Bad news: the Guinness mustard is finished. Good news: I opened the vanilla caramel pear jam. (In truth, I opened it before I finished then Guinness mustard, despite my promises of going one at a time because, really, jam and mustard fulfill totally different functions.)
When I first opened the jar, the caramel aroma was so strong, I really expected the jam (or jelly? I'll need a lesson from you at some point on the difference) to be sticky like caramel, but it turns out that the caramel taste really takes a backseat to the vanilla bean and pear—it almost ends up just being the flavor that lingers. The vanilla bean & pear (and the lingering caramel flavor) together make this the perfect winter jam. The flavors aren't as bright as I typically expect from jams, and I'm totally appreciative of this in the winter mornings while I'm eating toast and jam with tea for breakfast. The flavors are warm (and my apartment is so cold right now) but not too sweet (it is definitely sweet, but not as overly sweet as I may have expected from a combination of three such sweet flavors). The jam is substantive and soaks into toast so that I've got the crunch and the sweet and the yum all in one amazing bite. In short--delicious again!!!
From Tim: "Two thumbs up. Tell Anna she should go into business making this."
Thanks for the support, guys!
In answer to Naomi's uncertainty about jams, jellies, and, just for the knowledge, preserves:
The difference is in the form that the fruit takes.
- In jelly, the fruit is in the form of fruit juice.
- In jam, the fruit is in the form of fruit pulp or crushed fruit (and is less stiff than jelly as a result).
- In preserves, the fruit is in the form of chunks in a syrup or a jam.
I suppose that my creations are more along the lines of jams or preserves. I should also mention here that I do not add pectin to mine; I use a two day process that allows the natural pectin in the fruit to set up the spread. It is not as stiff but I'm okay with that and, apparently, so are the other people enjoying it.
