The Blue Chair Fruit Company and My Best-tasting Strawberry Jam

Three weeks ago, I dropped in on a demo of jammaking by the owner of Blue Chair Fruit Company herself, Rachel Saunders.  This was a serendipitous encounter, as I had browsed around my favorite jam websites that morning and was surprised to find that a Williams-Sonoma store was featuring Rachel, her new cookbook, and a demo that very afternoon. I hopped on the PATH and was there.

My copy is autographed by Rachel.

  Rachel is a slim stylish woman who has a warm personality and a fountain of knowledge about making fruit preserves. She started her own business, Blue Chair Fruit Company in Oakland CA, making artisanal products with organic local ingre-dients. She adheres closely to those ideals, and so forgoes pineapples and other non native fruit. Lucky for lovers of her marmalade, California is a grower of citrus and the Bay area has many organic farms.

  As I stood watching her make pure strawberry jam, she explained her methods and answered my questions. Most impressive thing about it was the 

Photo credit: Blue Chair Fruit. com

huge copper jam pot boiling away at a very high foaming boil. Rachel said she has 6 of these pans going at once in her commercial kitchen. That speaks to her organization and stamina in addition to the hand filling, processing, labeling etc. that goes along with it. Jam making is hot stuff!

  I couldn’t help but think that without the added pectin, this boiling mixture of strawberries, sugar and lemon juice, would end up sticky and overcooked, with large pieces of floating fruit. Well, I was wrong (of course –who has the cookbook and whose jars are sold at Williams Sonoma, and who is giving the demo !?!) . The fruit mixture changed before my eyes, from a juicy soup of individual berries, to a richly colored, thick spread where the fruit has disintegrated and become, well, jam. The jell texture is soft, not stiff, and the flavor is fresh and sincere. Now I have a better way for making jams – freed from the constraints of the box of pectin, its generic recipes with too much sugar. Yay!

June jams: strawberry pineapple; strawberry vanilla;
strawberry preserves; strawberry lemon; strawberry
 balsamic peppercorn, and plain strawberry

Some of her tips:  Macerate the fruit with sugar for several hours or overnight. This aids in drawing out the juice.  Cook in a wide deep pot, a wide sloping pan lets the mixture evaporate more quickly. Measure fruit and sugar by weight. Add fresh squeezed lemon juice gradually and don't let the flavor of lemon become pronounced. The yield will be less than when made with pectin because there is less sugar added and the longer cooking reduces the water in the jam. Stir well so fruit doesn't stick.
My last batch of strawberry jam was made without pectin according to her method, though without the copper pot. From 3 lbs of berries, I made five 8oz jars of lovely red jam which has a sweet tart fruity flavor. I am going to enter this batch in the Middlesex County Fair in August - and I bet I'll win the blue ribbon. 

The Jersey City Farmers' Market Exploration, #2, Grove Street

Cafe' tables and wine, anyone?

Open Mon and Thurs 4-8 pm

            








This market is set up on a small plaza at the centrally located Grove Street Path station in the historic downtown section of Jersey City. The city has provided the vendors with nice shady decorated canopies which lends an organized air amid the busy and crowded commuter atmosphere. With the paved space bordered by new and old buildings, the variety of stands and customers, and the planters, lampposts and bicycles, the Grove St market almost has an Italian piazza vibe - missing are the outdoor cafe' tables.  I think there should be a special “market transfer” pass for the public on the bus and PATH trains. Wouldn't it be great
if a commuter could stop at this Farmer’s Market, shop and then continue on home without being charged the extra $2? 

Sara's is handcrafted in Jersey City

Inter- Modal Node

 I counted more than 20 vendors,Made with Love organic bakery, Sara's Saucy Salsa,  Stella’s Argentina empanadas, lemonade stand, funnel cakes, pickles/olives, specialty dog biscuits, barbeque, and ready made meals to go.  
Stony Hill Farm Market of Chester NJ and Ort Farms of Long Valley NJ are definitely the big draw. Both have big tents filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, honey, and baked goods. They participate in the state's successful Jersey Fresh program,marketing produce grown in New Jersey.

Also in Edison on Sunday mornings

 In answering my question about the suspiciously summery veggies of tomato, cucumber and squash, Stony Hill's manager told me that the tomatoes are grown in their onsite greenhouses, the cucumbers and squash are brought up from a friend's farm in South Jersey where the season is a couple weeks ahead. In fact Stony Hill Farm cultivates 500 acres including some grain and hay in addition to these gorgeously colored cauliflower.  

Imagine a jar of mixed cauliflower pickle

The strawberry season has been prolific for them and I bought 4 quarts of just ripened berries which are destined for a simple strawberry jam. If this batch turns out excellent, it's destined for the county fair. It is made over two days, and is much better for it.


Plain and Simple Strawberry Jam
4 pounds fresh local strawberries, 2- 3/4 pounds sugar, 4 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1 pouch of liquid pectin. Shop for the berries and the same day, wash them well, remove the green caps, and gently crush them to release some juice. Add the sugar and the lemon juice to the crush and stir very well. Cover and place in the refrigerator. The next day, gather the jars, lids, utensils and water bath canner, and the pectin; get them ready. Now, Important: divide the strawberry mixture into two equal parts so you can cook them in two small batches-use a scale or measuring cups to make accurate division.  Taste the mixture for a balance of sweet and tart. Put one half in a stock pot and increase the heat to bring it to a rapid boil. Let it boil, foaming, stirring every minute, for about 10 minutes, and you will notice that the mixture is slightly darker in color and the juice is becoming syrupy. Reduce the heat to low, and skim off the foam. Add One-Half packet of liquid pectin stirring to dissolve well. Raise the heat again and boil the jam for one minute longer. Turn off the heat and continue stirring and scraping the bottom for 3 or 4 minutes until the steam released diminishes noticeably. The jam should have a shiny red color and a texture. Test for jell. Fill the jars, wipe the rims, adjust the lids. Repeat with the half set aside- it does take more time, but your jam will be sure to set. Process ten minutes in a water bath canner for 8oz jars.

The Jersey City Farmers' Markets Exploration, #1 Hamilton Park

Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association

The Hamilton Park Neighborhood Association has designed this farmers market as a fun destination inside the refurbished Hamilton Park in JC's historic downtown. The park has a playground, dog run, tennis court, green space, and gardens, so the fresh market really attracts a crowd of friendly neighbors and foodies. Among the food vendors are my friends: Made with Love Organic Bakery, Saucy Sara's Salsa, plus many more booths offering flowers, empanada, olives, lemonade,  fresh mozzarella, a pizza truck, knife sharpener, to explore. 

Stony Hill Farm Market rolls its truck right in and sets up a large display of tempting vegetables, herbs and fruits. Chatting with the big guy, I learn that they've been growing strawberries for 8 years or so, and that the recent hot humid weather has not been damaging to the berries at all. In fact, under irrigation, the crop is very good. In order to supply the daily schedule of local markets, the farm plants its crops in weekly succession, so they can harvest at the peak throughout the summer and fall. Interestingly, strawberries can be protected from an unexpected late frost by spraying them with water which freezes over the blossoms, rather like what citrus orchards do for oranges.

One quart equals 1-1/2 pounds

Strawberries are the first fruit of the season in the northeast and I am hoping that you will join me in making jams and pickles. Let's have a warm up session and make a batch of Strawberry Vanilla Jam, over 3 days and doing a little bit each day. We'll make one small batch starting with 1 quart of berries and yielding 4 half pint jars.
Day 1 - buy your supplies: a 5 lb bag of sugar; one vanilla bean; a package of liquid or dry pectin; a 
box (one dozen) half pint canning jars and lids; a lemon or two; 2 essential canning tools the jar lifter and a large mouth funnel. Wash 4 jars and lids in the dishwasher and set them upside down on a clean towel, ready to go. Time: half hour in the grocery store.

Strawberry Vanilla jam 

Day 2 - shop for fresh locally grown berries. buy 1 quart (1-1/2 lbs) for making the jam and -more for strawberry shortcake, ice cream, etc. Wash the berries very well and trim the leaves and slice in quarters resulting in 3-1/2 to 4 cups. Place the prepared berries in a non-reactive bowl and add the vanilla bean, and 1 cup sugar. Mix well, cover and refrigerate overnight. Time: half hour at the farmers' market, half hour of food prep.
Day 3 - put on your apron. Measure 2 and 1/2 cups sugar, squeeze the lemon for 2 Tbsp juice. Heat four jars in the canner or in the oven if not processing and put four lids and rings in a small pan- cover with hot water.

Heating the jars

Now remove the vanilla bean, then crush the berries with a potato masher. Add them to the stockpot or large kettle along with the sugar and lemon juice. Bring up the heat slowly stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Raise the heat to get a very rapid boil. Watch out for splatters and keep stirring for about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the pectin ( half a pouch or half a dry package, because we have only 1 qt fruit). incorporate the pectin and raise the heat again for a rapid boil. Count one minute, reduce the heat and test for jelling. Turn off the heat and stir for another 3 minutes to distribute the fruit and diminish the foam. Skim off the foam and using the funnel, ladle the very hot jam into the hot jars. Wipe the rims carefully with a damp towel and top each with a lid and ring.
Process them in a water bath or steam canner for 10 minutes; cool and test the lids to see whether the jars are sealed. Or if you are not processing, then you will have to store them in the refrigerator. Time: about an hour, or less if not processing.
This recipe is from the blog "Food in Jars" a few changes by me, and I want to give credit to the author Marisa McClellan. She has written a cookbook, and I follow her blog.
So for about 2 hours time, you have four jars of a unique and tasty topping for scones, toast, poundcake and ice cream. Mmmmm. Overall, very good, but it turned out a little stiff like jelly. Adding the pectin here would be optional if you'd like a softer spoonable jam as a result.