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Lately, I have been on a jam kick. Or is it jelly? Maybe it’s preserves??
Whatever it is, I don’t mean sterilize 15 jars and buy huge quantities of one type of fruit and spend all day in the kitchen over a pot of gurgling, fruity syrup and a big stock pot of water, kind of “jam kick”. I mean the make a small saucepot of one basket of fruit, maybe some fun spices, and keep it for a couple of weeks in the fridge, kind of “jam kick”.
I don’t have the time nor the patience for spending an entire day making preserves to last me for nine months.
I have incredible respect and find it amazingly talented to be the kind of person to make “real jam”. I’m just not that person.
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I have tried to be that kind of person before. I spent tons of money buying flats and flats of fruit. I spent all day in the kitchen stewing berries, sterilizing jars and lids, bring huge pots of water to a boil.
The pop of the jars as they create their vacuum seal is really pleasing to the senses and invokes an amazing sense of accomplishment. Everyone should try it for that simple sound of success!
However, for me, that sound of success leads to cupboards filled with jams I never use, nor giveaway, taking up space. By the time I open up a jar to enjoy it, I’m so afraid of botulism that it was best never to have been done in the first place.
I find, for my personality, creating one little jar every few weeks of whatever might be in season is the perfect way for me to have the joy of making “jam”… as well as the pleasure of eating it without have to spend 24 hours waiting for paralysis to set in.
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I like very flavorful jams. A few weeks ago, I shared my recipe for a five spice peach jam…. which is a delicious blend of peppery spices with sweet fruits. This one is fun, too… figs, balsamic vinegar, vanilla, sugar and just a pinch of salt.
This one is good… like really, really good.
Like so good I bought more figs. So good that I might actual process some of them in a big vat of boiling water so that I can have them on some toast in the middle of winter.
Do you think a jam can actually make you shift a long standing personality trait?
I guess we will see….
Fig Jam Recipe Card <<— click here for pdf recipe card
You’re really amazing! How do you come up with stuff like this? What spices go together and what brings out the flavor. It’s science. I would never think of fruit, balsamic vinegar and spices together. I would just eat the fruit by itself and think that’s it but you, you’re thinking beyond the fruit or whatever you have in your hands and make some amazing dish! Thank goodness for creative geniuses like you!
YUMMY!!!!
Oh I love the photos in this post. Figs are such photogenic little darlings, aren’t they? I’m absolutely with you on making just a bit of jam, as you need it, when the mood strikes etc. It keeps us in the moment perhaps?
This screams eat me with creamy chèvre! Yum. Would be gorgeous with a good pecorino on toast for breakfast or spooned over Bircher too.
Hallo! I’ve just gotten a whole bag of fresh & rip figs and am desperate to make this jam in order to make the balsamic fig cake of yours. What, then, is a “basket” of figs, since they aren’t sold like that by me? Also, this “non-reactive” pan stuff sounds scary- basically…a saucepan that doesn’t talk back? I have a really old saucepan…does that count? :p Thanks, can’t wait!
Hello… I believe a basket of figs is about 8oz or half a pound. Also, some pans will react chemically with food, most commonly, aluminum or copper. Anything stainless steel, which is what most pans are made with now, will be fine. I hope that helps… tell me how it goes! rwt
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