Jump to content
  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

"Strawberry Jewels" recipe hunt


LoneSavant

Recommended Posts

Years back, my aunt made jams from an older French cookbook, and one in particular--"strawberry jewels"--was outstanding. It was made using whole berries, uncrushed, unchopped, and the method of preserving ensured that the fruit stayed whole and reasonably firm within the brilliant red jelly. The only things I remember about the process was that the fruit was macerated in sugar in the refrigerator for some time, that not very much (though enough to make a gel) heat was used, and that the jelly made was reasonably soft--almost like very thick honey, and wasn't meant for long-term keeping- a few months at best. The name was given because the jars of preserve were beautiful--whole small berries floating in clear red crystal.

I havent a CLUE where she got this from or how she did it. Every recipe i find cooks the fruit to oblivion, mashes it all up, or both, and none of them can preserve the taste of fresh strawberry that my aunt's had. All I have is the recipe name--"Strawberry Jewels"--and looking under that online only gets me a hundred recipes for awful little cookies.

Anyone have any idea what I'm going on about??

Torren O'Haire - Private Chef, FMSC Tablemaster, Culinary Scholar

"life is a combination of magic and pasta"

-F. Fellini

"We should never lose sight of a beautifully conceived meal."

-J. Child

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Have you checked Christian Ferber's jam recipes ("Mes Confitures")?

I usually make strawberry jam using her basic method, and it sounds similar to what you describe. Whole berries, minimally cooked and processed. Basically, you bring the berries, sugar and lemon juice to no more than a simmer, then cover and macerate overnight.

You then heat up the mixture the next day just until set. No added pectin.

This would be even better using wild strawberries, but I don't have access to those. I tend to use the smallest berries because they hold shape nicely for this purpose.

Baker of "impaired" cakes...
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can you read French?  I think this recipe will get you what you're looking for.  I think I'll even try it myself!  Let me know if you need a translation.

Our strawberries are just starting to appear and I love to make jam. This recipe looks very similar to one that I use from Small Batch Preserving. I can make out most of the French and could likely wing it but if you have time for a short paraphrased translation of the method, I would definitely be most appreciative.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

Link to comment
Share on other sites

this reminds me of my grandmother from Montreal's "runny jam" we called it ...the strawberries were intact and the syrup was very thick but not "set" ..I can read French and think I will try this recipe ..I have never been able to reproduce hers but the strawberries she used were the key... they were very tiny (about the size of Alpine) berries bursting with flavor!!! ..even in my garden they are not as intense as what she grew ..sadly

thanks for starting this thread it makes me nostalgic for my Grandma's cooking that is for sure..we used to eat this jam with lots of butter on Challah

Edited by hummingbirdkiss (log)
why am I always at the bottom and why is everything so high? 

why must there be so little me and so much sky?

Piglet 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with Anna--

My French is "okay", but not nearly good enough to figure out the recipe...to me it looks like "something something cook the berries something something lemon something something in a pot"

so...if anyone could paraphrase it in english--heck, even Italian--I'd be grateful. :smile:

Torren O'Haire - Private Chef, FMSC Tablemaster, Culinary Scholar

"life is a combination of magic and pasta"

-F. Fellini

"We should never lose sight of a beautifully conceived meal."

-J. Child

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Torren,

it seems to be very comprehensible on Google translate.

http://translate.google.com/translate?u=ht...TF8&sl=fr&tl=en

Happy jamming!

Mark

The Gastronomer's Bookshelf - Collaborative book reviews about food and food culture. Submit a review today! :)

No Special Effects - my reader-friendly blog about food and life.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Google translation looks pretty good. I'll just add a couple of clarifications:

Equetez means remove the hulls/stems

Obviously, you cover the macerating berries with food film, aka plastic wrap, as opposed to "film food"

Pour the berries, sugar, and lemon juice into a pot, not a bowl

After you remove the berries and cook the syrup to 105 C you add the fruit back into the pot for 10-15 minutes (I'd do this as a very slow simmer to keep the fruit whole)

The recipe wants you to turn the jars upsidedown for 24 hours after you close the lids.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hah...yeah, but...that's the easy, sensible way to translate...who needs that?

:laugh:

Torren O'Haire - Private Chef, FMSC Tablemaster, Culinary Scholar

"life is a combination of magic and pasta"

-F. Fellini

"We should never lose sight of a beautifully conceived meal."

-J. Child

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, Abra!

Torren O'Haire - Private Chef, FMSC Tablemaster, Culinary Scholar

"life is a combination of magic and pasta"

-F. Fellini

"We should never lose sight of a beautifully conceived meal."

-J. Child

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Google translation looks pretty good.  I'll just add a couple of clarifications:

. . . .

Many thanks. I will post results when I have made some jam.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

My 2004 eG Blog

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can you read French?  I think this recipe will get you what you're looking for.  I think I'll even try it myself!  Let me know if you need a translation.

I had about 2kg of the fraises des bois ready from the garden so I made used about 1.5kg for jam and the remainder for a strawberry-vodka infusion.

The recipe turned out a near perfect consistency jam - neither too thick nor too thin. The berries remained whole for the most part and it's very very aromatic and flavorful.

Do adjust the level of sugar/lemon to your taste. For me, it was a touch sweet and I could have fixed that by adding more lemon juice at the start.

Thanks for the recipe - reminds me of the jams I had growing up (my granddad was a strawberry farmer). :biggrin:

John DePaula
formerly of DePaula Confections
Hand-crafted artisanal chocolates & gourmet confections - …Because Pleasure Matters…
--------------------
When asked “What are the secrets of good cooking? Escoffier replied, “There are three: butter, butter and butter.”

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...