Summer Strawberry Jam

Let's just say that this year, the weather was not ideal for strawberries. For the entire month of June, it rained  (you know, just in case you haven't noticed.) This means that strawberries were incredibly juicy  (hum...waterlogged) and though they were still sweet, the first ones didn't have that tang and deep flavour that strawberries need to have to make great jam. 

Then, all of a sudden, out of the blue, it was Summer in Vancouver and we saw some sun. Which means the berries saw a little sun too and we have the sun to thank for the delicious flavour our beloved strawberries had last week.  

So, as jam makers, this is what we do. We pay attention to the weather, try berries all over the place, as many as we can, and then we make phone calls to farmers. When all is right, we get up bright and early and do our thing (we literally saw a bird getting a worm that day...)

A short strawberry season means not everyone got the strawberry fix they need. This is precisely why we can fruits and vegetables, isn't it? It is so we can enjoy that delicious fresh berry taste in the Fall and Winter as well. 

Strawberry Jam seems to be everyone's favourite flavour.   Even the most sophisticated chef palates we know just crave straight up Strawberry Jam.  Sometimes,  it's the simplest flavour that can be the hardest to achieve. To get the Sticky Spoon stamp of approval, we needed to find the right balance of sweetness and were aiming for that fresh, ripe, red, juicy strawberry flavour, not the overcooked, overstewed, oversweetened berry jam that can often be found.  We adapted our tehniques, tested again and again until we were happy and felt we did strawberries justice. They have had a rough year so they deserve it.   We are delighted with the results and love its chunky strawberry texture. 

As usual, we made a huuuge mess of the production kitchen, complete with foamy explosions of strawberry goodness all over the stovetop. And the wall. And the floor (sorry Buca boys--- we scrubbed extra hard this time!)

Before we could even spread the word that our Summer Strawberry Jam was being made, before we could put stickers on the jars, we had friends and coworkers ordering from us. It's almost like they had been waiting for it to be ready, which makes us feel really good about what we do (a waitlist!)

As for pairing suggestions, we recommend with a spoon, straight from the jar (piece of bread optional.) Summer Strawberry Jam, straight up. However, if you happen to have a piece of vanilla cake around, and perhaps a little ice cream, it does make a mean shortcake (to be kept in mind in Winter, when tasty local strawberries are months away and you crave a little summertime berryness.)  If you are one of those people whose favourite jam flavour is Strawberry, please email us and we shall get a jar to you. You can visit us at the Vancouver Farmers Market in the West End on Saturday, July 21st from 9am to 2pm. We will also be attending the Shangri-La Hotel Farmers Market on Sunday, July 29th from 11am to 2pm, hosted by Chef Wayne Harris on the third floor patio.  Have a wonderful sunny weekend.

The Very First Market at The Shangri-La

Last week, we attended the very first mini Farmers' Market hosted by Chef Wayne Harris of Market Restaurant at The Shangri-La Hotel. The event was put together in collaboration with our friends at the Vancouver Farmers Market and we were so happy to have been included. Being the first event, and a small one, we did not know what to expect, but we had a wonderful time. Here are a few photos of our day.

The day started out perfectly, with valet parking for our old beat up van, an elevator up to the patio to carry our many boxes and bins and best of all, cappucinos handed to us upon arrival. That is a pretty civilized market. Setting up our table was that much easier and we were left with a little time to socialize with other vendors.

It is always so nice to be surrounded by amazing local produce and goods made by hand by friends and fellow vendors.

I am posting photos of these tasty baked goods by Beaucoup Bakery even though I am brutally disappointed that I did not get to take any home.  I had planned a dinner for that night, which included a variety of Beaucoup Bakery desserts. I probably should have let Jackie know right away, that is before she sold out of absolutely everything she made that day! Oh well, I won't make that mistake again, trust me... 

 

And speaking of tasty baked goods, check out these Caneles de Bordeaux from French Made Baking, possibly one of the best things I have ever eaten. To be fair, this photo doesn't do these little guys justice but no photo can, they are that good. Crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside, with just the right amount of sweetness, richness and vanilla. Oh my.

Then "our guests" arrived. They started pouring in right at 11am and just kept coming for the entire three hours we were there. There wasn't a boring moment and we loved it. The event included live music, wine tastings, canapes and mocktails, all of this on the beautiful third floor patio of the Shangri-La Hotel.  How very civilized!

 The fabulous Jay Jones, master of all things drinkable, created a  virgin cocktail based on our Rhubarb Jam with Ginger and let's just say he nailed it;  every component of the jam could be tasted in his drink and everyone was full of compliments--- about the drink AND the jam! 

Markets are always a lot of fun for us. We must thank Chef Wayne and his talented crew for creating fantastic little bites for all to try and we are grateful to Roberta from Vancouver Farmers Market for her hard work preparing this event. We feel privileged to have been a part of this market and hope that we are invited again. Thanks to everyone who stopped by, sampled our jam, chatted with us and gave us feedback. We hope to see you again!

To Those Who Keep Us Awake...

For the past 10 months, we have been making a lot of jam, obviously, but there is much behind-the-scenes work involved in having a company as well, so we have also been doing an insane amount of paperwork. We often meet at coffee shops around our respective neighbourhoods to get work done and we wanted to share (a few of) our favourite spots with you.

Nelson The Seagull

We love the old features of this building, the tall ceilings that make us want to find a spot in one of their nooks and get comfortable.  The spacious cafe has been cleverly divided, with a barely separated kitchen that allows us to see our breakfast as it is being made. The big old comfy couch is as inviting as it gets, but we have to warn you that you may want to stay there for hours (that thing can't be good for business; there's very low turnover on that couch, we are sure of it.) 

Cafe Bica

Whenever I go to Cafe Bica, there is always someone sipping on a drink, enjoying a relaxing afternoon with a book and I get the urge to call in sick, pick up a novel and have a seat. This place is such a busy little spot, but it never feels like anyone is in a rush to go anywhere; no extra grande caramel lattes to go here, everyone seems to have the same desire to slow down and it is nice.   We love to sit at the big communal table and enjoy the beauty of the space; the barn doors that open up to the kitchen, the bookcase, the blankets, the frames on the wall. It is all in the details and we appreciate every one of them.

Revolver Cafe

Coffee here is taken very seriously. As jam ladies, we appreciate people who dedicate time and effort into perfecting one thing and this is just the place. Needless to say, we have had some of the best coffee at Revolver and would send the biggest snob there with confidence.  However, they manage to take the pretentious out of the equation and have created an approachable space for any coffee lover to sit back and relax. The design is amazing, we almost want to kick them out so we could live there but then again, we would be at a loss because this place is too great to do without. 

Coco et Olive

This is the most peaceful place to have a cup of coffee and do some work. We love that everyone speaks French; the baristas, the customers, even the children seem perfectly bilingual. It can feel like being in another country for an hour or two and it the middle of rainy, grey Winters, there is nothing wrong with that. The pain au chocolat is to die for (of course!) and the tarts alone are worth the visit. 

Marche St-George

We have to save this one for last. So much more than a coffee shop, Marche St-George encourages just the lifestyle that we believe in. If Coco et Olive makes us feel like we are in another continent, Marche St-George makes us feel like we are in another decade. Wether you are picking up a liter of milk or meeting a friend for an afternoon coffee, take a moment and enjoy the experience of a neighbourhood corner store with indescribable beauty and charm. This is the way we should be shopping for groceries. Their shelves stock some of the best and most appealing local goodies, but the store also has a few tables, just in case you happen to run into a neighbour and feel like staying a bit longer to chat. This place couldn't be further from the self-serve countertop superstore chains and we love them for that. They also host the occasional themed garden dinner, pop up brunch,  art gathering and pop up art store and we always look forward to their next event because we know we will have an amazing time.

To all those who brewed the coffee just right, who steamed the milk into frothy goodness and who steeped the tea leaves to perfection, thank you. 

Homemade Pop Tarts Stuffed With Rhubarb Jam and Ricotta

We are finding ourselves craving this Rhubarb Jam with Ginger almost every morning and the possibilities seem endless.  For the bakers out there, our Homemade Pop Tarts with Rhubarb Jam and Ricotta Cheese were a success and we are pleased to share our process with you.

This recipe is actually a slight modification of Brandi Henderson's  Homemade Pop Tarts from her blog I Made That! Brandi is a pastry chef and the co-owner of an amazing community kitchen in Seattle called The Pantry at Delancey, where you can sign up for all sorts of cooking classes with chefs and cookbook authors from all over the West Coast or take part in their casual, family-style dinners.

While we have made Brandi's version before and stuffed our little pastries with apples cooked in butter and vanilla, this time, we tried combining Sticky Spoon's Rhubarb Jam with a couple of spoonfuls of ricotta cheese and some orange zest and were very, very happy with the results.

The key to these Pop Tarts is definitely the dough. It is actually more similar to that of a Toaster Strudel, if you must know, with a ridiculously light and flaky crust thanks to the "schmear technique" described in Brandi's blog post. This dough is easy to make and very forgiving for those who do not normally attempts such pastry adventures in the kitchen. 

Needless to say, we ate more than our daily recommended dose of pastries that day but have no regrets whatsoever. This may not be the healthiest addition to Sunday brunch, but these Pop Tarts will be making a regular appearance at the breakfast table in our house. The combination of the flaky crust, rich ricotta cheese and zingy, gingery rhubarb made our day that much better and we are already dreaming of our next batch since, obviously, saving a few for leftovers proved too difficult a task. We hope that you give these a try and would love to hear your feedback. If your pantry is in desperate need of some Rhubarb Jam, let us know...