I received a package from my 84-year-old mother yesterday – six jars of homemade jam. My mother has been making jam since before I was born, a family skill passed down from the depths of the Great Depression. In a family of 9 children it made sense to pick berries when you could and “can” them for future use.
“Canning” is a misnomer as the jams went into glass mason jars. Early on I remember they were big jars with a rubber gasket you laid between the glass container and the glass cover, which was then clamped down tight with a rather clever folding and locking gizmo. The jars then went into the basement “canning closet” until needed. Today the jars are smaller, have replaceable metal lids with built-in rubber gaskets, and a screw top made of metal. Storage is in the garage, though mostly they go directly in to the refrigerator for immediate use.
The kinds of jams seemed limitless, at least to me as a kid. I have fond memories of our family collection trips picking strawberries, blueberries, black and red raspberries, blackberries, peaches, apples, grapes, apricots, and whatever else was handy. Currant jam showed up once in a while, and I’m happy to say the just-received shipment has rhubarb (and strawberry-rhubarb).
The canning closet of youth contained a lot more than jams. There were various fruits (peaches and pears were big) and several kinds of pickles (whole, dill, bread-and-butter, slices for sandwiches, spears for side-dishes, and more). Canned tomatoes were always on hand, as were jars and jars of piccalilli (a relish of chopped pickles, diced sweet peppers, and other pickled vegetables). Piccalilli was a required condiment for hamburgers and hot dogs back when I ate hamburgers and hot dogs.
Of course, next to the canning closet in the basement was the chest freezer, as big as our combined refrigerator/freezer in the kitchen. It was usually filled with frozen vegetables, cut up meat from our last run to the butcher, and ice cream by the half-gallon. In the event of an emergency, we wouldn’t starve for weeks. Assuming we had electricity.
I’ve lived away from home for many (many) years and receiving canned jams in the mail is not something that happens routinely. Normally I pick up a stash whenever I drive to my hometown to see my parents, which at 8 hours each way happens less than I would like. My mother is sprite for her age, and even for someone 20 years shy of her age. She still goes out to shovel snow, runs the house like an army camp, and runs the finances like a Victorian banker. And cooks – cakes, pies, casseroles, roasts, and, of course, jams.
Which is why I always have a secret stash of jam on my mind.
David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.
juniorchillsofficial said:
Here is an original video and song I created…if you have a few spare minutes I’d love it if you could check it out 🙂 https://juniorchills.wordpress.com/2016/02/29/the-abyss/
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carabiensplash said:
I have complete admiration for your mother! I LOVED this post! It reminded me so much of my own mother who canned and cooked and froze surplus food. I miss her terribly but this post brought back a happy memory. Thank you! Oh, and my favorite jam from my Mom was tomato even though I hate tomatoes. It didn’t taste anything like them.
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davidjkentwriter said:
I have to admit I’ve never had tomato jam. That said, she did can tomatoes. I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
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lincahceria5 said:
How I enjoy reading this post. It makes me feel nostalgic and hungry at the same time.
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davidjkentwriter said:
Me too!
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petitewise said:
I treasure reading the childhood stories of other bloggers. This one about your family’s tradition with jam is priceless—I enjoyed reading it tremendously! So nostalgic and personal. Thank you for sharing!
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davidjkentwriter said:
I’m glad you enjoyed it. Feel free to look around.
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nonsmokingladybug said:
I can and preserve foods, mainly because I like to know what I am eating. Your p ost made me smile 🙂
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davidjkentwriter said:
I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
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Lightness Traveling said:
Amazing how a single thing can so well represent so much — sustenance, joy, family, wealth, connection, history, nature… Occurs to me that food and food preparation are so central to culture that much is lost when the traditions and the expertise are exchanged for convenience. Those jars are some real and enviable gifts!
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davidjkentwriter said:
I was thinking the same thing, how something so simple as a jar of jam had such deeper meaning. It’s been wonderful to revisit these old memories.
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True George said:
sounds delicious
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davidjkentwriter said:
Exceptionally so. 🙂
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jac forsyth said:
WordPress led me here after writing a post on Tesla. The world is a bizarre place, even by his standards. I now have a burning desire to make jam.
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davidjkentwriter said:
Probably because I wrote a book on Tesla. Incredibly interesting guy, by anyone’s standards. [And the jam was good] 🙂
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jac forsyth said:
Ah-ha! Now that makes perfect sense. I’ve just read his autobiography, which frankly opened up a whole barrel load questions ⚡️ and made me love him more.
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davidjkentwriter said:
He provides a lot of insight into his thinking in his autobio (“My Inventions”). Great guy to write about. As was Edison.
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jac forsyth said:
I’ve just checked out your book on Amazon UK. The reviews are great, I especially love this: ‘The book itself is a bit eccentric in its design, capturing the substance and strangeness of Tesla.’
Man, apparently I’m gonna be doing more reading 📚
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davidjkentwriter said:
Hope you like it.
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