There's something about hanging out with a flat of fresh Michigan strawberries all day that makes it hard not to sing the Beatles. No other fruit in the world makes me happier than a fresh June strawberry, preferably grown less than 75 miles away.
So, I've been trying to learn more about growing seasons of garden fruits and vegetables lately, in hopes of someday having a patch of of my own that's not completely blocked from the sun. (Our backyard is a pathetic postage stamp of dirt 100% overshadowed by our neighbor's acidic-leaf-producing oak tree. I'm a little mad about it.) When I'm at the Fulton St. Farmer's Market, I ask the grower how much longer the fruit or vegetable I'm buying will be in season. Mom and I can stuff, and I mostly want to know how much longer baby cukes, squash or hungarian peppers are going to be in season so I can freeze or pickle them.
When I asked the strawberry vendor how much longer his crop would last, he said two weeks. Two weeks! Then I realize that this is why my ancestors canned and sugared all their fruits and vegetables. To hold onto them long after they've gone out of season and their freshness is only a memory.
So I figured this year I'd make my grandmother Marjorie's strawberry freezer jam. Strawberry freezer jam is the tastiest jam ever invented, as anyone who's had homemade strawberry freezer jam can attest to. I handed my friend Matt a 1/2 pint jar of it on Saturday and he promptly lectured me about how his mom's strawberry freezer jam, and the jam in general, is the best jam ever. Period. So sweet and bright.
As it turns out, it's terribly easy to make, too. This is how it goes:
Wash, hull, cut, food process, add sugar, add pectin, put in can, put in freezer.
Easy! Just look at how pretty they are.
The strawberries on the right are a different variety than the ones on the left, which are Allstars (I think). The strawberries on the right were lighter and firmer and nicely tart while still having a very sweet flavor. I made jam out of the tart strawberries, and it turned out delicious.
Recipe:
Makes about 10 pints.
5 cups fresh strawberries, hulled blended coarsely.
7 cups sugar
2 1.75 oz pectin packages
1 1/2 cups water
Glass canning jars, lids and mouths. Wash the jars and lids in hot, soapy water and dry while canning.
Mix the blended strawberries with the sugar and let sit for at least 10 minutes. Mix the pectin into the water cold then bring to a boil. After it thickens, boil 1 minute, then pour into the jam. Let the pectin sit with the strawberries for another 3 minutes, then place in the clean jars. Seal, let cool and freeze!
Washing strawberries in the sink. So pretty!
I heart my food processor.
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