Gooseberry

Again, this Gooseberry jam recipe comes from The Dairy Book of British Food and can also be found on The Great British Kitchen web site. I halved the ingredients.

On 24 June, I picked most of the gooseberries from my dad's garden and topped up the weight from my own gooseberry bush. The jam making was very quick and successful producing six jars of lovely pinkish preserve with more of a jam consistency; not too runny yet not stiff. I used normal sugar this time, followed the recipe and had no problems achieving a set.

The people's favourites

Admittedly, this whole enterprise is being done as cheaply as possible so I asked my friends and colleagues to give me any empty jars they had. Also, I asked them to nominate their favourite jam so they could receive the one they loved the most. Strawberry and raspberry were the clear winners so it is essential that I find a place to pick these close to home.

Rhubarb and ginger

This Rhubarb & Ginger jam recipe comes from The Dairy Book of British Food and can also be found on The Great British Kitchen web site.

Well, the first fruit that became available to me is actually a vegetable – yes, rhubarb. My dad grows two varieties in his garden in Soham, one produces red sticks and the other green. I chose the red variety (Cherry Red) for this recipe as I thought it would look pretty. I picked the rhubarb on 10 June and made the jam the next day. My partner, Ben, had offered to buy some sugar and he came back with jam sugar so I had to break one of my commandments already and use sugar with pectin. I hardly stirred the fruit while it was boiling and this produced four jars of very thick, chunky, delicious, ruby coloured jam. I think I would stir the fruit more and use plain granulated sugar next time just to break the rhubarb down and make it a little easier to spread.

My jam commandments

1. I will only use fruit from the gardens of family and friends or local farms
2. I shall not use jam sugar with pectin
3. I shall give 90% of my jam to friends, family and colleagues
4. I will use a Le Creuset 24cm round casserole pot (4.2L / 7.50pt)
5. I will not use a microwave
6. I will taste each jam before proffering

Now let's see how many I will break!

The basics

All I did before I began my journey was read the Ten Steps to Jam-Making that can be found on Delia Smith's web site.

Another essential source of information is Jams, Preserves and Chutney by Marguerite Patten.

In the beginning ...

...there was fruit a plenty. Well, I hope so at least because this blog will show one woman's attempt to make as many jams, conserves and marmalades as possible in a year. My plan is to use locally sourced pickings and fruits grown by myself, my family and friends. Having never made jam before and remembering my mother's reminiscenses about burned spoilt berries, I am somewhat apprehensive about my first attempt. Homemade jam for me is such a delicious luxury that always evokes memories of childhood, comfort and a more self-sufficient way of life so I thought it was definitely worth spending some time preserving fruit that might otherwise go to waste.