This time last year was the first time I’d ever made my own marmalade. I think partly because I’ve only recently got into marmalde, and I’ve not been a big preserves maker (unless you count preserving sloes in gin).

And Dr T would tell you it was pretty tasty as far as marmalade goes. It was just the huge mess in the kitchen he couldn’t stand. The stickiness over ever surface. The chuntering from me as I tried to peel all the fruit. Which is why this year I know the answer to perfect marmalade is just to buy some darn good stuff from someone who is much better at making it than me!

My choice at the moment is either the classic Seville orange marmalade or for something different the red grapefruit marmalade from Rosebud Preserves. They’re based in barns near Masham in Yorkshire, which is about where Dr T would like me to make marmalade. I somehow think they are less messy and better equipped than me, and they certainly turn out great tasting preserves. We bought some of this for the first time when we were in the area last summer, and hoping that their stockist list moves a bit further south.

Failing that, stock up online. Gooseberry and Elderflower jam sounds like one of those to stock up on during the summer, bet it would make an interesting addition to a cream tea.

Jamsmith Jam Club

It’s a fairly miserable time of year, and if the postman only arrives with bills and rubbish junk mail then it’s not really going to add any joy to your day. So, what can you, particularly as a food lover, do about it?

I remember years ago coming across the Harry & David catalogue, and being fascinated at their fruit of the month club. Beautiful looking, juicy fruit, delivered to your door, each month. Now, I know now that this is US fruit, so probably all size and no taste, but the principle seemed great.

And I’ve seen some coming through on a non food basis, like Not Another Bill.Com, which has sent some great and unexpected things through the post to its subscribers. Should you fancy something a little more tasty, then how about joining the Jamsmith Club? You can join for one month or three, and find a 260g jar of seasonal, unique, handmade jam, jelly, marmalade or fruit butter arriving on your doorstep each month.

Made in very small batches by Vicky Smith, using locally sourced fruit from local suppliers, these are great flavour combinations like Summer Pudding with Elderflower or Wild Sloe, Crab Apple and Bramble Jelly. Three months will cost £27, which may seem a lot for jam, but remember that this is an artisanal product, and also will produce great joy on its arrival each month, not to mention each morning as you spread it on your toast. And then there’s also the good feeling from knowing you’re supporting a small business.

Give it as a gift, to someone you love, or just to yourself. Go on, in those immortal words, you’re worth it!

I love this time of year, lots of fruitful bounty in need of preserving. Not to mention rosettes going at the village horticultural show for marmalade, jam and chutney. So, it’s a great time to look at some of the great preserving books out there at the moment.

Mes Confitures: The Jams and Jellies of Christine Ferber – I know I’ve written about this book before, but it is still my favourite jam book of all time. Completely inspiring in every season, the flavour combinations are very exciting and definitely brighten up your morning toast. From my experience, they are not village show winning recipes though as they are too exciting and forward thinking. Or that could just be our village!

The Everything Root Cellaring Book: Learn to Store, Cook and Preserve Fresh Produce All Year Round – perfect especially for those of you with allotments or big gardens who have been busy growing your own produce. After all the hardwork of digging, you won’t want to let a single bit go to waste. This talks you how to make your own root cellar, not a term I think we use here but the prinicple is sound. It covers a bit of everything, so at least you can have a try of all techniques and see what works best for you.

Put ‘em Up!: A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative Cook, from Drying and Preserving to Canning and Pickling – another long title, another fairly comprehensive look at the options, possibly slightly less homespun and a bit more modern in its recipe choices. Pickled beets with cumin and coriander is not your usual beetroot in vinegar and I like the fact that it covers things like Red Hot Vodka, as a way to use up your chillies. And I don’t know what peach butter is, but it sure sounds good.

Canning for a New Generation: Bold, Fresh Flavours for the Modern Pantry – don’t be misled by the title, this is a bit of a generic for preserving, though some cans involved.. Again, organised by season for easy selection, so coming into Autumn I’d be looking longingly at Blood Plum and Apple Jam with Rosewater. Some more unusual recipes, so if you think you’ve already got the basics covered, then this might be a good addition.

The SuperJam Cookbook – lets face it, by any measure Fraser Doherty is a success story. To have done so at such a young age is incredible. And the jam is tasty. And the photography is beautiful. And the recipes interesting. Honestly, if it wasn’t for all that you could really dislike him! Comes across as a very decent bloke though. Maybe a good opportunity to get a younger generation into preserving. Or one to teach us older dogs new tricks!

So some new twists on preserving possible with all of these. But if anyone has a village show award winning jam or lemon curd recipe going spare, I’d love to get it!

This is a good week, as apparently this is Jam Week. I love jam, love the rhythm of making  it, the rituals of finding the jars, the boiling of the fruit, and then the waiting for it to be cool enough to slather on a hunk of toast with some great butter.

There is even a Pimp my Jam competiton running, for jam with extra pzazz, bling and wow factor. So guessing ordinary strawberry is not going to do the trick! I’ve written before that my favourite jam book of all time is Mes Confitures by Christine Ferber, which has some incredible combinations. They’ve never had any chance of winning a prize at our village show, but just might do the trick here.

I’m also very fond of Jam Jar Shop, a great local business, and a brilliant source for all jar and bottle requirements. There’s also Lakeland, which is a bit more national in it’s coverage. It’s just a great thing to do, to preserve the tastes of the seasons to summon up in the next one. Is there a better taste than great raspberry jam than on a grey wet January morning?

So, take time to indulge in a bit of jam this week, whether on your morning toast with scones with your afternoon tea. Be generous with it!

It’s Chelsea Flower Show this week so it’s flowers all the way, and edible flowers seem to be having a bit of a moment. You could just order some in if you wanted to try them, with Natoora doing a punnet of mixed flowers that would work with salads or to add an extra dimension of prettiness to desserts.

If you are feeling inspired by Chelsea and are getting out into the garden, then try Sarah Raven for great seeds to grow your own. The All Year Edible Flower collection includes Viola, Nasturtiums and Marigolds, so perfect additions throughout the seasons. Also worth buying blue borage, which is incredibly pretty and makes a perfect addition to Pimms and other summer drinks.

For something on standby all year round, then Steenbergs have a great collection of dried flowers and petals. There are cornflower petals with their amazing colour, dried orange blossom flowers for their beautiful fragrance and even dried peony flowers, for a pretty pink splash. They also offer a rose water and an orange blossom water, which to me are great cupboard standbys.

Not something I’ve tried, but I’m also intrigued by the Rose Petal Jelly from Fortnum & Mason. Unusually, this is made with fresh rose petals rather than dried. Would make a lovely floral change to your normal strawberry jam with clotted cream and scones, perhaps for a summer baby shower if it’s a girl, or even for a bridal shower. You could serve it along with Fentimans Rose Lemonade or add Monin Rose Syrup to a glass of prosecco for pink fizz that tastes like liquid Turkish delight to me. Just don’t over do it, too much and it becomes very sickly.

So don’t just think about flowers for table decorations, get them into the kitchen, onto the plates and into your glass! Just check for bugs first!

More to Wales than...

How could I forget? Today is St David’s Day, which will see Dr T come over all nostalgic for his homeland. We’ll have a bit of Bryn Terfel on, the legend of Gelert will be told, and no doubt a pint or two of Dark will be drunk. That said, there are a few other decent food and drink producers from Wales that he could be indulging in. Here’s a few to consider if you need a gift for an expat, or just a good food lover.

* You’ll probably need to start with some excellent Welsh lamb, so try the Organic Lamb Box from Slade Farm Organics. Prize winning, fed on their mother’s milk on organic clover pastures, this box will give you a fantastic selection of different cuts, including shoulder on and off the bone, leg and burgers. Enjoy some now, and some would make for great barbecuing when we get some warmer weather.

* For something smokey with great taste, try the Gourmet Hamper from the Black Mountains Smokery. Taking this beyond just good smoked salmon, they’d also get smoked chicken and duck breasts, smoked boned whole quail and smoked Welsh Dragon sausages amongst others. A real family business, producing great food with great taste.

* My next one was recommended by one of the world’s greatest Pimms drinkers, and she’s pretty good at brownies too! Kate Jenkins from Gower Cottage Brownies reckons Aerona is possibly even better than Pimms when mixed in a similar way. Made from Welsh Aronia berries, which I know nothing about, and the website will do nothing to enlighten you. I’ll take it on Kate’s recommendation that is worth a try for a lover of unusual drinks, or just a Welshman looking for an alternative to the Englishness of Pimms!

* For something a little different to spread on their toast, then how about the Blackcurrant and Liquorice Jam from Pant Glas Bach Preserves? A nostalgic taste, those sweets of childhood preserved in a jar. Will definitely liven up breakfast time!

* If you want a great Welsh hamper,then try either Y Bwrti Deli’s All Year Gift Hamper, or else I’m very fond of Bodlon. Their selections start at £9.50, and go up to a spectacular vintage apple crate of goodies at £150. Lovely though. Also a really good source for Welsh homewares as well. I’m thinking of buying Dr T the Welsh national anthem tea towel, as I don’t think he knows the words. I also really like the ceramics from Keith Brymer Jones, like the Cariad mugs. Lovely wedding gift for a lovely Welsh couple. Or perhaps a couple with links to Wales. Keith, get them to the Palace now!

There’s so much good food related stuff going on across Wales that you could criss-cross the country from now until next St David’s Day and you’d still be finding great stuff to eat and drink, great places to eat, and great places to stay. Just stay out of Chip Alley!

Photo by zoonabar on Flickr.

It’s Seville orange time, which probably means there’s a whole heap of marmalade making going on around the country. And if you think yours is marmalade is one to be reckoned with, then you still have time to enter The World’s Original Marmalade Awards.

No, I had no idea either, but these awards are being held Dalemain Mansion and Gardens in Cumbria on the 12th and 13th February this year. You have until  5 February to make your submission, and it sounds like entries have been flooding in from around the world. There are classes for homemade marmalade, as well as for artisan producers, and even an award for poems and stories involving marmalade.

And if you fancy a weekend away, or live nearby, then it really is a “jam” packed weekend of activity. You can see the entries, meet the WI judges, even a meet and greet with the great marmalade lover, Paddington Bear. There are also some great lectures on the Saturday, including “A Taste of Marmalades Past” with food historian Ivan Day and Dan Lepard demonstrating the best bread for marmalade.

Worried it’ll be nippy in Cumbria in February? Well, Saturday night won’t be as they’re having a Marmalade Bonfire Party. Sounds more appealing than most Bonfire Nights!

If you think you need to get into production, then Jam Jar Shop have a marmalade mega pack on offer, giving you 48 jars, labels and a muslin. And if you need a bit of tutoring, or a bit of inspiration, then there’s still time to get on the Marmalade Magic course in February.

Great marmalade photo by Amanda Slater on Flickr.

January was all about eating up the leftovers, and generally trying to waste an awful lot less food. It’s a theme that’s continued throughout the year as we adopt more frugal measures for economic reasons as well as just being more environmentally sound. Faux pastor has figured large in the year, I highly recommend it as a great standby recipe for using up leftover roast.

Ta dah! The finished faux pastor

I think I missed out on February’s best meal, as Dr T and MGG went to The Field Canteen at Riverford. There were lots of vegetable dishes, but MGG was most impressed by the puddings. One day I’ll get there too, just have to settle for the veg box deliveries and the great recipes that come in the box.

Anyone for seconds?

March was about getting ready for Easter, for which I wasn’t very well prepared on the marzipan front. But I did get a great recipe from Domestic Jules for a Simnel loaf.

In April, we skipped off to sunnier climes, and ate our way round Majorca. Lots of memorable meals, lots of good tapas, and something to show you why you should always keep your chefs busy:

When chefs have too much time on their hands

It was also the month that the bee hive, and the strange outfits arrived.

Beekeeping: it's all glamour

There was some glorious weather in May, and one of the hottest days saw us at the Derbyshire Food Fair. Plenty of good food, both for eating then and there, and lots to bring away for another day.

The spoils we bore triumphantly home!

June. Oh, I remember June. It goes down as the only time in my life that I have been served a starter that looks like an arse. Really.

By July we were heading off to France, and it was the usual couple of weeks of eating and drinking, still discovering new places and new things to eat. We had great breakfasts, and we had an amazing dinner at Sa.Qua.Na in Honfleur, which really was dining at the next level.

The amuse bouches

August was about barbecues, but obviously good ones, as no photographs exist. In September I was in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and discovering the joy of food courts out there.

What you get for HK$35

I might be heading back there in a few weeks time, great dim sum, and very cheap.

In October we had a great day at the East Midlands Food Festival, where it was all about wood fired pizza ovens, and particularly the great pizza from Hot Rocks Artisan Pizza. It disappeared pretty darn quick, hence no photo.

In November we were eating and drinking well, as I had a great hamper from The Spanish Food Company, which I did share with my friends. In return they had to help me out with tasting gin, so we had a comparison for the SW4 Gin I’d been sent. A good night was had by all.

And so to December, which always bring great food. Our Christmas Day was team cooking with BFF to turn out some spectacular beef, pretty decent soup and some great puddings. But most of all it was a chance to share a great dinner with great friends and family. Which for me is really what food is all about. So here’s hoping for lots more of the same in 2011, and the same for you and yours.

What trends does your crystal ball show?

Back in December 2009 (which really does feel an age ago) I wrote a piece about what 2010 might bring for foodand food lovers. So, should I give up the day job and take up with a crystal ball? Hmm, lets see…

* We’d all continue to rediscover the joy of homemade. Tick. But fairly safe bet I think. And even to back it for this year, as no sign of things getting imminently better. That said, according to Google trends, there were less searches on jam making last year than in 2009, perhaps suggesting we’re all properly set up now with equipment and into the swing of things.

* Not sure if politics is my thing, although we certainly got a change in government. My predicted swing to the right perhaps didn’t quite come off, and I’ve not noticed any great resurgence in nationalistic cooking. However, if we win the Ashes outright, then maybe we’ll see that happen. I did say I thought that nostalgia would reign big in food, and I think we’ve seen quite a lot of that, from traditional puds through to all the old fashioned sweets still going strong.

* An explosion in Turkish food. More like a damp squib I would say, but as food didn’t even feature in the official programme for Turkey’s year as European Capital of Culture then I guess I’m not really surprised. If it wasn’t important to them, it was hardly going to shake the world food scene. Shame, because I still think it’s a cuisine with an awful lot going for it. Which the citizens of Farnborough would seem to agree with, as they led the way in searches on Turkish food.

* I think growing your own salad probably did get a good look in, as we got quite a spell of sunshine, and there was continued featuring of the cost and conditions of bagged salad, not to mention a couple of e Coli cases linked to lettuce. Tomatoes appear to have been the most popular salad item to grow, which given their ease to grow even in small spaces is perhaps not great surprise. The fact that Nottingham leads the way in interest in the subject may be more of a surprise.

I’ve not done my Mystic Meg act yet for the year ahead, and I do wonder if much will change. Although there are two European capitals of culture this year: Turku in Finland and Tallinn in Estonia. I can imagine Finnish food having a moment (if only because it would allow me to buy the Moomins Cookbook) but Estonian? Not sure, will need some research as it’s a cuisine I know zero about. What do you think? Where’s food going this year and what will we all be worrying about?

Crystal ball shot by Richard Lamb Photography.

Feeling very lucky,  as the lovely people at The Spanish Food Company sent me the most amazing hamper to try. And what a hamper of fabulousness it was!

If you haven’t come across them before, they are specialist importers of great Spanish food, with great provenance from artisanal producers. They know all the producers, and have certainly selected some incredible ones.

We’ve been enjoying an Iberico, or Pata Negra, ham which is from the woodlands of Extremadura in the west of Spain. Made from truly free ranging animals that live happily on wild grasses, flowers and, of course, acorns. I have to say the words melt in the mouth were made for this, and it was definitely worth the money for a special treat.

I like chorizo, but I love the chorizo that came in this hamper. It puts all other ones I’ve ever tasted into the dark, and from the tasting notes this could be because it is cured over oak smoke. According to the tasting notes, this is made by Jesus.

Sorry, no, it says it’s made by Jesús in a little village in northern León. Great from the fridge sliced onto your tapas selection, or chopped up and added to all kinds of cooking.

Heading further south, and a beautiful goat’s cheese from Los Cameros. Naturally cured, crumbly and perfect for those not sure about goat’s cheese. A hint of grassiness as you’d expect but then smooth and ever so slightly nutty. It was also the perfect partner to the piquillo peppers they also included, and a bit more unusual than Manchego.

If you think all that slicing might be too much like hard work, then make sure to order the almonds, as these will keep you going whilst you get chopping! Perfect with a cold beer, a cold glass of rose, a glass of red, coffee, tea…well, put it this way, they haven’t lasted long around here!

The hampers start at £30, and I would say the presentation is as tasteful as the produce is tasty. If you don’t think you could bear to give any of this away, then you can shop by individual product as well. Worth checking out the honey, the olive oil and the whole leg of ham. If you have £400 to spare! But what a way to spend it! I’d also be tempted to add a copy of “Everything But the Squeal: A Year of Pigging Out in Northern Spain” to understand the devotion of that area of Spain to fabulous pork products. It’s also a cracking good read!