Strawberries have made their appearance at the farmers market in the last several weeks. Lush red berries in rows of boxes, tempting me to buy 2 boxes instead of 1. I really only need to buy one since these strawberries are so ripe and delicious that they begin to suffer being left uneaten for a day or two. When I give in to the temptation of the 2nd box, what is left by the end of the week has blemishes, frosty bits of mold, and a collection of squishy, inedible berries lurking at the bottom of the quart. The strawberries look too wonderful though and I tell myself I'll make shortcake or sorbet or something. This week I tried making jam.
When I was a child homemade jams were often given to our family at holidays, jars of jewel tones sealed with a white cake of wax with tops wrapped in a square of checkered fabric. I remember going strawberry picking once with a friend and afterwards her mother made preserves from our haul. Now I only recall her kitchen filled with steaming pots and how superb the jam was. As an adult, I'm trying to branch out into the somewhat tedious process of canning just because the taste can really be worth the investment of time. So far my several attempts at "natural" strawberry jam, without using pectin as a thickener, have not gotten as jammy as they should. My strawberry jam sessions have led me to conclude that strawberry syrup on pancakes or ice cream is really under-rated and nothing beats a jellyroll to use up a sweet mistake.
Strawberries have made their appearance at the farmers market in the last several weeks. Lush red berries in rows of boxes, tempting me to buy 2 boxes instead of 1. I really only need to buy one since these strawberries are so ripe and delicious that they begin to suffer being left uneaten for a day or two. When I give in to the temptation of the 2nd box, what is left by the end of the week has blemishes, frosty bits of mold, and a collection of squishy, inedible berries lurking at the bottom of the quart. The strawberries look too wonderful though and I tell myself I'll make shortcake or sorbet or something. This week I tried making jam.
When I was a child homemade jams were often given to our family at holidays, jars of jewel tones sealed with a white cake of wax with tops wrapped in a square of checkered fabric. I remember going strawberry picking once with a friend and afterwards her mother made preserves from our haul. Now I only recall her kitchen filled with steaming pots and how superb the jam was. As an adult, I'm trying to branch out into the somewhat tedious process of canning just because the taste can really be worth the investment of time. So far my several attempts at "natural" strawberry jam, without using pectin as a thickener, have not gotten as jammy as they should. My strawberry jam sessions have led me to conclude that strawberry syrup on pancakes or ice cream is really under-rated and nothing beats a jellyroll to use up a sweet mistake. 
