My absent sweet tooth ensured that I was the child with peanut butter and honey, rather than the ever popular jam. And nowhere is that choice more apparent than when I see a fabulous jar of freshly made raspberry jam last for months in my fridge, alone, untouched and otherwise neglected until we bake fresh scones and embrace with reckless abandonment, servings of cream, jam and butter, over a long and decadent brunch. When I was a child, my mother would slave over the stove for hours each August. As we approached autumn, the house was alive with simmering berries, stewing fruit and an endless array of sweet delights that would entice most people to try to catch a sneaky taste at every turn. Alas, I was more caught in another end of summer right of passage. Never appreciating the opportunity to spend the afternoon in the kitchen with my mother, opting instead to let the kitchen door hit me on the way out while I made mischief with the other neighbourhood children. My return just after dark, always found the kitchen brimming with jam jars, and my mother eating a slice of brown bread with jam like she was eating the last remaining berry that summer had to offer. Jam jars hold hours of hard work, spoonfuls of goodness and an endless supply of memories, of both past and present. I cannot see a jam jar and not think of my mother and those long August days, and seeing these recipes below, I know that I need to carry on her tradition, sweet tooth or no sweet tooth.
5 Jams that make me want to get jamming in the kitchen:
Tomato Jam with Rosemary Saffron | Recipe & Photo Courtesy of Michael Natkin | Herbivoracious.com
- Herbivoracious | Tomato Jam with Rosemary Saffron
- Reluctant Entertainer | Strawberry Raspberry Jam
- Savvy Eat | Strawberry Red Wine Jam
- Luna Cafe | Rhubarb Tangelo Cardamon Marmellata
- Non-Reactive Pan | Orange, Fig and Sage Chutney