How to Make Free Jam: Who's a Hippy Now?!

Last night I answered the doorbell to find Grant with a giant sack of fruit that he and Tim had foraged earlier in the day from Berkeley Hills. There were cape gooseberries, cherries, loquats, as well as a few pesky earwigs in the mix. We tapped a keg of the famous Duncan Street homebrew (a heffenweizen) and took to the arduous task of jaming. The trick to procuring a tastey spread is to carfully de-pit each fruit so the seeds do not leave a woody flavor in mixture. Once pitted, we mashed the fruits, added sugar (not very much - we like it tangy!), threw in some beets to enhance the color, then stirred it at a boil for a while until thick. Just pour the sauce into jars et voila!


1) forrage fruit!


2) mash


3) remove pits


4) add sugar


5) boil and stir


6) jars!

Though not well documented on this here blog, the last few months have been somewhat transformative for me in terms of my relationship with food (cliche!). The combination of several elements have brought me to this point: the switch to a vegetarian diet in January, my room mates' extensive and inspiring adventures with vegan cooking, the semi-weekly dinner parties on Treat Street that have afforded me my own adventures with natural/organic cooking, easy access to Rainbow. It's a noted departure from the life long disordered eating habits of former self. Last night Kristin recalled that when they first moved in our freezer was so stuffed with Lean Cuisines that there wasn't enough room for the compost bag. Now I can whip up a carcass-free multicoarse meal for eight plus dessert in no time! California is making me soft.