Twelve jars at a time

Jamtastic started with too many raspberries. Ross had a row of canes behind the house in Vermont, a stockpot, and a stubborn dislike of jam that tastes like candy. The first batch went to neighbors. The second went to a farm stand. The rest is a very full kitchen calendar.

Small batch here is literal: about twelve jars per pot. Small pots cook faster, which means less time on heat and more of the fruit's own flavor left in the jar.

All natural means the ingredient list stays short — fruit, a modest amount of sugar, lemon juice, and sometimes a real vanilla bean or a pour of Vermont maple. No commercial pectin, no preservatives, no colorings.

Fruit comes from Ross's own canes and nearby Vermont growers, picked ripe rather than shipping-firm. When a fruit's season ends, that flavor comes off the shelf until next year. That's the trade for making it this way.