Preserving the Season at Its Peak

Try these three methods to capture the essence of summer fruit in jams and jellies.

There’s almost no way around the fact that making preserves is a process. But for me that’s what is so enjoyable about it. I am, to a fault, a process person. I revel in precision and attention to detail — these are my superpowers. They’re why I’m drawn to making preserves. In returning to the tradition each year, I have found that I’m always seeking the same thing: to capture memories of farm visits, perfect produce and the season’s warmth in small glass jars. Whether it consumes half an hour or a few days, I know I’ll end up with great jams and jellies to adorn a few slices of buttered toast, a bowl of ice cream or a meaty roast. I’ll also have a way to share my experiences through my joyful end-of-summer preserving. My husband once asked, after I had cooked and canned a market haul of quinces into nearly two dozen jars, if we had more jars of jam than friends and family to give them to. The answer: Never! Homemade preserves make delightful gifts for those we love — a little something to drop off, ship out or offer on visits. To make preserves, you need fruit, sugar, acid and pectin, which thickens when activated by heat to set the resulting preserves. Pectin is found in most fruits, especially in their skins and seeds. Fruits high in pectin, including stone fruits, guava, figs, apples, pears and citrus, will thicken naturally when simmered. For low-pectin fruits like berries, and no-cook jams, the addition of store-bought powdered pectin is crucial. Because pectin levels among fruits will vary, it’s important to rely on instructional guides from pectin packages if you’re substituting one fruit for another or using a blend of two or more.