Turnip Head. A Christmas Story.

 

 

GFD: Slow Jammin’ with Katy Davies

It’s always a delight when one receives some jam in the post. I experienced such a delight the other day when I found two jars from Katy Davies in my post box, Fig & Rhubarb, and Green Tomato Chutney.

Katy recently started a blog about her journey of jam making, and as someone who is pretty much obsessed with the stuff, I found it to be a great read. The first post about Rosemary & Fig jam highlighted an interest in experimentation and the balance between sweet and savoury, which appeals to me when pondering preserves. We thus embarked on a jam swap, starting off with Katy’s thoughts on Jammatology jam in a rather lovely post which can be read here.

The jam dialogue continued when she sent me a little box of jam. Both had a lovely hue to them, sitting upon my office desk (the dining table) as I pondered the best vehicle to convey these exciting flavours.

The chutney had a sweetness to it that contrasted perfectly with the nice cheese I placed it upon. There is something rather pleasing about the transformation undergone by these green tomatoes, having attempted to grow them myself this year and only being able to produce a few green ones, it was reassuring to know that the unripe solanum fruit could embody such a lovely caramel flavour.

I decided to make jam tarts with the Fig & Rhubarb, which highlighted the visually pleasing jewel like hue of the jam as it glistened in the oven. The texture lent itself perfectly to its pastry case, there was real bite to it, possibly due to the fig pieces. Katy, via Twitter, pondered the reason for the solid set as a reaction to the recent jam consistency government regulations. It was a delicious protest, the deep sweetness of the figs contrasted perfectly with the tart rhubarb to create a well-balanced, fruity result.

I imagine a savoury tart with goat’s cheese would work out pretty well with this jam too, and it is this exciting combination of flavours and its ability to exist in both sweet and savoury realms that makes this jam so good. Here’s to more jam swaps.

You can read Katy’s jam recipes and articles here:  http://slowjammin.blogspot.co.uk/

by Chris