Back in Business

Pardon my absence. It's been a busy, busy summer, and while I managed to fit some canning in there, I didn't quite get around to updating the site.
However! Preservation Society is back in business and everything is up to date. There are some exciting new flavours to try, like Black Raspberry Jam and Horseradish Pickled Jade Beans.
Unfortunately, the best way to order is still direct from me, although you will soon be able to find Preservation Society products in an exciting new locale! Stay tuned...
Everything costs $8.
Thanks for stopping by.

Two News Jams and a Reminder

Hey friends, just wanted to let you know that Preservation Society is always available for custom orders-- for gifts, favours for weddings or baby showers, personal hoarding... All different shapes and sizes of jars are available and flavours are only limited by the seasons and our (limitless!) imagination. Please contact me for details.

While I'm here, I should mention that there are two new flavours available. Gingery Caramel Apple Jam is the sassy sister of our classic Caramel Apple Jam, and Pear and Cranberry Jam w/ Lemon Zest is a toothsome preserve with a beautiful scarlet hue. Don't hesitate! Try them now!

Seville Orange Marmalade

Seville oranges are here again, much to the delight of any marmalade fanatics, myself certainly included.
So far I've produced two marmalades-- Classic Seville Orange Marmalade and Rich & Rummy Seville Marmalade. The former is just what it purports to be, a purists' marmalade, made using only seville oranges, sugar and lemon juice. The peel is thick-cut and the set is firm. It's bracing and sunshine-y and the perfect thing to wake up to.
What distiguishes the Rich & Rummy from its Classic counterpart is the substitution of half the sugar with dark brown sugar and a generous glug of dark rum to finish it off. The result is a richer, more mysterious preserve-- your nighttime marmalade, if you will. Although it's equally good on your morning toast, this is what I would use to fill crepes or to stir into cake batter, or just eat out of the jar in front of the open fridge in the middle of the night.
Act now! The sevilles aren't around for much longer...

Happy New Year

The Christmas madness has come and gone, and gladly there are still some jars of preserves left to brighten the winter months ahead. As much as we'd all like to deny it, there's still a lot of cold days and nights to come.
Happily, General 54 has decided to keep my preserves on the shelves past Christmas, so you can still pick up a jar there. Soon you should also be able to find Preservation Society wares at Dépanneur Le Pick Up! Stay tuned for that...
In the meantime, though, I will now DELIVER preserves! Just email you order (everything is currently $8/jar), and as long as you live in Mile End, Little Italy, the Plateau, or thereabouts, I will bring it to you as fast as I can. Now that's a deal, folks. Not to be missed.
And please check back soon for new flavours-- the citrus season is just about to kick in full force. I am very much looking forward to Sevilles, but there are also Cara Cara oranges, blood oranges, kumquats... It's too exciting. So don't be a stranger. Your morning toast needs me.

Cranberry-Apple Butter

I like traditional apple butter as much as the next guy, but when I was at the market the other day, I realized I hadn't done anything with cranberries yet and that they would add a new dimension to an old standard. I decided not to use any spices to let the tart flavour of the cranberries shine through. I used half Spartan and half Lobo apples from Rougemont and beautiful fresh cranberries from Saint-Louis-de-Blanford, simmering them in unpasteurized local apple cider. The resulting preserve is pure, clean apple and cranberry flavour with a beautiful scarlet colour. So autumnal!

Flemish Beauty Pear Jam w/ St-Germain

Some of my summer produce small-batch preserves have already sold out. Sorry!
Never fear, there are new jars showing up all the time, like this pear jam...


Québec isn't exactly known for its pears-- our cold weather and short growing season are not ideal for the fruit. Still, every year some Flemish Beauties turn up at the market. They're a small, heartier variety that can stand our climate, but they remain a fairly small crop, so it feels like you're really getting something special when you get your hands on some. A limited edition.
It follows that one should make something special with the pears, and I think I found them a pretty fine partner in St-Germain, a French liqueur flavoured with elderflowers. It really brings out the floral side of the pears, which are cut into chunks and suspended in fragrant jelly. Let's face it, this is a bit of a frou-frou jam-- more suited to scones and crème fraîche than to a peanut butter sandwich. Something to save for a cold winter day. So stock up.

Branding...

I finally have amazing new labels!

They basically look like the header of this website...

They were designed by my very talented friend Katie Bethune-Leamen.

As much as I think the labels rule, I think her talent is better represented by her non-jam-jar-label art. You can see some on her website: www.katiebethuneleamen.com