Edit – August 2017: I have omitted adding water to the blueberry preserves I made this year because I now prefer a much thicker preserve that is more like a runny jam. I have adjusted the recipe accordingly but you can certainly still add some water if you prefer a more runny syrup. I found that I ended up with one less jar than when I added water. I also now use 1/2 pint (250 ml) jars because we were wasting quite a bit because we didn’t use a whole pint of preserves quickly enough once a jar was opened. […]
Notes from my Freshman Canning Summer
Preserving is addictive. I started canning with a rhubarb jam that I had been thinking of and before I knew it I was ordering pound after pound of rhubarb from Bailey’s. When strawberry season hit, I knew I was in trouble. I made so much jam last summer that I sold a lot of it at a Christmas craft and jewelry get together that my mom held at the end of November. I remember being in the kitchen sweating over my stove berating myself about why I have bought so much fruit and then ordering more the next day. I […]
Blueberry Maple Ice Cream
I bought an ice cream maker earlier this week and I have now discovered what will replace last month’s obsession with making jam. I bought the ice cream maker out of the goodness of my heart because my husband is going gluten free for a little while and also giving up beer, so I thought I would give him a treat. I continue to enjoy a cold beer now and then on our newly minted patio and I felt bad for him that he couldn’t have a treat. The ice cream maker that I got is a Cuisinart that I […]