The year-round availability of so many fresh fruits and vegetables in supermarkets and local food shops provides both attraction but also a certain sadness. The former that we can eat what we feel like when we feel like, no matter how exotic our taste might be. The latter that this ever-present availability robs us of the natural cycle ,linked to the seasons, that determines when apples are ripe and therefore to be eaten or that mandarin oranges are ready in their place of origin and soon on board a ship heading our way.
Although I am drawn to respecting the seasonality of food in general the ready availability does mean I can make certain jams whenever i feel like it.
Looking through Mrs Beeton's Jam-making & Preserves this recipe for Orange and Rhubarb Jam caught my attention. Here is how she does it:
Take 1 quart (2 pints/1.1 litres by volume) of finely-chopped rhubarb, 6 oranges and 1.5 lb. of preserving sugar.
Cut the rinds off the oranges into sections, remove and scrape off as much of the white pith as possible. Free the pulp from fibrous skin and pips, put it into a preserving pan, with the sugar, rhubarb and orange-rinds, previously finely shredded. Bring slowly to boiling point, skim well, and boil until the jam stiffens when tested on a cold plate. Cover closely and store in a cool, dry place.
That's it, as far as Mrs Beeton is concerned, but I will be completing the job and putting my jam into jars!
There are many more jam recipes in her book, over 40 in fact, from the unusual - banana jam, barberry jam - to the ever-popular strawberry jam.
Although I am drawn to respecting the seasonality of food in general the ready availability does mean I can make certain jams whenever i feel like it.
Looking through Mrs Beeton's Jam-making & Preserves this recipe for Orange and Rhubarb Jam caught my attention. Here is how she does it:
Take 1 quart (2 pints/1.1 litres by volume) of finely-chopped rhubarb, 6 oranges and 1.5 lb. of preserving sugar.
Cut the rinds off the oranges into sections, remove and scrape off as much of the white pith as possible. Free the pulp from fibrous skin and pips, put it into a preserving pan, with the sugar, rhubarb and orange-rinds, previously finely shredded. Bring slowly to boiling point, skim well, and boil until the jam stiffens when tested on a cold plate. Cover closely and store in a cool, dry place.
That's it, as far as Mrs Beeton is concerned, but I will be completing the job and putting my jam into jars!
There are many more jam recipes in her book, over 40 in fact, from the unusual - banana jam, barberry jam - to the ever-popular strawberry jam.
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