I have always marveled at the transformative properties of summer. When the mercury soars, our edges soften and we become more open, more receptive, and generally more happy. I think that is one of the reasons I love summer so much–it is the underlying feeling of playfulness and connection. I just want to bottle it up.
Our family was away in Maine last week. We go to the Belgrade Lakes region, stay in a great house right on Long Pond with a sunset view. It is dreamy there. It was a week filled with summer fun: from shopping at the farmers market, water skiing and wake boarding, listening to the loons on the lake, to sitting around a table playing games at night, it was the stuff that summer dreams are made of. And my personal highlight is a secret little dock, across the road–on the sunrise side of lake–where I have the pleasure of practicing yoga each morning (sometimes with fish watching me from the water, other mornings with woodpeckers hanging out in the trees above me, or duck families swimming by…..).
To capture a little of our trip, and a little of that summer feeling, my husband and I went to a local farm and purchased a cooler full (seriously, like a whole giant cooler!) of the freshest strawberries I’ve ever seen. They were the kind that were bright red all the way through, like this:
And then, to literally bottle up all that summer goodness, I made jam. Loads of strawberry jam. You may not be able to bottle up that summer openness and delicious feeling, but you can certainly bottle up strawberry jam!
Happy summer trails!
P. S. If you are new to jam-making try the low sugar variety (Pomona’s Pectin) at Whole Foods! Just follow one of the recipes on the insert.