Strawberries are a wonder out here. Most of the country’s supply of strawberries comes from the West Coast, and I think they gain a lot from not having to be transported across the continent.
I happened to have a huge amount of them left over from a barbecue. People dove into the chips and cupcakes and whatever else, but nobody touched the fruit. I thought to myself, “If only there were some way to ‘preserve’ these berries before they went south…”
First, stem and pit your strawberries, then crush them up. Add 2 parts sugar to your one part fruit. Then add some pectin dissolved in almost-boiling water…and you have a super simple jam! (Here’s an exact recipe.)
But I seem to recall from Mrs. Beeton’s that making jam is more complicated than that? Don’t you have to boil your jam jars to make sure you don’t get botulism? Well, normally, yes. But the above recipe is a basic “freezer jam.” Less complex, but also less convenient. This freezer jam needs to be kept in the freezer until you’re ready to thaw it out and use it. When not in the freezer, it should be in the fridge.
Remember: Only *YOU* can fight bacteria.
Food Stamp Feast! 