Rhubarb, Vanilla & Cardamom Jam, Small Batch

When I had a growing family, I made oodles and scads of jams, preserves, jellies and pickles every year. I spent hours putting up fruit and veg from our garden for the winter and all of it got eaten. Now that there are only two of us, it just isn't practical anymore as it never gets eaten. The only kind of preserving I do now, is small batch preserving. That is what suits the size of our family most of all.

I love rhubarb preserves however and was recently inspired by the influx of early rhubarb in our shops to make a small batch for Todd and myself to enjoy, but with a twist. This is Rhubarb, Vanilla & Cardamom Jam . . . this is a delicious trinity of very good taste!

See how lovely and pink the rhubarb is? It comes from an area in the UK known as the "Rhubarb Triangle." This covers a 9 square mile area in West Yorkshire which is famous for producing early season Forced Rhubarb.

This rhubarb has a Protected Designation of Origin status. (PDO) Rhubarb which is a native plant species of Siberia actually thrives in the soil and wet and cold winters of this area of the UK. Forced rhubarb grown in sheds has a beautiful pink colour and is a quite a bit more tender that that which is grown outdoors in the summer months.

I used some to make an upside down cake one day and I had just enough left over to make this lovely jam. This jam comes from a recipe I adapted from a site called Lovely Greens.

The addition of the vanilla and cardamom are my own additions. I love the three flavours together.

The rhubarb is tart, and the addition of lemon juice helps to preserve the pink colour and integrity of the tartness of the fruit.

The vanilla adds a beautiful aroma and flavour which goes very well with the flavour of the fruit . . . I think it actually enhances it.

Cardamom adds an additional flavour. There is just a small amount . . . just enough to give a hint of warmth and additional fragrance . . . it lends a gentle almost citrus-like flavour which goes so very well with the fruit.

Just a hint which is not over-powering in any way. You can leave it out altogether if you wish. I, personally, quite like it.

I had a fresh Parisien loaf from the bakery . . . I cut it into thin slices and lightly buttered it with some softened Danish butter . . .

I almost could not wait for the jam to cool down entirely before I was wanting to dig my spoon into it . . .

I know we were going to be in for a real taste treat!

I was right. This was pure and utter early Spring bliss . . .

Yield: Makes 2 (340g/12 ounce) jarsAuthor: Marie Rayner

Rhubarb, Vanilla & Cardamom Jam

The taste of spring, flavoured lightly with vanilla and ground cardamom. Rhubarb, vanilla and cardamom are a trinity of great taste. This is another small batch recipe.

ingredients:

500g early rhubarb (1 pound)
475g jam sugar (has pectin in it) (2 1/2 cups)
the juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp vanilla paste
1/4 tsp ground cardamom

instructions:

Wash the rhubarb and cut it into 1/2 inch pieces. Place into a reaction free container/saucepan along with the sugar. Cover and place on the side overnight.
When you are ready to make the jam. Place on the stove, over medium heat, and bring to the boil. Add the cardamom and lemon juice and continue to boil, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for five minutes. Stir in the Vanilla paste. Ladle into hot clean and sterile jars. Seal tightly while still hot. Once cooled, if the lids have popped down you can store in a dry dark place. Otherwise store in the refrigerator. Delicious.
Note - Jam sugar is granulated sugar which has the pectin already added.

What a wonderfully European combination . . . soft chewy bread from France . . . pink rhubarb from England . . . and creamy lightly salted butter from Denmark. How very cosmopolitan! Bon Appetit!