Blog Archive

Sunday, July 08, 2012

Jam is in My Genes....


I have to make it every now and then.  Sort of like the Salmon returning to the place they were born.  It hits me during a dream or a moment of weakness.  It starts out with the urge to obtain large quantities of fruit.  So much that you know it could never be consumed by a family of 20.

This year I had the urge and inclination to do apricot jam. I am not certain about my crop of grapes and this is something that I can do while we are home.   Amber, mother of Allie, our favorite Relapse Sister, brought me two boxes of apricots.  We met them on Friday at the hospital for the exchange.  So I brought them home and found that they were not as ripe as they appeared.  They were so perfect and beautiful but need a couple more days before they are really really ready.

I gathered the jars and the sugar (when did 10 lbs of sugar start to cost $8.50? and then started to look for some sort of special recipe.  French, Texan, Ohio, SureJell.  Much to my surprise most apricot jam recipes do not require pectin.  They have enough in their skins to do the job.  Most just take time, and boiling and candy thermometers.  About 30 to 45 minutes.  Even when you do everything right, it does not always come out the way you expect.  I might be gifting Apricot Sauce for Christmas not jam.

Two batches are done.  They turn out great if you just look at them.  Until the cooling and setting happens there is no real way to tell.  They are really pretty and it is so much fun to see them accumulate.  OHHHH, I just heard to sealing “POP”.  Love that sound.  I will be getting pretty good at this over the next week.  A couple of batches a day.  Little batches, lots of stirring. Lots of sticky for Lily to clean up.  Maybe it will be my morning ritual or take place of my afternoon nap. 

Maybe I am making jam right now because it takes time.  It cannot be rushed and it has to be attended to with care.  The middle is not much fun but the end result is wonderful. 

Maybe I can find one more batch of ripe apricots…..

No comments: