Happy New Year! May it be a good one for all……..I’m beginning mine without hot water which is a challenge I did not want! The 25 year old electric hot water service died a couple of days ago, flooding my garage in the process. Simeon the friendly plumber reckons that is a great age for such a device, and promises that the new one which he will install on Friday will not last as long. In the meantime I shall shower at a friends place.
My dear departed Mother was a jam maker of the first order, annually she made raspberry and apricot jam, and in winter, the best marmalade ever from Seville oranges. I don’t think she would have ever bought jam unless in desperation when the panty was empty of her own. I don’t remember my Ma being much of a pickle or chutney eater, but her jams were excellent and Christmas jam making was part of the family tradition. I don’t often make jam – I would only eat it on bread with slathers of butter……but this year I have. A small amount of blackcurrants was transformed into a couple of jars of what one might call coulis – delicious on icecream, there is nectarine jam to use up what fruit was left from my chutney making, and today I picked 4 lbs of raspberries and now have 9 jars of various sizes of delicious real raspberry jam. I guess my kids might get a small jar each but the rest will be all mine!
I miss an Aunt who made jams not available commercially like Apple Jelly and Quince Jelly. We do not eat enough jam to warrant making any but with the glut of lemons I have at the moment I will be making lemon butter (curd) tomorrow if it is a bit cooler. Thank you for a grreat blog.
Kudos to anyone who can make a good jam, including your mom. Jam isn’t easy to make. I know this because I make it and I’ve never had an “excellent” batch. Just “good enough.” It may be the recipes I’m using, or it may just be that I’m lousy at it, but if it doesn’t jell enough we just put it (strawberry mostly) on top of ice-cream. How can that not be good, right?
Sorry about your water-heater. I read somewhere that appliances have a “built-in” life. They are made to break. It’s an economy thing. Like the garbage disposal in this new/old house. It’s old and looks like it’s built like a Sherman tank.
I used to make jam for my kids when they were small, I do love a homemade jam or jelly must admit. I used to make summer fruit ones with odds and ends of fruit and it was a real joy to eat. Id use nectarines, apricots, strawberries, red or black currants, rasps, plums…………whatever was around or reduced in the shop at the time.
The kids would have spoon of jam in rice pudd in winter as well as toast and jam……….it was me who liked bread and jam but guess that goes back to my own childhood in the 50s when bread and jam was the ‘go to’ if you were hungry!
Good luck with the new water heater………..yes am sure they dont make machineries that well any more! I often think they build in a ‘time out’ in new electricals so we have go buy new ones every 5 or 6 years! Or am I being cynical? lol
Happy New Year Sue : )
Yes, my mother also made vast quantities of jam and my father ate vast quantities of bread and jam. Then my mother said she was too old and I had to take over. When my father died I thought I could retire as I don’t eat jam myself being a vegemite girl, but my husband had learnt to like jam, so I am still making it. At least these days I don’t get into as big a sticky mess as I used to!
How divine. My Mother was the same, give her two oranges and in two winks there was the marmalade. It was the era I think.
Happy New Year to you. One day we may catch up. Di.