New Item: Organic Apricot Jam

I have a new item in my Etsy Shop: Organic Apricot Jam!

I have been waiting for this jam for over a year!  Last year, unfortunate late spring storms pretty much decimated the organic apricots in Northern California, and those that were left over were either hit with diseases or were outrageously expensive.  So last year, I made no apricot jam.  I ate the last of 2009’s jam early this year and I was definitely sad that there was no more to take its place!

Surprisingly, this year the apricots were once again hit by late storms, a freak frost, etc. but somehow persevered and I was lucky enough to get a couple dozen pounds of primo organic fruit from a great family farm out of the Stockton, CA area.  I have to say that this is the best batch of apricot jam that I have ever made.  And really I had very little to do with it; the fruit is just amazing.  Perfectly balanced sweetness and tartness and a lovely strong taste and aroma of apricots.

$6 a half pint.

And here are a couple of recipes for using Apricot Jam in desserts:

Apricot Jam Cookies (with a ginger kick!)

Baked Brie in Puff Pastry (super easy dessert! just substitute with apricot jam!)

New Item: Organic Navel Orange Jelly

Super excited about my new Navel Orange Jelly.  It is available in my Etsy Shop.

This is my offering to all the marmalade-haters out there!  Though I love marmalade, sometimes you just don’t want to deal with the rind or bitterness of marmalade.  This offers all the great orange flavor with none of the bitterness.  Sweet and well-balanced!

These organic oranges came from Whitney’s friend’s garden in Davis.  I really appreciate the windfall of the oranges and the fact that she keeps an organic garden.

And since my Blood Orange Label was a labor of love I adjusted it and used it for this one as well.

As always, $6 for a half pint.

New Item: Blood Orange Jelly

I have a new item in my Etsy Shop:  Blood Orange Jelly!

It is muy delicioso!  Everyone loves it, not to mention the BEE-U-TEE-FULL color!

As always, a half-pint of it going for $6.

The Blood Orange (aka Cara Cara Orange) is known and named for the beautiful deep carmine color of its juice. The taste is totally orange, just a little more acidic. Which makes it perfect with baked goods, cocktails and even savory dishes!  These Blood Oranges were grown in Woodlake, California by a family of 5th generation farmers (which is totally amazing in my book).

I have to say this label was a total labor of love.  Normally I bust out my creative hat and my labels are brainstormed, designed and printed in a matter of an hour or less.  And that is with the couple of different approvals that I normally get through my “Executive Team”.  Well let’s just say that my first label that I created was a total flop per my “Executive of Marketing and Everything Else”.  I didn’t want to believe it.  Nick?  Create something terrible?  Nah.  But then she pulled out a big needle and popped my big ass head.  It took quite a long time (several days!) for us to find something that really was appropriate for the jelly.  So a big thanks to Kristin H. for keeping my labels on point.  Mucho gracias.

Get ready!

Get ready, ’cause here I come.

So fee-fi-fo-fum, look out baby, ’cause here I come.

Have I told you that I absolutely LOVE the oldies?

Anyway, not what this post is about.  I got some new stuff in that will allow me to make some new products.  Testing out the Clear Jel this weekend and hopefully will have some new stuff for the shop that will be really cool.