Apricot: Jam

Jam ratio: 60:40 fruit to sugar. I like a bit of tartness in my fruit preserves, so I add a splash of citrus or vinegar if the finished product tastes too sweet. But apricot jam tends toward tangy on its own, so it rarely needs much. Additionally, the skins of apricots are so thin that they blend right into the jam as the fruit cooks; no scaling, peeling, poking, or prodding required. I don’t tend to add any other flavors to apricot jam, though vanilla, lemon herbs (such as verbena, balm, or thyme), ginger, or cardamom are perfectly at home. I do always add one of the apricot kernels to each jar.