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Monday, August 8, 2011

What's Black and Red and Spread All Over?

THIS JAM, that's what is!
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(seriously, LOOK at that color! swoonterific!)
This weekend I truly broke in my new gas range with a batch of the season's first jams: Strawberry-Blackberry to be exact.

The strawberries hail from my favorite vendors at the farmer's market: A young couple, 35 at the most, the very definition of earth sprites.  She has long ringlets of strawberry-blond hair and a smile like Mother Nature herself.  Last year as spring progressed into autumn, she would weigh out my potatoes and lettuces with a gentle hand on her growing belly.  This year she has a beautiful blonde boy permanently strapped to her chest but she mans the scale as deftly as ever.  Her partner looks a bit like Moses, long curls and a bushy beard with a constant wide grin.  We chat about the brussel sprouts and his uncle's plum orchard (last year I made the most heart-stoppingly delicious jam from those plums, this year the crop was too small to bring to market and I almost cried).  They gush over squash blossoms and always throw an extra head of garlic in the bag with a wink.  Their berries are the sweetest at the market, and I'm constantly suckered into giving them all my cash for whatever they may have harvested that morning.

The blackberries hail from the southern fence-line of my property, starting approximately 12 feet from the laundry room door.  Between the songbirds, the pup, and myself, we're working hard on snapping up every plump black globe but the bushes just keep coming.  Prolific!  I think I'll need to make up a cobbler this week, "need" being the key term.  I've always had a love affair with blackberries, stemming from hot summer nights kayaking down rivers, filling milk jugs with the fruit that overhangs the water's edge.  I imagined myself a doe, plucking berries delicately with my teeth while teetering on skinny legs. 
The very definition of wild-crafted
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All of this to say,
I made TWO jars for you!

Organic Strawberries.
Wildcrafted Blackberries.
Organic Unbleached Sugar.
And a little bit of magic earth fairy dust thrown in for good measure.

All you need do is leave me a comment below and cross your fingers tight!  I'll draw two names from the proverbial hat sometimes on Wednesday August 10th and ship-shape the lucky winners their jam!  Buy some bread, bake some scones or just get your spoons at the ready.

And Good LUCK to you!
BLACKBERRIES!

47 comments:

Jaime/GirlLovesGloss said...

OH me PLEASE! Blackberries are my all time favorite - every sumer they would grow like wildfire in August, and my grandpa would take my brother and I out for the longest day ever to pick them. We would fill up one of those big ole ice cream tubs, then bring them home to mom who would bake her famous blackberry pie just in time for Grandpas birthday.
Memories I truly savor!

calamityjane(t) said...

oh, YES! count me in! i'm a sincere appreciator of edible artwork, and if that's not artful looking then nothing is!

MrsCon40 said...

Oh please, oh please pick me! My big city life could use a little wild grown, crafted my Umber's strong sinewy hands jammy lovin'!

Sierra Keylin said...

Oh the black gold goodness of fresh berries! I used to take end of summer kayaking trips in the San Juan Islands and we would always come back with purple stained fingertips...these berry hunting moments are one of the things I miss most about living on the mainland! Happy cobbler making! And will you please give Sancho a big smooch for me, his muzzle needs to be nuzzled!

Lizzie Derksen said...

Umber, my fingers are crossed so tight, I'm afraid they might break.

MrsLittleJeans said...

I crossed my fingers very tight...my love affair with berries, jams and jellies runs very deep and dates back to the day I was breastfed...ha ha

xo

You made me jealous telling me how a Moses like being and his wife sell you your groceries : )

Sand and Stone said...

Yum Yum Yum, yes please! jam is such a wonderful summer treat!

sarita424@hotmail.com

Jenna said...

1. Happy new home!
2. I think I spotted you in the woods the other day, radiating light and magic fairy dust jam:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tictactoes/5920946924/in/photostream

Please DO put my name in that hat! *Smacks lips like a dog eating peanut butter.*

Joyful said...

Wow! The jam looks terrific and the colour truly is swoonerific. I'm hoping I can win :-)

lulu said...

'radar about to be "jammed" ' -spaceballs

a fine way to break in the range...i'm needing some blackberry love!

xo,
-lu

Jenni @ NotReallyAFarm said...

That *jam*! Oh, so beautiful!

(honestly, I really don't expect you to ship a jar of jam all the way to England, I just couldn't resist commenting on how beautiful it was, especially since we need to pick blackberries HERE, right NOW, or they'll be all gone! Eek!)

Cat said...

Fingers are all crossed here, for the chance at the yummiest of yums! Blackberries are near and deer (hee!) to my senses.

Melissa said...

Sign me up please :)

Jennifer said...

Well, with a stunning description like that, it looks and sounds like the most amazing stuff! :)

cbumpmax said...

Yummy yum yum! I'm glad you got enough berries this weekend to jar some Summer magic. Thank you for offering to share it with us :)

candacemorris said...

You mean THIS woman:
https://picasaweb.google.com/candacemorris/ArcataToVisitClarks051511#5607398557191587714


Also - I'm not gonna play because I know, I just KNOW, you are already sending me one for a belated bday present.

Heather King said...

Oh yummmmmyyyyy....Blackberries = Black gold....drool.... Count me in ;)

Janel said...

If I was such a lucky recipient of this gorgeous jam, I'd spread it on some Le Tur cheese and pair it with some homemade pumpkin/pear crackers....in the garden of course!

Thanks Umber!

Kokie Larson said...

JAM! My fingers are so crossed it hurts to type. But it's SOO worth it for the sweet goodness that I hope is in my future! =)

gamebred said...

ill get my spoons out and cross em! these look yums!

Heidi said...

sounds delicious!!!

Anonymous said...

Your jams always look so yummy. What a treasure it would be to receive something made by such a lovely person. Cheers!

Allisunny S. said...

Want. Want. Want - craving!!!

Xoxo
a

Snailentina said...

drooling!!!! going out to buy big ol' Japanese bread tomorrow to go with it <3

Lindsey said...

Looks so yummy. Thanks for sharing!

Abigail Jasmine said...

Wow! You are the jam master! That looks AHMAZING!

Love! & God Bless!

pencilfox said...

sweet.
x

BC said...

Be jealous all you who covet the jam. I've eaten it, it's amazing.

Pat in east TN said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Pat in east TN said...

Nothing better then summertime berries and your jam looks delightful!

reconstructing sarah said...

jam?!?! oh yes, please dove! :)

resolute twig said...

it looks SO good Kelly!! my fingers and toes are crossed :)
xo

fluttertothesky said...

mmmmmm...looks delectable.

artist in the arctic said...

If I win I'll send you a jar of wild alaska blueberry jam that I made last week. Wait. Is that a bribe? Ok. I'm not above bribes for jam : )

kari. said...

sadly our garden didn't fair well this year. It seems as if all our vegetables we babied as sprouts during the winter, were stunted by mid June. The berry plants were fruitless.

Xumi said...

I can has jam? Phuleese?

Unknown said...

Oh! You fill me with blackberry lust!

And I am a complete sucker for anything jammy.

Crossing fingers toes and tailfeathers-

Beth
betha42@gmail.com

Jenny said...

Picking blackberries is a happy memory from my childhood. Isn't it the best! Then cooking up a yummy cobbler or making up some jam. I SWOONED over that pic of Sancho! LOL

emilyclare said...

I surely love jam of all kinds! Just the thought of spreading some umber-made-goodness on my rye toast makes me happy. Toast is my second breakfast these days :)

Woman of Promise said...

Oh me me me tooo...looks simply delish!!

Woman of Promise said...

email....veronica.j.cox@gmail.com
xx

red raven said...

I am not worthy. But I would love & cherish it all the same.
Kat

Kim said...

Oh, that looks SO good!! And looks so pretty in the jar!

BMan said...

YUM!! I would LOVE some blackberry Jam!!

The Noisy Plume said...

Gimmie all yer jammies.

PS What CRM said.

x (to the exponential power of seven)

Anonymous said...

yum yum
sign me up

ps my puppy has a passion for the berry too!

love and light

michelle marlahan said...

jam!!!! beautiful, bright, sweet, slippery JAM! yes please.