Fresh Pineapple, Preserved 5 Ways.

One of my favorite ways to spend time is in the kitchen, challenging myself to preserve one fruit or vegetable in as many different ways possible. It partially stems from my innate desire to be creative, but it's also a result of growing up in a region that offers an abundance of low-cost and often free produce. "Free", as in, friends & neighbors giving me boxes of their garden or orchard bounty in exchange for jam, jelly or pickles. Win/win.

 Pineapple isn't grown in Seattle, of course, but in the darkest days of winter, or on chilly spring days, if I find a good deal on fresh pineapples I might buy 3 or 4 of them and spend a day preserving some of that sweet-sparkly tropical sunshine in a bottle or jar.

Keep in mind - fresh pineapple preserves beautifully. Its natural sugars really shine once they meet heat, and the naturally-present pectin makes it practically fool-proof. (No packets of pectin necessary!) For these reasons, and quite a few more, fresh pineapple is one of my go-to fruits for preserving, any time of the year. 

Apricot~Pineapple Jam

Pineapple Drinking Vinegar

Pineapple Jam

Pineapple-Jalapeño Chutney  

Roasted Pineapple Ketchup

Pear-Pineapple Jamtini Cocktail

 Every once in a while, when I try to give someone a jar of my homemade jam they say "oh, thanks anyway...but we don't eat much jam at our house. We don't really eat toast." 

In the back of my mind, this is usually followed by a question from me that goes something like this: "What? Pardon me...did you just say you don't. Eat. JAM???"

Being the die-hard jam maker/preserver that I am, I have to suppress the urge to shout "this isn't just a jar of jam! This is a jar of beautiful hand-picked tree-ripened fruit, cooked with organic cane juice sugar and a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice!" 
"It's a yogurt topping!"
"A smoothie perker-upper!" 
"A baste for pork tenderloin!"
"And it's my new favorite way to use jam - a cocktail builder!"

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