Notes: We went raspberry picking on Sunday at Hutchinson Farm in Burlington. It's late in the season, but we still managed to harvest enough to eat out of hand and make a batch of jam. In the evening, I followed Harold McGee's advice for prolonging the life of berries and gave them a quick hot water bath. I set out the heated fruit on a paper lined tray and put it in the fridge to dry off.
The next evening, some of the berries stuck to the paper, some of them were a bit mushy, some of them had black spots, but all in all, they looked okay. I crushed four cups of berries, and added some diced plums and peaches as well to get the required amount. These last two fruit weren't exactly ripe so they stayed firm throughout the cooking process. I somehow forgot to add sugar before canning, so I labelled this whole batch "sour". Instead of apple juice, I used some Beaujolais wine from a leftover bottle to add a sophisticated note.
The raspberry flavour is exquisite, and I'm pleased to have made a batch using fruit that Dr. S and I picked. Mixed with maple syrup, this will make a great topping for pancakes and waffles.
Leave a comment