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Jams & Preserves

Tropical Tart with Homemade Cajeta

May 9, 2013

It’s been busy around here. Recipe testing takes place twice a week and right after the last dish is washed, I’m up in my office writing writing writing. The book is taking shape and feeling real. The last few days have been incredibly productive and satisfying. I now have two assistants to wash dishes help [...]

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canning season starts with a ball jar giveaway

April 18, 2013

Canning season is starting up. If you’re like me, and a passionate (um, other adjectives have been used…) canner, you’re canning all year ’round, sure, but those first local strawberries, the slim young asparagus, ramps, garlic chives, candy onions – they’re just around the corner and that feels like the first day of school for [...]

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nectarine preserves, peach tequila jam, and two end of summer salads

September 23, 2012

Inspirations for new flavor combinations come in many forms and from many sources. The Washington State Fruit Producers kindly sent me a gorgeous box of their fruits to play with – prune plums, nectarines and peaches – and declared me a Canbassador. (I’ll admit, I was hoping for a fancy hat or some sort of [...]

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habanero, apricot and honey jelly with cheese, please

August 27, 2012

It’s a spectacular year for chiles of all sorts. The markets have everything from sweet Italian peppers, perfect for salsa or pickle relish, to jalapenos, serranos, and incendiary Thai bird chiles. I’ve made a few batches of hot sauce, using this brilliant Sriracha-style recipe from Food52. I use cherry bombs to make Sriracha, easier to [...]

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Splendid Table

August 11, 2012

Just a quick post to let you know you can find me on The Splendid Table this weekend. Lovely Lynne Rosetto Kasper interviewed me and made me feel so comfortable. Here’s the link. The interview with me starts around minute 27, but don’t miss Lynne’s reminiscences of Julia Child, David Leite on Nutella and Ted [...]

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caramel apricot pistachio conserve

July 10, 2012

Apricot season lasts only a minute or two so now is the time to make some apricot preserves. Here is what you need to know. Apricots vary enormously. Some have a sweet, perfumed scent and are juicy and tender like a peach. And some have thin melt-away skin. And then there are the tougher skinned [...]

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cherry preserves, straight talk about pectin and a can-it-forward giveaway

July 2, 2012

Pectin. No Sugar Pectin. Ball. Certo. SureJel. Pomona. Pectin Jaune. Confusing, right? Let’s talk pectin. What follows is strictly my opinion and reflects my own experiences with various commercial pectins. I am not endorsing or dismissing any of these products. They are all effective and useful. Choose the pectin, or no pectin, according to your [...]

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in season. gooseberry pectin and raspberry violette preserves.

June 8, 2012

Last weekend the first gooseberries arrived at the market. They were the bright green, super tart, barely ripe berries that make exceptional pectin. Homemade pectin is a very useful pantry items as we go into the stone fruit season. Cherries, apricots, plums, peaches, nectarines are my favorite of all the summer fruits, so I go [...]

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secrets to successful canning (and a giveaway, too)

May 20, 2012

Bet that title got your attention. I’ve been thinking, as the season gets going, and I make a few batches of jam and pickles, just to flex my muscles before teaching. And a few more batches to test some recipes. As I go through the motions, get my natural rhythms and instinctive moves fired up, [...]

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