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March Slice of Life No. 11.

When I was young, jelly or jam was served with toast at breakfast. Once in a while, it would be served if we had hot biscuits. . . once in a while.

When I married, my husband wanted jelly/jam on the table at every meal. I objected. He insisted. Jelly/jam became a regular part of all meals. But never grape jelly.

In the years when our children were young, I made jam/preserves. Plum was our favorite. Jars of deep purple, tart sweetness. There were sand plums* we’d pick from bushes that grew along fences bordering grasslands and wheat fields when we lived in Oklahoma.

Sand Plums
Photo by John M. Row

And then there were the Italian plums we’d harvest from two trees in our backyard when we moved to Oregon.

Italian Plums

Now, many years later, jam/preserves on a piece of warm crunchy rustic toast or a hot flaky homemade biscuit is one of my favorite winter treats. We often have two or three choices on our table, even though it is only the two of us now.

  • No sugar or sweeteners added. More fruit. Simply Fruit selections are always in our pantry or refrigerator. Apricot and blackberry are the favorites.
  • About a year ago we discovered Kelly’s, made in Oregon. I think I’ve become addicted to the touch of heat in the sweetness. And, in case you don’t know, there is nothing like the sweetness of an Oregon strawberry or an Oregon marionberry.
  • A friend introduced us to Robert Rothschild hot pepper peach, poured over a brick of cream cheese, served with water crackers. Now, this one has bite to it. Needless to say, a jar is on the jam shelf in our refrigerator.

And when my biscuits are a day old, I split ’em, butter ’em, toast ’em under the broiler, and spread with jam. Yum!

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*Also known as sand hill plum, mountain cherry, and chickasaw plum.

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March 2019 SOLC–Day 11
Thank you to
Two Writing Teacher