It Starts with Fruit by Jordan Champagne has fruit recipes for even the most skeptical of shoppers. Champagne shares simple techniques and recipes for jams, marmalades and preserves. She starts with a get-to-know-you on the ‘stars of the show’ – everything from apricots and apples to peaches and persimmons.
I face late summer visits to the farmer’s market with equal parts joy and trepidation. Springtime produce feels pared down and almost zen-like with handfuls of purple-tipped lettuce leaves, a few perfectly formed spears of asparagus, and some just-unearthed potatoes, Summer, on the other hand, is like a sequin-filled cabaret show – all singing, all dancing. Corn, beans, tomatoes and mounds of fresh fruit all vie for our attention. No wonder glut and gluttony are such close friends. While Autumn brings its own joyous bounty to our table.
Champagne shares all the basics such as food safety (aka how not to kill your friends with gifts from the garden), options for jarring preserves, and the seemingly mundane decisions of choosing the right pot, and yes, it does make a difference.
What do I like about It Starts with Fruit? It sticks to the subject so in one book you’ve got all the basics for preserving fruit whether you’re after a killer Lemon Ginger Marmalade or her more-please Peach Rosemary Syrup. If you’d like to go farther afield, I’d suggest Pulp: A Practical Guide to Cooking with Fruit by Abra Berens. Check out the Watermelon Syrup Basil Lime Syrup recipe from It Starts with Fruit to make at home.
Story by Julia Leonard / Photography by Erin Scott
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