The inspiration for this jam came while vacationing in the south of France a few years ago. My husband and I had rented a cottage with a small kitchen so that I could shop at the local farmers’ market and experiment in the kitchen – a dream vacation for me!
It was late September and the extraordinarily fragrant little Poires William (the ones used to make the famous brandy) were flooding the market’s stalls. I couldn’t resist, I bought an entire basket of them. When I returned to our cottage the little rosemary bush outside the front door caught my attention, and in a flash, the idea for this recipe came into my mind.
I made the jam that very day and served it with an assortment of local goat cheeses at different stages of ripeness. Needless to say, we ate every last morsel of both the jam and the cheeses!
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There’s something magical about bubbles – they always bring a smile to your face and lift your spirit. They’re enchanting even when mixed in cocktails.
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Every week, I drive up to our local orchards to stock up on fruits. The Orchards of Concklin, a family-run farm since 1712, is only a short, scenic drive from my home and only one hour north of Manhattan.
I come home loaded with peaches, nectarines, apricots, cherries, little sweet sugarplums, blueberries, gooseberries, red currants, and even gorgeous heirloom tomatoes. I set my loot in large bowls on one of my counters and it all looks so abundant that I could easily open my own stand!
It seems that my eyes are always much bigger than my stomach, though, and invariably, within a few days, some fruits are too ripe to eat on their own. That’s when I pull out my pots and start making jam.
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