Sugar Savvy

Summer is a wonderful season for all things sweet, as nature bestows upon us the very best fruits of the year.  But even though it’s ending, it’s not too late to take advantage of what the season has to offer.  Take a trip to your local farmers market one day and you are likely to come across a variety of delicious fruit in season at the moment, such as: peaches, nectarines, plums, berries, and figs.  In fact, in California there seems to be an abundance of figs to choose from.

The fig is having a renaissance these days; once relegated to the grainy filling in a certain fig bar we are all familiar with, the fig is popping up in both sweet and savory recipes.  Previously hard to come by, a variety of fresh figs are now available at your local market through fall, such as Brown Turkeys, Black Missions, Kadotas and Calimyrnas.  Besides enjoying these beauties while they are in season, one of my favorite things do with an abundance of figs is to make fig jam.

Making jam is easier than you think.  You don’t need any fancy equipment, and you don’t even need to worry about sterilization if you make small batches that you store in your refrigerator.  Try this great recipe from jam guru Christine Ferber:

Fig with Vanilla Jam
(adapted from “Mes Confitures: The Jams and Jellies of Christine Ferber”)

2-1/4 lbs [ 1 kg] fresh figs (Whatever variety is at its sweetest and ripest.  I used small black ones with deep red flesh.)
3-¾ cups [800 g] granulated sugar
juice of one small lemon
1 vanilla bean [Note: The process starts the night before with some simple preparation and finishes with a 5 to 10 minute cook the next day.  Although this method takes some planning it is a simple and fast method of making very flavorful jam that can be adapted to a variety of fruits.]

[Note: The process starts the night before with some simple preparation and finishes with a 5 to 10 minute cook the next day.  Although this method takes some planning it is a simple and fast method of making very flavorful jam that can be adapted to a variety of fruits.]Rinse the figs in cold water and dry them in a towel.  Remove the stems and slice the figs.  In a bowl combine the figs, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla bean split lengthwise.  Cover the bowl with a sheet of parchment paper and let macerate for 1 hour.

Pour the fruit preparation into a large heavy duty saucepan or dutch oven and bring to a simmer.  Pour the mix back into the bowl, cover with parchment and refrigerate overnight.

The next day pour the preparation back into the pan and bring to a boil.  Continue cooking for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring gently.  Check to see if the jam is set by either using a thermometer or a cold plate.  If using a thermometer the jam will be a good consistency at 221 degrees F.  If you don’t have a thermometer, put a teaspoon of the jam onto a fridge cooled plate, place the plate back into the fridge and wait a minute. If it remains runny continue heating, if it has thickened and it wrinkles when pushed around, then it is ready.

Ladle the jam into clean glass jam jars and store in the refrigerator when cool.

(The amounts listed above yields about 4 to 5 jam jars, but the recipe can easily be halved.)

Enjoy!