DAN’S PAPERS
Page 74 August 16, 2013
danspapers.com
It’s not just the high social season on the East End— it’s also Jam Season! Sure, you can make the stuff any time of year, but right now there’s SO MUCH that begs to be jammed. Last night I made up a batch of “Rezberry” jam for a friend who lives on the Shinnecock Reservation. He picked some spectacular red raspberries there—small, firm, bright. I know he’ll cherish the jam. Then I made up a batch of Ginger
Peach jam from Briermeire Farms’ peaches for my family and a few lucky friends. I wanted to make a batch of Tomato Jam after that but my husband gets bent when I try to jam—steam up the house—after 11 p.m. He’s so this century. I’m dying to try all the canning recipes in my new fave cookbook, The Farm by Ian Knauer. I’ve never made tomato jam before, sounds like THE thing to have with eggs and toast… I keep trying to get together with “my adopted Jewish mother” Sarabeth Levine to jam. We bonded over our shared histories, we were both taught by our grandmothers to make jam. Her vision is to go out into a field, pick the fruit, jam right there over a fire and auction “the fruits of our labors” off for a charity. That’s
28551
28553
We Be Jammin’ on the East End By STACy DERMONT
The Jewish Center of the Hamptons
The Jewish Center of the Hamptons
44 Woods Lane 631.324.9858 • www.jcoh.org more info...www.jettykoon.com
44 Woods Lane, East Hampton, NY
631.324.9858 • www.jcoh.org more info...www.jettykoon.com
Take advantage of our prices to custom build new, or expand or add onto your existing home
FINANCING AVAILABLE!
$289,000 ON YOUR LAND 2,000 sq. ft., 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, open floor plan, 2 story entrance, gourmet kitchen, fireplace, master suite with whirlpool bath, central air, crown moulding. Call for a list of custom features.
146 Mill Road, Westhampton Beach, NY 11978 631-335-1535 www.HamptonsHomeBuilders.net
Built to energy star specifications as a minimum standard New construction, renovations, additions Architectural design and permit expediting 30+ years of experience; deal with owner directly Waterfront specialists
New York ENERGY STAR® homes use less energy, save money and help protect the environment
North Fork - Westhampton - Southampton - Bridgehampton - Water Mill - Sag Harbor - East Hampton Call for a list of available locations where we can build for you!
24922
Sarabeth Levine cracks me up, but the more time I spend with her, the more sense she makes. We’re just split over pectose. probably about five ways illegal from the health department’s point of view, which makes me love the idea all the more. Sarabeth cracks me up, but the more time I spend with her, the more sense she makes. Two years ago, as we were leaving the Serene Green Farmstand outside Sag Harbor she did a little happy dance. She told me she was SO HAPPY that she wouldn’t have to go to a grocery store—that any time she’s able to do all of her shopping at farmstands and farmers markets she’s ecstatic. Okay, well, it didn’t seem that big a deal to me at the time to drop by a grocery store—but I’ve since come around to Sarabeth’s “happy dance thinking.” I’ll quite happily go to three or four farmstands or farmers markets to skirt a trip to a modern grocery emporium these days. It’s fun, it’s nutritious, it’s educational— my feet are starting to move…
It’s all good.
But Sarabeth and I are split over a very basic issue: pectose. It’s a magical substance contained in plants’ cell walls. It’s a carbohydrate that, through enzymatic processes, becomes pectin—the stuff that makes jelly jell. Sarabeth doesn’t believe in adding pectin to jams and jellies, she insists on relying on what pectin is already in the given fruit and cooking it until it jells naturally. It can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour of boiling your fruit and sugar down. My gramma taught me to use Certo, pectin you buy in….dum,dum,dum… the grocery store. When your fruit goes into a rolling boil, you pour in a packet of Certo and cook it for exactly one minute. As far as I can tell, store-bought pectin in this country is derived from lime peel processed in Mexico (they use a lot of lime juice in Mexico, after all). It doesn’t strike me as unnatural. A couple years ago, I sold my jams at the Hayground Farmers Market and some customers were happy to see pectin in the ingredient list— they said it was good for arthritis. Okay. Sarabeth actually calls her jams “legendary spreadable fruit.” They’re not-so-firm and she’s seduced a generation (she and her husband Bill launched their empire with Orange-Apricot Marmalade in 1981) with them. Maybe I’m next—look out hubby, there’s gonna be a whole lot more boilin’ goin’ on in our kitchen if Sarabeth converts me…