkle.

I have a world mango shortage to thank for the creation of this recipe. A couple of years ago, I really fancied making some mango chutney. Our local market always has them, so but on this occasion it was completely mango-less. Tried two supermarkets. Nope! I didn't find out until a few days later that there had been some sort of a problem with a big mango crop & imports had been much reduced. 
Anyway, the Big Hairy Half of the Relationship suggested I use pineapples instead. I snottily replied that they'd be a fat lot of use in MANGO chutney & stomped past a market stall positively heaped with pineappley loveliness before deciding that I'd give it a go. And having now refined the recipe further, it's good stuff! Here it is, in case anyone fancies having a go:

Hot pineapple chutney

4 pineapples (you need about 5lbs of chopped flesh after peeling & coring)
1kg cooking apples
900g white granulated sugar
350g onions
3 garlic cloves
50g fresh root ginger
4 -6 scotch bonnet chillies (or other habenero type)
2 level tsp salt
1/2  tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1200ml white wine vinegar

(Makes about 6 or 7lbs)

Put your preserving pan next to the chopping board & prep all the ingredients straight into it, as this saves on faffing around & washing-up. Peel & core the pineapples & chop them roughly into 2cm pieces. Peel & roughly chop the onions. Finely chop the garlic. Get the rubber gloves out for de-seeding & chopping the chillies, as Scotch bonnets are fiery beasts, but have a great flavour. Peel & finely chop the root ginger. Peel, core & roughly chop the apples. If they start going brown as you're adding them to the pan, just pour over the vinegar. Add the spices & salt. You've now go everything in the pan EXCEPT THE SUGAR which is correct!
Bring the pan to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer for 20 mins so the fruit begins to soften.

(This will give you time to wash your jars in hot soapy water & get them in a low oven to sterilise)

Now add the sugar & stir until dissolved. Bring the pan to the boil, reduce heat to a steady simmer & cook, uncovered, for around an hour & a half.  Stir it every now & again to prevent it sticking. When any spare liquid on the top can be stirred in, & it is thick & sticky, it is time for bottling. Don't overcook it, as it continues to thicken a little on cooling & storing.

Then bottle as usual in hot sterilised jars. Have a clean cloth wrung out in very hot water to clean up the tops of the jars, then seal asap with clean lids.

This quantity made 7 jars & a taster-pot today. Just a note about the chillies - I use the Caribbean varieties of chillies for this recipe - scotch bonnet or similar habanero-types. They are very hot, but have a distinctive flavour in comparison with other hot chillies, such as the more usual cayenne types. I grew scotch bonnets a couple of years ago in our greenhouse & I've used up the last of the crop from the freezer today in this recipe. I used 6 of them, varying sizes. The biggest was the shape & size of a large strawberry, the others were smaller. I de-seeded them all (with my hands encased in matron's gloves!). I love spicy food, but there is only one inhabitant of 'The People & Cats Republic' in possession of an asbestos mouth & it isn't me or Albert Whiskers! If you don't like a hot chutney, then replace the scotch bonnets with a milder chilli variety, or just make something else.

This chutney is fine to eat straight away (which is just as well as the Big Hairy Half has been DIGGING IN WITH A SPOON!!) but like all such preserves, will mellow after even a month of storage.
Oh well, time to go & see what Albert Whiskers is up to......he hasn't wandered far from the back garden since coming home with a bitten ear this week. Unusual for him to be so sensible!
Till next time....enjoy the sun,
C x