Tea with Jam & Bread

I've been feeling particularly drawn to the French and British lifestyles lately as I've been enjoying listening to the Simple Sophisticate podcast. One of the most quintessential British and French activities I can think of is having tea-time. A hot cuppa' tea with jam and bread while sitting out on the parlor or in the garden reading a good book. I decided to replicate this event, but of course I had to take it to the next level and make my own jam and bread. I've been slowly going through all of the recipes on King Arthur Flour's Sourdough page in an effort to keep my sourdough starter healthy, in good use, and because I really enjoy bread. It's the height of summer and berries are blooming all over the place, so foraging is an easy and delicious option to get creative with jam recipes.

For the bread, I made King Arthur Flour's sourdough ciabatta rolls, you can find the recipe here. I've been loving making their seeded boules and multigrain loaves. The bread is heartier and great for toasting. These rolls were pretty good, but maybe try the multigrain sourdough boule if you want something a little more sustainable.

For the jam, try out the easy recipe my mom sent me below.

Homemade Jam

Yield: 1 jar of jam

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups fruit

1/4-3/4 cup of sugar (based on sweetness of fruit)

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

De-stem berries if necessary, then combine all ingredients in a pot and cook over medium heat for 5-10 minutes. Mash berries with a spoon to help the fruit break down. When the mixture begins to foam, let settle and skim off the foam using a ladle. Discard foam. Continue this process until no foam remains, then pour mixture into sterile jars. To sterilize jars, boil glass jars in hot water for ten or more minutes. Let cool, then keep in refrigerator. Good for up to three weeks.

You can use a lot of different berries for this recipe and increase the amounts for a higher yield of jam. I just made this recipe with mullberries my housemates and I foraged for. Wild raspberries are another classic favorite. For sweeter berries, I use less sugar, normally around a 1/4 cup. For more tart fruit, like chokecherries or rhubarb, I often use closer to 3/4 cup of sugar. Other great jam combos include strawberry-rhubarb (1:1 ratio), blueberry lemon (increase lemon juice to 4 tablespoons), mixed berry (blackberry, raspberry, and strawberry), and whatever else your heart desires.

Mullberry jam pictured above! (Reused an old jelly jar.) It turned out really good! For the full effect, toast whatever bread you've made, add a dash of butter and the jam. To be honest, you don't even need the butter. Serve with a cup of tea or coffee and enjoy on the porch with a good book. Happy tea time!