Hello from NL 49; this is Bake Sense—a somewhat ordered record of ramblings concerning the world of baking. Along the way, you’ll find recipes and insights from life in and out of the professional bakery and plenty of fruitful chat.
There is nothing like making your own jam. To play alchemist with fruit, sugar and acid and jar a precious point in the year offers rewards in spades. It liberates oneself from reliance on mass-produced, high-sugar jars of the stuff which offer nothing but toothache and a facsimile of fruit and opens up another realm within which to explore flavour combinations and texture.
Making your own jam in small batches allows you the freedom to choose how sweet you want or need the jam to be. Many a jam recipe will begin by outlining a 1:1 ratio of sugar to fruit, very few jam recipes start by advising you to taste your fruit first, never mind consider if the produce is local and in season or imported and underripe.