Before we got out of the car at the farmers’ market the other morning, my husband and I made a solemn pact: to shop prudently. No expensive cans of home-press walnut oil. No $5 novelty squashes. And absolutely no more jars of preserves to add to our collection of half-eaten souvenir stock.
Our resolve lasted all the way down the first aisle–where we made modest purchases of salad greens and purple carrots–and halfway up the second. Then we came upon the Glashoff Farm stand, where the jewelly jars of jam were stacked high and glinting in the sun. “Would you like a taste?” asked Maria Glashoff. And we were done for:
Photographs by Josh Quittner for Gardenista.
Above: We bought a jar of Glashoff Farm Boysenberry Preserves, and I neither remember how much it cost–$5, $10, $100?–or care. I would have paid anything after one taste. The fifth-generation family farm in Fairfield, CA, is in the process of setting up an online shop on its website at Glashoffs.com. If you don’t live within driving distance of the Marin Civic Center Farmers’ Market, I recommend bookmarking that site.
Above: How did the Glashoff Farm boysenberry preserves taste? Like summer. Like the boysenberry syrup served in the 1960s at International House of Pancakes restaurants. Like you’d be happy to eat nothing but toast for the rest of your life. Other flavors: apricot, orange marmalade, Concord grape.
Above: Third-generation farmer Maria Glashoff spent the last 20 years tinkering with and refining her recipes. Time well spent. Not only did we buy a jar, but all I can think about now is canning my own. For more on canning techniques, see today’s posts “Risky Business: Oven Canning Jam” and “10 Easy Pieces: Canning Essentials.”
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