Peach Jam, Peach Blackberry Jam and Plum Blackberry Coulis

This is only sort of a recipe blog, because I have only a vague idea what the weight or proportions of my ingredients were. I also don't feel like writing about every little step -- if you're curious about that, look at last summer's jam posts. This is just a little note about jam, jamming, summer fruits and settling into a new kitchen. I moved about 5 weeks ago and this is the first big project I've done in my new kitchen, inspired by a $5 box of ripe peaches I saw on sale yesterday. The peach score was quickly followed up by some super-sweet blackberries from Monterey Market, which in turn was quickly succeeded by amazingly sweet, ripe golden plums from Rachel's backyard. It's a good thing that I have a hard time putting a good glass jar in the recycling -- and an even better thing that I insisted on bringing my stash with me from Santa Cruz. Today it came in handy.

Just Peach Jam/Peach Blackberry Jam
20 large peaches
6 or 7 lemons: zest and juice
900g "white" sugar*
about 10 blackberries

*how many cups is 900g? It was the sugar they sell at Trader Joe's -- the only thing I remember about the package was that it said 900g.

I started this last night by blanching the peaches to remove their skins and then crushing them with my hands to remove the pits and break them into smaller chunks (this is incredibly fun -- I highly recommend). Added the sugar, lemon zest and juice, then covered w/ parchment to sit in the fridge overnight. This afternoon I realized that it was a little too much to fit in my big pan, so I decided to do two batches and add a few blackberries to the second, smaller batch (hence only 10). I didn't want the blackberries to compete with the peaches, just to add a little extra color and flavor. These two jams were GORGEOUS. All-caps-gorgeous. The pre-cooled jam tasted marvelous, too.

Plum Blackberry Coulis
~20-30(?) small golden plums (3 or 4 pounds? the buggers were heavy with juice)
~1.5 cups turbonado sugar
2 lemons - juice and zest
remaining 12 or so blackberries

The plums were so ripe that this one didn't seem like it was going to set very well without cooking it waaaay down, so I settled for a slightly runny jam that is more like a coulis or sauce. It tasted great, but might be a little too runny for toast. I think this one would be great poured over vanilla ice cream or fresh ricotta.

Following Bay's advice, I took pictures this time. Too bad the internet isn't ready for scratch-n-sniff.

L-R: Peach, Peach Blackberry, Plum Blackberry (cooling upside-down)

Peach Blueberry Jam with Vanilla

Inspired by Chez Panisse Fruit (which arrived this week) and the peaches at the farmer's market, I made a Peach Blueberry Vanilla jam today. The aromas coming from this stuff as it cooked were incredible - enough to make you wish you could stand over the boiling pot for the rest of time. As the blueberry syrup thickened, it began to smell faintly like sweet potatoes, but maybe that was just me.

~2.75 lbs yellow peaches
.75 lbs blueberries
4 cups sugar
juice of 3 lemons
2 vanilla beans

I blanched the peaches for 1 minute, then cooled in ice water, to make them easier to peel. Cut into wedges and add 3 cups of the sugar, one vanilla bean and the juice of 2 of the lemons, bring to a simmer and then refrigerate overnight. Do the same with the blueberries and the remaining sugar, vanilla and lemon juice. The next day, boil the syrups (I did them separate, but I don't see what harm would come from combining them) until they pass the saucer test and then add the fruits and bring back to a boil. Boil together for a few minutes and then jar immediately. I used half-pint jars this time, and this recipe filled 7 of them. I also boiled the jars, because of Kyle's scary stories about botulism. I cut the vanilla beans into pieces and added them to each jar as a garnish.

This jam looks like it's going to be *incredible*. The smell of cooking peaches (esp. with vanilla) makes me wish I'd been making peach jam my whole life.