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Strawberry Rhubarb: The Fred and Ginger of Jam

Tom
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Strawberry Rhubarb: The Fred and Ginger of Jam

strawberry rhubarb jam spoonful on a plate

Strawberry Rhubarb Romance in a Jam

In the world of preserves (and pie), spring’s star couple is strawberry rhubarb. One’s sweet, one’s sour, both show up in the garden or market at the same time, and their textures are different enough to keep the end result interesting. So today my friends, I’m going to share with you how I make strawberry-rhubarb jam–the spring-born spread that no breakfast baked good or buttered snack should be without.

bowls of chopped rhubarb and cleaned strawberriesRhubarb on the left, strawberries on the right, a marriage of flavors in the middle.

Jam Notes: I make jam a little differently, not employing processed pectin in recipe. More times than not, pectin takes jam and turns it into a jello shooter. I prefer to harness the powers of evaporation to concentrate flavor and to create a thick jam that can stay put on a spoon or toast. With this recipe, I took first place (strawberry category) in the jam-making contest at the Strawberry Festival on Vashon a couple years ago. (I finally took the blue-ribbon off my jacket this year.) fresh strawberries in sugarfresh rhubarb ready for jam makingStrawberry and Rhubarb Jam Recipe (adapted from Christine Ferber’s Mes Confitures)

 Ingredients

  • 2.5 pounds chopped rhubarb (cleaned, size of large sugar cubes)
  • 2.5 pounds strawberries (cleaned, whole or sliced in half)
  • 6 cups sugar
  • 4 limes

Preparation:

  1. bowl 1: add rhubarb, 3 cups of sugar, and juice of 2 limes
  2. bowl 2: add strawberries, 3 cups of sugar, and juice of 2 limes
  3. Let both bowls sit overnight covered and refrigerated
    1. The sugar draws out the juice and the next day the fruit will looked candied
  4. Drain and mix liquids into to a nonreactive preserving pan or soup pot
    1. Pan should have a wide mouth at least 10 inches across to facilitate evaporation
    2. Pan should also have a thick bottom for even heating
  5. Simmer combined liquids, stirring often to prevent scorching
  6. As the mixture thickens, say in 15 minutes, add both fruits
  7. Simmer about another 15 minutes, still stirring at regular intervals
  8. Shut off heat, stir until simmering subsides
  9. Let it sit on the stove until cool
  10. Refrigerate overnight
  11. Reheat mixture the next day, simmer for about 20 minutes (stir baby, stir!)
  12. Again, remove from heat and let cool, and evaporate
  13. Repeat steps 9-12 until jam enjoys a thick consistency
  14. Your jam is ready to eat, can or freeze.

Don’t let the several-day process scare you. I usually reheat, simmer and stir the jam while I’m cooking dinner or doing dishes. (There are always dishes.) It’s really only about 30 minutes of fussing each day for something you’ll enjoy all year (if not eaten sooner).

 

English Bulldogs on the porch

Boz and Gracie know if there’s jam on a plate, a scone, biscuit or brioche can’t be far behind.

homegrown crimson rhubarb stalks

Rhubarb thrives in the cool climate of the Northwest. I heavily dress it with compost in the winter to encourage robust growth in spring. As for my strawberry-growing prowess, it’s often less than stellar. I usually trade rhubarb for strawberries with a neighbor who shares my fondness for this classic flavor combo.  (No strawberry patch weeding for me.)

big rhubarb plant

Boz is not so much guarding the rhubarb as contemplating his next move to breach the deer fence and investigate the compost. If only he could locate truffles.

One year ago: From Quince It Came

To Everything There Is a Season (Well, Kinda)

Tom
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4
To Everything There Is a Season (Well, Kinda)

He who knows the right time to put up a hammock…

Should also know it’s also a cue to take down the Christmas lights.

One year ago:  Sprouting Broccoli: It’s a Keeper

Missing the Boat, But Catching the Show

Tom
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Missing the Boat, But Catching the Show

After a day off-island with friends, I had too many miles and too few minutes between me and the 8:00 pm ferry to Vashon.  As fate, traffic, and a few wrong turns would have it, I missed the boat.

West Seattle ferry dock at sunsetSetting my parking brake and expectations, I was all too aware that the next ferry was an hour and a half out. After a few minutes of sitting on the hood of my truck before a sky on fire and a sea slipping into sleep, I came to realize the obvious: I hadn’t missed the boat at all.

One year ago:  Mom These Are for You

Two years ago:  Ringing in the Return of the Bluebells

Taylor’s Pink Perfection Camellia and Miss Wells’ Lipstick

Tom
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Taylor’s Pink Perfection Camellia and Miss Wells’ Lipstick

Nature doles out some amazing colors. When my Taylor’s Pink Perfection camellia began to bloom for the first time, I found its blush exuberant, unapologetic and very reminiscent of a hue I’d come across before: the lipstick color of my fourth grade teacher Miss Wells.

In my recollection, Miss Wells and Delta Burke are now the same person. When Miss Wells wanted your attention (read disciplinary action), she’d lean over your desk placing her well-manicured hand on your shoulder, and zero in, her lips to your ear, and politely, albeit sternly, in the most lilting of southern accents say, “May I please have a word with you, [insert child’s first and last name]?” Trouble was, she would have many words with the pupil and always win the argument.

Taylor's Pink Perfection Camellia flower
Taylor’s Pink Perfection Camellia

I had a theory that her weapons-grade perfume was a numbing agent used to lull kids into a semi-lucid, obedient state, but that’s another story. Because she insisted on unflinching eye contact (her form of a Vulcan mind meld), I was forced to behold the brightest shade of pink lipstick known to man. And now that I’ve seen this camellia, I can say it’s also known to nature.

taylors pink perfection camellia times two

If you’d like to know more about my favorite florid flirt, I’ve posted more information below:

Taylor’s Pink Perfection Camellia: Information from Squak Mt. Greenhouses & Nursery

Height:  10 feet

Spread:  8 feet

Sunlight:  partial shade  full shade 

Hardiness Zone:  7

Other Names:  x saluenensis

Description:

Lustrous evergreen foliage cover this upright shrub; masses of semi-double pink flowers bloom over a long period, beginning in late winter; provide rich, acidic, moist, well-drained soil

Ornamental Features

Taylor’s Perfection Camellia features showy shell pink round flowers with yellow eyes at the ends of the branches from late winter to early spring. It has dark green foliage. The glossy pointy leaves remain dark green throughout the winter. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.

Landscape Attributes

Taylor’s Perfection Camellia is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season’s flowers. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Taylor’s Perfection Camellia is recommended for the following landscape applications;

  • Accent
  • Mass Planting
  • Hedges/Screening
  • General Garden Use
  • Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Taylor’s Perfection Camellia will grow to be about 10 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 40 years or more.

This shrub does best in partial shade to shade. It requires an evenly moist well-drained soil for optimal growth, but will die in standing water. It is particular about its soil conditions, with a strong preference for rich, acidic soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in both summer and winter to conserve soil moisture and protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Taylor’s Perfection Camellia makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Its large size and upright habit of growth lend it for use as a solitary accent, or in a composition surrounded by smaller plants around the base and those that spill over the edges. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag – this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.

One year ago: Tulips: A Worthy Form of Currency

Two years ago: Wheelbarrow or What 2.5 Hours Looks Like

Bart, Your Primula Is Doing Fine

Tom
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12
Bart, Your Primula Is Doing Fine

primula on a chairIn some cafe, perhaps in Amsterdam, maybe in Bruges sits a man whose interest in the works of Van Gogh and Rubens is only rivaled by his love of works in nature, in this case unusual plants. So Bart, fear not; while you’re enjoying a European holiday, your primula sits protected on my porch. The blossoms are exquisite, the leaves ruffled beauties. Now go see some European sights, eat and drink like Louis XIV, and know that this leafy masterpiece is being well taken care of. Your humble plant-sitter, Tom

Periwinkle Vinca Major Covers a Lot of Ground

Tom
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12
Periwinkle Vinca Major Covers a Lot of Ground

Periwinkle: Vinca Major, a sea of knee-high green2010_04_28_Blog_vinca_major_pot

I’d have to say the periwinkle Vinca major saves me about a bazillion hours of weeding each summer, smothering out just about any weed bold enough to insist on staking a claim. If periwinkle can easily engulf a pot topping 30 inches (above), dandelions don’t stand a chance of permanent residency.

2010_04_28_blog_vinca_major_flower

While the individual  flowers are real lookers, like little blue polka dots floating on a sea of green, the real standout on this plant is its foilage. Lush, bullet-proof and evergreen, Vinca major forms a knee-high carpet wherever it’s planted (at least in the Pacific Northwest).

2010_04_28_blog_vinca_major_lawn

I maintain its boundaries simply by mowing. Above, periwinkle creates a cool oasis in the understory in an area that would be too labor-intensive to hand weed and maintain.

2010_04_28_blog_vinca_major_driveway

Where the periwinkle meets the drive, it stays put and frames an all-season border around my cedars, fir and vine maples.

2010_04_28_blog_vinca_major_path

When I wanted a new path to the vegetable garden, I ran the mower through the middle of the periwinkle at the top mowing height and then lowered it with each repeat pass. After a couple weeks of doing this, it stopped growing in the path and left me a handsome serpentine walk to my lower garden–a welcomed new route as prior to this I’d lose Boz and Gracie beneath the leafy waves.

Vinca major also has a tamer vining brother, Vinca minor, which may be better suited to smaller areas or urban gardens.

In the words of one of my favorite garden writers, Beverley Nichols, “I earnestly suggest that you become a periwinklist without delay.”

This Kitchen’s Best Carrot Salad Recipe

Tom
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11
This Kitchen’s Best Carrot Salad Recipe

best carrot salad recipe

As far as salads go, my favorites are the ones with little or no lettuce. (Hear me out.) I think I’ve had one too many plates of wild greens dressed with good intentions and Calendula petals. I need more. Give me a warm German potato salad or a wilted spinach swimming in bacon drippings and cider vinegar. Is there any better texture and flavor combo than a Waldorf salad?

2010_04_27_blog_carrot_shredded

Another one of my favorite lettuce-lacking salads is all about the carrot. It’s fresh, crunchy, lasts for days and surpringly has no mayonnaise in it. (You read right.)  Plus I get to use my favorite kitchen tool, my vintage WONDER SHREDDER PAT. 1,768,462 to grate the carrots into narrow shoe-string strips. (Caution: watch those fingers.) I usually make a big batch as it makes for a great quick, healthy snack all week.

best carrot salad recipe before the toss and dressing

RECIPE: World’s Best Carrot Raisin Salad

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds of carrots
  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 2 small limes
  • 1 T. Sugar
  • 1/2 Cup golden raisins
  • 1/2 zante currants
  • pinch of salt
  • pinch of pepper

Preparation:

  1. Grate carrots, use fine grater
  2. Add raisins and currants
  3. Mix olive oil, lime juice, sugar, salt, pepper
  4. Pour dressing over carrots and raisins
  5. Toss salad
  6. Refrigerate, toss again before serving

Sometimes I add orange zest and chopped candied orange peel or a tablespoon of orange marmalade for an added twist.

There you have it: crunchy carrots, chewy sun-dried fruit, sweet, sour and delicious.

One Year Ago: Tyson Pear: Portrait of an Heirloom Fruit

Two Years Ago: Moments for Pause

Stoop With a View: Good Morning Bluebells

Tom
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Stoop With a View: Good Morning Bluebells

big leaf maple in a sea of bluebellsBeautiful backyard bluebells

My back stoop covers just about enough space to provide resting and reading room for one husky guy and two beefy bulldogs (given the pups opt to hold court on the lower step). A maple mantled in moss shades our eyes and a feeble rail triumphs as shelving for a cup of cooling coffee and a couple Milk Bones.  The newspaper remains folded as does my interest in reading it. To my left, a sea of bluebells proves a matchless distraction, welcoming spring and fueling my growing smile. Good morning, indeed.

Daffodils: How to Encourage Next Year’s Blooms

Tom
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10
Daffodils: How to Encourage Next Year’s Blooms

2010_03_05_blog_blooming_daffodil 030

In late winter, drifts of daffodils punctuate my property like streams of sunshine. They are a welcomed sight and a needed reminder that better weather is on the way (which is a good thing since that’s about the time I start to resemble Jack Nicholson in The Shining).

As flower bulbs go, they are pretty effortless and naturalize on their own accord, getting bigger and better every year. In my garden book, they are a fail-proof flower (or so I thought).

When I was taken to task by a friend who said her daffodils rarely re-bloom, I realized some instructions were needed. So may I suggest my fail-proof designation does come with a few guidelines.

blog_daffodils_rebloom

How to ensure your Daffodils re-bloom each year.

  1. Do not cut back the foliage or at least wait until it is completely brown and dry
    • The leaves create energy that is stored in the bulb to fuel next year’s blossoms. Remove them and you weaken the bulb and its ability to re-bloom
  2. Pinch off the seed heads off
    • After the flower dies, seeds begin to form which requires energy from the bulb. If you remove the seed-heads, more energy is stored in the bulb, which encourages bigger, better and usually more numerous flowers
  3. Fertilize or top dress with light compost for added oomph!

2010_04_17_blog_daffodils_naturalize

So if you only follow one guideline, make it number one. In the photo above, I mowed around the daffodils, and will continue to do so until the leaves die back. My friend who had diminishing returns on her spring blooms, admitted to me she was mowing them down because she felt they were unsightly post bloom.  I told her patience will pay off if she can just wait several weeks for the foliage to fuel the bulb before dying back into summer dormancy.

2010_04_17_blog_daffodils

Pinching seed-heads does help, but letting your bulbs recharge by leaving the leafs intact in the best advice I could give to encourage next spring’s flowers. This is applicable for most spring bloomers, like daffodils, narcissus, bluebells and snowbells (Galanthus). Tulips are not a great naturalizer, tend to weaken each year, and are less likely to be perennial re-bloomers.

So let your daffodils retire in peace, and you will be well rewarded next spring with a lane lined in starbursts.

2010_04_17_blog_daffodils_lane

What I was blogging about one year ago: The Fountain Gurgles Again!

An Apple Named Opal, A Dog Named Boz

Tom
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11
An Apple Named Opal, A Dog Named Boz

2010_04_15_blog_opal_apple

As I coasted down the steep hill to the Pt. Defiance ferry dock, actively praying that I would make the boat, the security gate which separates running vehicles from bone-chilling Puget Sound teetered like a failing flag pole. With gravity (and a punctually-minded ferry worker) now in charge, the striped barricade fell back to earth, corralling me on the dock while the sweet little M/V Rhododendron chugged its way toward Vashon. A few slow motion head turns and whiny “no’s” later, I accepted my pole position for the next (and much later) ferry.

On the bright side, Boz and Gracie would get a long waterfront walk and the King Cab was stocked with provisions fresh from our stop at Tacoma Boys, a butcher shop, small grocer and produce stand that seems to have it all, including great people.

A produce man encouraged me to try a new apple called Opal. Its color is beautifully jarring, the standout kind of butterscotch yellow you see on a school bus  or taxi cab. The Opal apple is a cross between a Golden Delicious and a Topaz apple and is capped with a little russeting on the stem end.

2010_04_15_blog_opal_apple

The apple has a unique texture and flavor, extremely crispy, but not overly juicy. There’s a density and dryness to the apple that I find appealing. It’s a serious chew that unleashes butterscotch, caramel overtones and concentrated flavor. Another great thing about the Opal apple is its flesh does not discolor. In the photo above, the right side was freshly sliced and the left side was cut the day before;  the browning is minimal.

2010_04_15_blog_boz_apple

But don’t take my word for it. Peer into the mug of a true apple lover and crafty connoisseur. Feigning sleep, he made his move as I left the truck to fetch a new ferry schedule. Three apples disappeared without trace, as Boz and Gracie nuzzled together like sleeping innocents. How do I know Boz and Gracie pilfered the pommes? Oh it was an inside job alright, something I was able to confirm (unfortunately) on the ferry ride home with all windows rolled down. Lucky for us, smoking is not allowed on Washington State Ferries.

What I was blogging about:

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