Edible Preservation - Strawberries Eternal
Written by Harriet Fasenfest
For Summer 2007
WALKING THROUGH THE BACKYARD IN SPRING fills me with giddy anticipation. Flowering strawberries stand tall and promise full glory in June. Every year I harvest the crop and every year it produces ever more strawberries. What started out as a sensible patch has grown into something a little less so, but then a certain degree of overzealousness is to blame.
In the early years of my marriage, I would do anything to please my stepson and strawberries seemed the way—they are his favorite fruit. Imagining an appreciative, curly-haired boy walking barefoot through patches of glistening strawberries, I planted large patches of three different varieties: Shuksans, Bentons, and Tristars. Though I still love my patches, I would advise any erstwhile backyard farmer of the following:
• A few strawberry plants go a long way; be patient lest you like to divide and conquer.
• Kids grow up. That curly-haired child is now a teenager with limited interest in the garden (evidently, weeding seems to diminish the joy for some.)
• Freezing excess berries for winter jam making is not only a solution, but a darn good one.
I recently made jam using frozen berries and it tasted just as wonderful as making it with fresh berries. And, as an added plus, it filled the kitchen with warmth and lovely fragrances. It’s a great help should you be short of time, but follow the guide for proper freezing methods. And whether using frozen or fresh berries, there are some jam making tips you should know to understand the science of jam and jelly making.
In the discussion on pectin in the Spring 2007 issue of Edible Portland, I mentioned that all fruits have varying degrees of the three things necessary for jam making—sugar, acid, and pectin. Since strawberries are low in acid and pectin, almost all strawberry jam recipes will call for them. Lemon juice is typically added for acid, while pectin can be added in a number of ways.
You can combine your strawberries with other high pectin fruits like currants, add homemade pectin, use commercial pectin* (our favorite is definitely Pomona Brand) or, as in old-fashioned jam recipes, extend the cooking time to reduce the liquid and concentrate the pectin. There is also the small-batch method that works to gel your final product by using a wide pan to reduce liquid quickly. Again, “small batch” means just that—appropriate for small amounts and not the mountains you overzealously picked.
* With regard to boxed pectins (other than Pomona), unless you like a really sweet jam, do not be persuaded to use them. They were developed for commercial jam making and rely on high sugar content for gelling. According to the Joy of Cooking, “(commercial) pectin manufacturers suggest a proportion as high as 60% sugar to 40% juice or pulp for homemade jams. They point out as advantages greater yield, less loss of liquid and speed of preparation, since only a minute or two of cooking is needed after adding the sugar.” Preserve, like the Joy of Cooking, does not consider these factors a good enough incentive since the results will be overly sweet.
OLD-FASHIONED STRAWBERRY JAM
SMALL BATCH FRESH STRAWBERRY JAM
STRAWBERRY-CURRANT JAM
STRAWBERRY JAM WITH FROZEN BERRIES AND HOMEMADE PECTIN
HOMEMADE PECTIN STOCK
Harriet Fasenfest, along with her partner Marge Braker, teaches classes in home food preservation at Preserve. Visit www.portlandpreserve.com.
