Harvest for Friends

Canning is a tradition relatively new to my family. About 6 years. We have stuck mostly with making jams and applesauce. Of course, each batch has something unique to it such as plum and rhubarb to create Plumbarb. Or golden plums with ginger to createFiets of Love. Pears and apples for A Perfect Pair. The batches are small, usually one or two so that every time I open a jar, it is something new. As much as I love the idea of preserving food for future use, I do not want the experience to be one of repetition.

This year, with a solid plum crop, we set out to create jams for friends--something you could use on scones over winter break, or as a daily spread with peanut butter or on toast. The jam can be as decadent or simple as you choose to use it.

To the left is the Sunbeam mixer that we use. It is old. I do not use it for baking. I have another mixer for that. However, there is a pleasure that I get from hauling this relic up to the kitchen and using it for chopping and grinding the fruit for boiling.

The kitchen becomes a place of creation. The jars are cleaned and boiled, set aside to dry. Steaming pans of water sit atop the stove for lids, and one large pot collects the chopped fruit and other ingredients for the batch.

I don an apron, lay out the wooden spoons, and turn up the volume of my music--speed metal and canning go great together.

When we moved into our Williams Avenue house in Portland, Oregon, a selling feature was the entry way, not the scraggly plum tree on the side yard. This fruit tree was poorly pruned, and when it was pruned, it was clearly done incorrectly; half of the tree came from one branch. Over the years I have pruned, sculpted, and encouraged the tree to grow into a tree that adds to the side yard visually. But it is the fruit that has kept it in the side yard regardless of how it looks. It grows good fruit.

I did not label the jars of jam except for the QR code to link you to this post. I hope you enjoy the mystery. In any case, what you have in your hands is love preserved with fruit. From my family to yours, enjoy the joys of the harvest.

Ps. if you want to return the jars, we can fill them up again.