VeganMoFoV [3]: Getting my Jam On

Jam Pantry

Franki the Kitchen Helper

I like how that title sounds very stiff and awkward, as if I were a robot, which is probably a lot like I’d say it in real life.

I haven’t left you, just been settling back in amid a lot of errand-running and camera return magic.  Tomorrow will be part one (wheat-free) of a post that I’ve been pretty excited to share for awhile now (part two will be gluten-free), involving some baking magic.  A new method, perhaps.  At least for many of you.  I won’t spoil the secret yet, but I will say that it could involve jam, if you wanted it to.

Which brings me to jam, and how I finally bought a huge canning pot so I could start putting things up.  I’m in the midst of researching how to do as much as possible from scratch/at home, like making tinctures and poultices, and sewing clothes, and learning to weave and knit.  Basically, I want to become my farmor (that’s “paternal grandmother” in Swedish, for those not in the know).  Canning seemed a good place to start.

While I haven’t canned nearly as much as I’d hoped to, I did get around to making some pretty tasty sugar-free jam using Pomona’s Pectin for the jelling magick.  A few varieties, actually: ginger-rhubarb-plum, cinnamon-ginger-black currant-rhubarb, cardamom-blueberry, Drottningsylt (aka “The Queen’s Blend”  - blueberries and raspberries), and peach-ginger.  If you’re going to learn canning, jam is a great way to start!  I traded some jam at a couple of the swaps, and also got some other people’s jam, including some of Kim’s low-sugar Gingery Plum-Apple Jam.  I have about five different jams in the fridge (including some storebought that I already had opened), which I’ve been spreading on toast and crispbread, often with a bit of almond butter.  Yum!  It’s a good thing I love jam, because I’ve got quite a bit in the cupboard.  And that’s after giving or trading away at least half of it.

A little peek into my kitchen wouldn’t be complete without a picture of my noisiest kitchen helper, Franki.  Or in other words, a gratuitous cat photo.  She’ll be helping me bake tomorrow morning, I’m sure.  And by bake I mean she’ll meow at me and put her paws up on my leg while I work.  Useless for baking, but useful for personal morale.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 6th, 2011 at 11:07 pm. It is filed under Veganmofo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.