Do you remember the white rabbit from Alice In Wonderland? The very late white rabbit who Alice follows down the rabbit hole as he sings, “I’m late! I’m late! For a very important date! No time to say hello, goodbye! I’m late! I’m late! I’m late!”
I’ve been feeling a whole lot like the white rabbit – running late on everything and plummeting down rabbit holes with never enough time to do anything properly.
I’ve spent the past couple of weeks on the road, visiting my mother in Northern Ontario, then off to the New Quarterly’s writing retreat at Pine Cove (where I had the privilege of sharing this cabin below with two absolutely wonderful women), before heading to Ottawa, and now today, to Toronto.
I know when life gets like this – it’s time to get grounded again. Time to slow down, take the dog for a long walk, pick the lilacs, and get back into the kitchen – the place that keeps me anchored. With a couple of days at home this week, I managed to get some work done, some gardening sorted, and also spend time in my kitchen. I started with rhubarb and strawberry jam because I had a huge bunch of fresh rhubarb that I didn’t want to go to waste. I love rhubarb because who doesn’t love perennials? But I also like the flavour of rhubarb – the tartness – and how well it freezes so that I can have a taste of my garden all year round.
Rhubarb also has a load of health benefits. It’s thought to aid weight loss, improve digestion, prevent Alzheimer’s disease, stimulate bone growth, avoid neuronal damage, increase skin health, prevent cancer, optimize metabolism, improve circulation, and protect against various cardiovascular conditions.
This rhubarb jam is beautiful in its simplicity. There are all kinds of recipes calling for the addition of kirsch or Grand Marnier or grated ginger, etc. etc. But all you will need here is an equal quantity of fruit and sugar and a bit of fresh lemon juice. You can vary the quantity according to the amount of rhubarb you have. I had about 750 grams of washed, trimmed rhubarb – hence my version below. It will take you half an hour all up from start to finish. The jam is divine. It’s old fashioned, tart, and perfect with scones.
Rhubarb and Strawberry Jam
- 750 grams of chopped, trimmed rhubarb
- 250 grams of washed, chopped ripe strawberries (adds colour and flavour to the jam)
- 1 kg of sugar (I think I actually used a little less than 1 kg – probably about 900 grams but if you are going to store your jam – you do need to use enough sugar to set the jam properly and thus prevent it from going bad – the standard ratio is equal quantities of fruit and sugar)
- juice of one fresh lemon
Begin by washing and sterilizing jam jars. I set these in the oven for about 10 minutes at 250 deg. F. In the meantime, bring the fruit and lemon juice to the boil in a large, heavy stainless saucepan. Cook over medium heat (hot enough to maintain a low boil) for about 10 minutes stirring frequently. Add the sugar and bring the jam back to the boil over med-high heat – taking care not to burn the jam, stirring constantly once the sugar is added. It will take about another ten minutes of cooking (20-25 minutes in total) for the jam to thicken and reach the jelly stage. For instructions on this check here.
Once the jam is sufficiently thickened, remove from the heat, stir for one minute, pour into sterilized jars, and seal immediately.
Love the jam and sounds like a wonderful retreat, the cabin looks lovely. Busy busy!!
Thanks Suzanne – yes – busy is the modern plague. I try not to be so busy but sometimes it happens. Homemade jam slows things down a little.
Had to look twice at your photo of the cabin. The rocks look as if they’ve been painted. Quite beautiful.
And so were my scones over the weekend. I’m trying to come up with recipe posts that people could make to use with my jams. What surprised me, the pear and raspberry was – by far – my favourite over strawberry and kiwi (I’ve ran out of strawberry and rhubarb). Anyway, rhubarb’s on special this week so I’ll be making it with blueberries again. Such a simple but glorious combination. And so easy to make. 🙂
Rhubarb and blueberries. I’ll give that a go Johnny. Rhubarb jam is good because it’s easy to set. And tart. I like tarts 😉
Cooking and being in the kitchen is the best grounding I know, and who can deny rhubarb jam? I recently made a rhubarb and lilly pilly jam, so good.
Lilly pilly! You’re making me homesick for Australia. We had a lilly pilly tree in Melbourne. Made a hell of a mess. If only I’d known then I could have made jam with the fruit.
One of the best combinations ever. Looks great! 🙂
Thanks Ronit – yes – one of those perfect combinations like chocolate and peanut butter, eggs and spinach, brie and honey, etc.
I couldn’t agree more. 🙂
My oh my, you are busy. Nice to be busy but not to the point where rabbit holes start appearing! Just yesterday I had that song stuck in my head…no kidding. We found a tiny baby white bunny out front and the neighbor cat was bullying the poor thing. We scared the cat away and the bunny hopped away into the thicket. It was the cutest thing! So, we walked away and I started singing “I’m late! I’m late! For a very important date! No time to say hello, goodbye! I’m late! I’m late! I’m late!” Anyway, your jam is wonderful Lindy. I never think to make jam, it seems so difficult and here I can see it really isn’t complicated at all. Great to see your post today.
Seana – we’re likely sisters from another mother. Jam is easy – it’s just the sugar that kind of puts me off. But then the jam tastes so great that I cease to care about the sugar. 😉
Yumm 😋😋
Yup – homemade jam. Yumm with a double M! You’re right.
Old fashioned flavors that keep us grounded when life gets hectic. The first photo alone makes you want to get out the pot. 🙂
Very interesting combination for jam and I love it. It really looks perfect!
Yum, who knew rhubarb had so many incredible health benefits! Your jam looks lovely and that cabin does look straight out of Alice in Wonderland.
Lovely post & jam 🙂
Sometimes old fashioned recipes are the answer! 😉 Love this!
What a pretty jam! I love people who don’t shy away from butter!!!
Coming back to say thank you for the lovely recipe.
I love rhubarb!