A Neighborly Jam Session with NY State Apples and Vermont Maple Syrup

This is my absolute last jam session of 2013.  I mean it. I don’t have enough room on my pantry shelves for all the jam I’ve produced, and I haven’t even shared every recipe with you. You have no idea the extent of this obsession. Scary. 

I keep telling myself, “They’ll make great gifts for the holidays.” 

I must admit I’ve been enticed by the signs in the grocery stores for “New York State Apples.” Even the big supermarket chains have taken on the language of local food. So I pick up a “tote” of New York State Gala apples.  

The New York State “Apple Country” website describes the Gala as a juicy variety developed in New Zealand, that is mild and sweet in flavor with crisp, creamy yellow flesh. New Zealand, huh?  So the “local” connection may be a little spurious after all, but it’s probably a good bet they were grown in New York soil.

Many of my jam projects are predicated on what’s in the pantry – and I’ve been holding a bottle of Vermont Maple Syrup from Top Acres Farm in South Woodstock that I purchased last autumn during a visit to the Billings Farm Museum.  

The Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving completes the jam session with a recipe for Apple-Maple Jam.   It sounds like a nice way to preserve the flavors of autumn well into the cruel, cold winter.   And it’s a perfect mash up, or should we say, “jam up” of two neighboring states – the Empire State and the Green Mountain State. 

The biggest part of the job is chopping the apples, as the recipe requires 3 quarts of chopped fruit.

This is the second time I’ve tried a recipe that doesn’t call for adding pectin. You cook down the fruit until it releases its own pectin naturally.  

The mixture looks like a big apple stew.  It is rich with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and allspice. 

I’m not sure I actually cook it long enough get to the jelling point.  Despite the use of a candy thermometer, I can’t quite seem to get the jam to the “soft ball” temperature.  I stand over the pot for what seems like an eternity, and start to feel a bit like a kitchen drudge. 

After boiling the jam within an inch of its life, I give up and decide to go ahead and process the jam. 

The kitchen smells like a Vermont Maple Syrup House on Thanksgiving Day, and the chunks of apples hang suspended like little jewels in the maple jam. 

So what if it’s a little syrupy in the end?  I can always use it on top of pancakes or waffles. Better yet – how about atop a scoop of vanilla ice cream? That would be awesome. The key thing about jamming, is you just have to be flexible. 

Here’s the recipe from the “Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving,” in case you want to try your luck at reaching the “gelling point.”  Something about that phrase sounds vaguely scandalous.  As always, be sure to follow proper canning and food safety procedures.

Apple-Maple Jam  (Yield: about 8 half pints) 

3 quarts chopped, peeled, cored apples

6 cups sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon allspice

½ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cloves

1 cup maple syrup

Combine ingredients in a large pot and slowly bring to boil.  Cook rapidly to gelling point. As jam thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking. Remove from heat and skim foam if necessary.  Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner. 

©2013 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved

Carrot Cake Jam From the Field to the Jar

I once had a friend who believed that carrot cake was an acceptable choice on any diet, since technically it is a vegetable.  I’m not sure Carrot Cake Jam exactly qualifies as a vegetable, but what goes into the jar was harvested in the field and it sure tastes a lot like the cake after which it is named.  

The final pickup of the 2013 season at Restoration Farm features crisp, sunny carrots that sparkle in the morning light. The splash of bright orange color immediately catches the eye.  

Root vegetables personify the heartiest traits of the farm, drawing their earthy flavor directly from the elements of soil and water that comprises the land.  

Perhaps it is my need to extend the season that prompts me to – once again – organize a weekend canning project. This recipe for Carrot Cake Jam intrigues me.  The jam evokes tradition, and the flavors of Carrot Cake a touch of nouveau cuisine. 

Grated carrots, chopped pears and canned pineapple are simmered with sugar, pectin and warm autumn seasonings – cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.  I’ll be able to enjoy the sweet carrots of Restoration Farm for some time to come.  

By now, my canning skills are practically instinctive, which was a goal of mine for the season. Once hesitant to tackle home preserving, it now comes quite naturally.  

Here’s the rub with jam.  You actually can’t sample the fruit of your labor until the job is complete – the jam is just too hot.   But, the aroma is rich and inviting, and a pretty clear indicator of success.  

The delectable spread packed into the jars is chunky and sweet, and the house indeed smells like warm Carrot Cake is baking in the oven. 

A slice of homemade bread spread with cream cheese and Carrot Cake Jam on a bracing autumn afternoon will assure that the flavors and textures of Restoration Farm continue to delight the senses. 

©2013 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved 

Guilt and the Green Pepper Jelly

Many predicted it would happen, but I didn’t believe it.  Now, I realize I should have seen it coming.  

I am now canning everything.

A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.   For years I was afraid of canning, but a Restoration Farm workshop last winter gave me the confidence I needed to start canning at home.  After that, it was a casual hobby – some apple butter, some blueberry jam.  I was proud of the results.   I even designed my own labels.  (Note to self – designing your own labels for anything is the first sign of a problem)  

Then, I started shopping in order to can. I would scour the farmers market for anything that might look good in a jar. The Peach Preserves were silky, and the Cinnamon Pear Jam heavenly. A fresh herb jelly using basil and parsley from my own garden was perhaps the zenith of sustainability.  

Canning is a big project.  Even if you let the canner air dry after you are done, it’s a big time investment. I finally decided I would take a Sunday off – a little canning “time out.”

But, green peppers and guilt did me in. Restoration Farm has produced a bumper crop of bell peppers, jalapeños and other specialty peppers this season. I kept staring at that mountain of peppers. Guilt is a huge emotion when you’re a member of a CSA. I could not let one more green pepper rot in the crisper. So, I reached for the canning cookbook. 

Green pepper jelly looks like something served for brunch in the wonderful Land of Oz.  A heap of bell peppers are pulverized along with two jalapeños in the food processor. Then, you let the pepper juice strain from the puree, and cook the juice along with sugar, vinegar and pectin. 

The interim color is a bit muddy, but a couple of drops of green food coloring perk it right up.  

The result is a sweet and savory jam with just a touch of warmth from the jalapeño. 

Guilt averted. I’m thinking a little green pepper jelly with a bagel and cream cheese will really jump start breakfast.  

The head grower at Restoration Farm, Caroline Fanning was very understanding when I confessed my obsession to her.

“Hold the phone,” she said.  “Have you made chutney?  If you haven’t made chutney, you haven’t canned everything.”  She’s very kind, but I can see the writing on the wall. 

A short while back, I met another obsessive canner at a community dinner.  Heather was perfectly charming, but all the signs were there. She let drop that she owns a pressure canner and several people at the dinner were raving about her Carrot Cake Jam.  She actually sells her preserves at the farmers market.  

The subtext was clear.  Boiling-water canning is for amateurs.  Pressure canning is the big time. Heather casually mentioned, with a tempting gleam in her eye, that this is a good time of year to buy a pressure canner because they are often on sale.  

Well, I don’t need much encouragement to make a purchase.  I’ve already started comparison-shopping.  No doubt canning my own tuna – and a whole lot of therapy – is in my future.  

©2013 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved

A Peachy Jam

Saturday To-Do List:

1) Visit neighborhood farmers market early before it gets too hot; purchase best selection of ripe peaches.

2) Admire and adore the color and texture of the peaches, even if we don't know exactly where they came from, and farmer is kind of vague about their origin. Contemplate how their lovely blush color seems so iridescent in the sunlight.  

3) Resolve to hang on to that peachy summer goodness as long as possible.

4) Peal and chop peaches fine and add lemon juice and a ton of sugar.

5) Simmer mixture on stove until it looks a bit like corn chowder.

6) Add liquid pectin and raise heat until mixture turns amber gold, and is the viscosity of warm honey. Inhale and appreciate how entire kitchen smells like warm peach pie.  

7) Affirm that personal canning skills remain in tip top shape. Fill rustic mason jars with hot peach syrup and process in a boiling water canning bath.  

8)  Listen for popping sound to assure that vacuum seal has been achieved.   

9)  Cut a thick slice of artisan bread and slather with gooey, golden  peach jam.  Marvel at fact that summer flavors and memories can be savored well into the winter months.   

© 2013 T.W. Barritt All Rights Reserved