Fruit, Glorious Fruit

'Tis the season to be fruity, and at the Carrefour supermarket in France we found a huge stand of ripe watermelons. How could we resist? We picked out the largest specimen and balanced it in the front basket of Evelyne's bike to take home and share with the family (my host mother, riding her bicycle laden with fruit, made the image of a true French mamie).

Big as a pregnant belly, the watermelon was dessert for several meals and equally satisfying at each. Its juice was so sweet, it was as though we were eating slices of sorbet. I've since had a debate with a friend over whether or not you eat the seeds of a watermelon, but I daresay I even enjoyed those too. Eating this one gem of a summer fruit was such a pleasant feature of my short stay in France, and again it made me regret slightly that we don't find anything quite so good in British supermarkets (although I did note that our cherries and strawberries are tastier).

Also, this time back in England, I came home last afternoon to the exciting sight (and smell) of my mum's homemade pineapple jam. I stuck a spoon into one of the still-warm jars to test this latest batch; gooey, sweet and buttery (yes, buttery), pineapple has been a revelation to me in jam flavours. I had never tried it until a few months ago, but it has swiftly moved to the top of my Favourites list (just above raspberry and apricot).

There exist a couple of tiresomely long-winded recipes around for pineapple jam, yet this one achieves the same delicious result with delightful simplicity:

Ingredients:

1 large, fresh pineapple (makes about 1kg jam)

1.5lb/500g jam sugar (with pectin)

Method:

1. Peel, core and finely chop the fresh pineapple, removing all eyes and bits of skin.

2. Mix the fruit with the sugar and 0.5 pints/300ml water in a deep preserving pan.

3. Boil the mixture over a medium heat, stirring gently and removing excess froth from the surface, until it becomes syrupy and dark (homemade p.j.'s rich amber is a much more appetizing colour than the pale lemon-yellow of shop-bought brands).

4. Test a sample of the jam by leaving it to cool on a saucer- if it becomes sticky and forms a wrinkled skin, it's ready; boil for a little longer if not, and test again.

5. To set, divide the jam into hot, sterilised jars and seal when cold.

Store in the fridge and dollop onto hot buttered toast, a warm croissant or even stir into plain Greek yoghurt. Soon, it'll be your favourite too.

See my next post for an accompanying photo.