Sunday, May 10, 2009

spring in full swing

Rhubarb is here, spring is in full swing, and I'm ready to start making jam. I should be outside working in the garden, but surely one of the greatest joys of having one's own garden is the time spent in the kitchen getting to know the harvest - and I still have a lot to get to know about rhubarb. I don't yet grow rhubarb in my own patch, but it is readily available at local farmer's markets and some grocery stores for a few weeks in the spring.

Since the first signs of spring I'd been dreaming of making a rhubarb jam. I'd imagined a blushing pink hue and pleasant tart-sweet flavor, maybe flecked with tiny vanilla seeds (as a friend cleverly suggested), or perhaps bits of chopped figs. I'd never tried rhubarb in jam form, but there was just something quite appealing to me in the idea.

In flipping through some inspirational books, I came across the recipe for Rhubarb Grapefruit Preserves in the Chez Panisse Fruit book. The simplicity of the recipes in the Chez Panisse books always wins me over, though I couldn't resist the addition of dried figs which I found sweetened the jam just a touch and seemed to blend rather nicely with the intensely fragrant grapefruit.

Here is my adaptation of the recipe:
Rhubarb, Fig & Grapefruit Jam
(adapted from the Alice Waters' recipe for 'Rhubarb Grapefruit Preserves' in the Chez Panisse Fruit cookbook)

yields approximately 3 1/2 pints of jam

Ingredients:

2 Lbs. rhubarb stalks, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
2 grapefruit, peeled and juiced, pith removed and the rind chopped very fine
4 cups sugar
8 oz. dried Black Mission Figs (or other dried figs of your choosing), chopped - stems removed

Method:

Place a plate or two in the freezer for testing the jam later.

Prepare canning jars and lids.

In a large stockpot with a lid, combing the chopped rhubarb, grapefruit rind, grapefruit juice (strained), and sugar. Cover and let sit overnight.

Bring the rhubarb mixture to a boil, uncovered, over high heat. Continue to cook, skimming off any foam rising to the surface, until the jam is thickened and reaches the 'gel stage' when placed on a cold plate. (This took me roughly 15 -20 minutes)
When the jam has reached the gel stage, turn the heat off, and begin ladling the hot jam into the hot, sterilized jars, being sure to leave 1/4 inch head space. Wipe the rims clean with a clean, damp towel, place the lids on and screw down the bands just until finger-tight. Process in a water bath canner with the lid on for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and process for 5 minutes more. Remove the jars from the canner and test the seals. Any jars that do not seal may be placed in the refrigerator and will be good for several weeks.

8 comments:

smoo said...

I want this. Your jam looks delicious. I overheard a friend the other day saying she made a rhubarb jam with lime and ginger. This also sounds delicious. Sigh.

Lucy said...

I want this, too!

Chelsea...figs...brilliant addition. It's that luscious pink colour rhubarb turns that makes me love it more and more. Do you think you'd try growing it next year? It's easy by all accounts, though I'm yet to try.

Chelsea said...

Thanks, ladies.

Smoo - Lime and ginger? Yum. That's inspired. I think a simple lime and ginger marmalade would be quite nice also.

Lucy - I have intentions of growing rhubarb next year... Of course, I have intentions of growing many, many things; I just need to find the time and space ;)

Yeon said...

The jam looks and sounds delicious! I see that the rhubarb stalks that you got from the farmer's market have a nice pink hue. My rhubarb plant is very prolific, but it loses its red color as it grows bigger. I wonder if I should grown another variety that stays red.

I have a rhubarb posting coming. Is there a way to send a track-back in Blogger?

smoo said...

Yeon and I are growing rhubarb and it's easy. I started a plant from little shoots from Southern States and Yeon started hers from seed. I have one of hers also!

I think that maybe rhubarb turns redder after it sits for a while. Ours never lasts that long. But I think that because I cut the leaves off of my rhubarb stalks and threw them in the yard the other day, and they turned red.

Mariana said...

Hi Chelsea. I looked you up after visiting Nourish Me and your jam sounds delicious and looks very appealing. There is nothing like home made preserves. I just made my own actually with an indigenous native berry called lilly pilly. You are most welcome to check it out. I look forward to dropping in again.

Chelsea said...

Smoo/Yeon - I was under the impression that the color of the stalks is a result of the variety of plant, and I was just reading that the green stalks are more productive than the red. Personally, I prefer the red stalks, but I'll take whatever I can get ;)

(Yeon - I'm not sure about track-back; I confess I have much to learn about this program...)

Mariana - Hi! Welcome - so happy you stopped by. Your jelly is stunning and those lilly pilly berries are fascinating.

Yeon said...

Chelsea. Interesting. I guess I should keep the green rhubarb plant and grow a red one to complement each other.

Don't worry about Trackback (this allows you to send a small link to the original post). I read that Blogger doesn't support that functionality. In any case, I posted a rhubarb and strawberry cobbler recipe.