Fruit Chutney from South Africa

Most South Africans grew up with Mrs Ball's Chutney. Now this isn't Mrs Ball's, but it's my own take on it. Wherever I've lived and Mrs Ball's or something similar hasn't been available, or if I've had a glut of fruit or tomatoes from the garden, I've made my own chutney. Chutney is not just an accompaniment to a good curry. It is very versatile. You can have a cheese and chutney sandwich, add chutney to a dip, mix it with mayonnaise and cover chicken pieces to bake in the oven, add to stews and casseroles, eat with cold meats, use it when making stuffed eggs or stuffed baked potatoes, add it to bobotie or to a marinade, use it when making monkeygland sauce for your steak... as you can see chutney is a very valuable addition to any kitchen.
3/4 cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup raisins
5 apples peeled, cored and diced
6 tomatoes cut into slices
3 onions cut into slices
4 large garlic cloves finely chopped
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 cups vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 teaspoon ginger powder
1 teaspoon paprika
3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon french mustard
1 teaspoon coriander
Use a large enamel or stainless steel pot. Add the water, raisins, dried apricots, onions and apples. Bring to the boil so that they start to go soft. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 3 hours. Stir quite often with a wooden spoon to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. When it's thick, soft and sticky and most of the liquid has gone it's ready. Ladle into sterilised jars when done. It lasts for about 6 weeks in the fridge, however if it's very delicious it might not last that long. You can add more chili powder if you want more bite.  Brown sugar gives it a darker colour.

Cindy Vine is the author of both fiction and non-fiction including The Colorful Art of Pain, Hush Baby, Defective, C U @ 8, and The Great Mountain to Mountain Safari. All her books are available on Amazon in both kindle and print format. http://cindyvine.com