Kitchen Jam

Okay, I’ll say it out loud — one of the foods that eased me through every chemo regimen was watermelon. Winter, summer, fall, spring; whether on oxaliplatin (nothing cold) or Folfiri (everything tasted like aluminum foil) — there was one food that always tasted like food, kept me hydrated and got me over the hump between days 2 and 5 in infusion weeks…watermelon. And Taco Bell tacos (but that’s another post in another blog!)

The last of the fresh local watermelon is now in central New York supermarkets — and I thought I’d try to make watermelon jam to save a bit of summer. The recipe I tried is from an Indian foods blog written by Chandrika and called AkshayaPatra. Chandrika’s recipe makes a very small batch, although it can easily be doubled. Just remember that jam recipes are proportional: for each 2 lbs. of fruit pulp, you’ll need 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice.

I used what Wegmans calls a ‘personal watermelon’ — a perfect dark green sphere less than 8″ diameter, seedless and organic. The jam is thick, brilliant red. This recipe makes about 1 cup (the watermelon will cook down quite a bit.)

Watermelon Jam

2lbs watermelon pulp (remove pulp from rind and seed the chunks)

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 teaspoon lime zest (zest from about half a lime)

• Remove the watermelon pulp from the ring and cut it into chunks. Seed the melon if seeds are present.
• Mix the cinnamon and sugar together, and stir into the melon pulp.
• Stir the lime juice, zest and sugar-cinnamon into the melon. Simmer about 15 minutes until the sugar has dissolved in the juice. To help break down the melon pulp, mash it in the saucepan with an immersion blender.
• Continue to to simmer the melon-sugar mixture until it thickens and easily coats the back of a metal spoon. You can also test the jam for consistency using a spoonful of jam placed onto a very cold (frozen) plate.
• Ladle the hot jam into sterilized jam jars and process 15 minutes in a boiling water bath canner according to USDA directions for canning. Alternately, allow the jam to cool in the containers and store in refrigerator for up to two weeks, or freezer for up to a year.

Makes about 1 cup or two half-cup containers of jam.

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After posting the winners of the classes at New York State Fair’s Canning & Preserving competions, I wondered what kinds of categories other jammers and canners across the country could find at their state fairs — and who was winning these categories in 2009. Thanks to the wide reach of the Internet,  many of the answers to my questions are only a search query away.

Alaska is so large that it has two divisions to its atate fair – one in Fairbanks, and another in Palmer. So without further ado, let’s give a shout-out to these winners of the canning and preserving categories at the Alaska State Fair (Palmer), which ran August 27 – September 7, 2009! These official results were taken from the Alaska State Fair website.

Canning Division Champions
Division 01: Junior, 12 and under: Parker Caldwell of Wasilla, AK
Division 02: Junior, 13 – 17: Kenny Larson of Palmer, AK
Division 03: Jelly: Becky Menefee of Palmer, AK
Division 04: Preserve: Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Division 05: Conserve: Nicole Bendle of Wasilla, AK
Division 06: Jam: Tanya Shanks of Palmer, AK
Division 07: Juice: Cari Lester of Wasilla, AK
Division 08: Syrup, Sauce, Blossom Honey: Sherry Whitstine of Wasilla, AK
Division 09: Sugar-Free: Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Division 10: Chutney, Relish: Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Division 11: Vinegar, Oils: Sharon Horwath of Wasilla, AK
Division 12: Pickles: Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Division 13: Vegetables: Cheri Thomas of Eagle River, AK
Division 14: Fruit: Gloria Gale of Palmer, AK
Division 15: Dried Food: Arthur Mueller of Palmer, AK
Division 17: Seafood: Elaine Martin of Wasilla, AK

Canning Special Awards
Best of Show Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Judge’s Choice Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
Judge’s Choice Gloria Gale of Palmer, AK

Ball Fresh Preserving Special Award
(Fruits, Adult, First Place) Gloria Gale of Palmer, AK
(Fruits, Adult, Second Place) Gloria Gale of Palmer, AK
(Vegetables, Adult, First Place) Cheri Thomas of Eagle River, AK
(Vegetables, Adult, Second Place) Gloria Wilson of Wasilla, AK
(Pickles, Adult, First Place) Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
(Pickles, Adult, Second Place) Judy Lavigne of Anchorage, AK
(Soft Spread, Adult, First Place) Michelle Hamrick of Anchorage, AK
(Soft Spread, Adult, Second Place) Janice L. Anderson of Anchorage, AK
(Fruits, Youth) Kenny Larson of Palmer, AK
(Vegetables, Youth) Kenny Larson of Palmer, AK
(Pickles, Youth) Hayden Scalis of Anchorage, AK
(Soft Spreads, Youth) Angus Shaw of Wasilla, AK

C & H Sugar Special Award (entry using C& H sugar, Judge’s Choice)
(Open, 1st Place) Robbie Johnson of Anchorage, AK
(Open, 2nd Place) Janice C. Anderson of Anchorage, AK
(Open, 3rd Place) Tanya Shanks of Palmer, AK
(Junior, 1st Place) Emma German of Palmer, AK
(Junior, 2nd Place) Kenny Larson of Palmer, AK
(Junior, 3rd Place) Parker Caldwell of Wasilla, AK

Congratulations, Alaska jammers and canners!

Do you know someone who’s won a ribbon at the county or state fair for jams, jellies, relishes, pickles or anything else jammed, preserved or canned? Send me a link to the state site, and I’ll give them a shout-out here at Kitchen Jam. And of course, if anyone would like to share your special state or county fair recipes, please contact me at gaelen2 at yahoo dot com.