Tuesday
February

22

2005
7:00 AM

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Most Perfect Raspberry Found in a Jar, tasted on February 22, 2005, part of the Independent Food Festival and Awards — I have a thing for all things sour. Candy and fruit are the most common vehicles. When it comes to fruit, Granny Smith apples (I'm told I need to try courtlands), limes, and not quite ripe blackberries are among my favorites. Raspberries are really one of the best expressions of what I like about sour fruit. I love that they're soft and meaty and filled with a very small amount of juice. And as much as I like the sugar in them, I really want them to have a healthy dose of acidity. When they're ripe and full of flavor I can eat them by the truckload.

When it comes to raspberry jam, I'm essentially looking for a truckload full of raspberries. And all my life I've been on a sort of background quest - to find a raspberry jam that conveyed as closely as possible the essence of... well... raspberries. It may seem like a simple task, but believe me, it's not. Most raspberry jams suffer from three main problems. 1) They are too gelled. Pectin is used to give Jam its gelatinous qualities. Some Jams are just overly gelatinous. They have too much structure. 2) They are too sweet. I understand that some people feel just as strongly about sour flavors as I do but in the other direction. That said, I can get a lovely strawberry jam if I want something sweeter. 3) They have no seeds. I try not to be too "judgey" on this site which given that it's the sole purpose of the site can be kind of difficult. That said, I do not understand what the point is of taking the seeds out of raspberry jam. They are such critical texture. I suppose for someone who's not as obsessed with just having a jar full of raspberries, maybe seeds are not as a high a priority. And after all, I do like Orange Juice with less pulp, so who am I to talk.

Every few months I will notice an interesting jar of raspberry jam on the shelf at the grocery store (or specialty store) and give it a whirl. And every few months I am disappointed. I think it was the fact that the Raspberry Tart Pacific Raspberry Jam had the word "tart" in the name that attracted me. I figured that it must at least be sour, and I could see the seeds through the glass of the jar, so we had a decent chance of getting something reasonable. Imagine my surprise when I got home, opened the jar, and found basically a container full of crushed fresh raspberries. Beautifully juicy. Perfectly sour. Filled with texture. Crushed fresh raspberries. Wow. I've been searching for at least twenty years, and my quest is finally complete. This stuff can be eaten anywhere you see fit, on ice cream, on toast, on a steak for all I care. (This is starting to feel a little Dr. Seussish.) And while this is a little embarrassing to admit, I've often eaten it just with a spoon. In fact, on those occasions, I've found myself down most of a jar before I realized I almost ate an entire jar of jam with a spoon. I don't know what's stopping me from just doing it. Sitting down with a new jar of Raspberry Tart Pacific Raspberry Jam and eating the whole thing with a spoon. I think society is keeping me down. 

As you may have noticed from the logo at the start of this article, we are proud to participate in the first annual Independent Food Festival and Awards. In fact, the host of the festival, tasteeverything.org, is our sister website. These awards work a little differently than most in that each jury member gets to create and give out their own award. As a member of the inaugural jury I am proud to give the award for the:

Most Perfect Raspberry Found in a Jar

to

Raspberry Tart, Pacific Raspberry Jam,
Mountain Fruit Company, Chico, California

They have a whole line of jams you should try as well. Hopefully someday I can get down to Chico and con my way into a demonstration of how the Mountain Fruit people are capable of preserving the essence of fresh perfect raspberries in a jar.

(Note: I got mine at the Wholefoods in Bellevue, WA. Not all Wholefoods have it, but I bet they can order it. I also found it online here.)

∞

Thirty food bloggers made up this year's awards jury. Check out the entire list of awards for more great food you may not have heard of.