Sweet taste of summer.

There are many reasons I love summer for but one of the best things about this season of year is variety of veggies and fruits on the market. Having such a big choice puts me into inspirational mood and lets me enjoy my experimantal kitchen. I try preparing new things but I don't feel too comfortable in the kitchen and I always worry too much about the results of my work. Usually there is no reason to worry because my experiments turn out fine. They are edible. What's more, they are tasty.

Some time ago I made apricot jam. I's my very first jam; I wasn't sure if it was going be a success but I'm more than happy with the result.

I love its thick consistency and vivid orange color. The taste is delicious. Thanks to some lemon juice, it's not very sweet, it's just right. And a breakfast made of pancakes with this jam is a real heaven, trust me.

I think that making jams is a great way of saving a piece of summer for later, for colder and less colorful time of year. My mum used to make lots of jams for winter. Goosberries, black currants, cherries, plums, strawberries, any fruits we had in the garden were turned into little treasures of summertime, closed in jars and put away in the pantry for winter. When I was a child, we used to go to the forest to pick up blueberries and wild raspberries. The first ones were for jams, andf rom the second ones we made juice. I still remember its thick, sweet taste. My mum used to add it to my tea when I cought cold in winter.

To save some sweet taste and color of summer you need:
1.5 kg washed and peeled apricots*
330 grams sugar
half a cup water (around 100ml)
half a lemon

In a big pot mix apricots with water, sugar and juice from sqeezed lemon. Boil on a small heat, stirring from time to time, until the mixture gets jam consistency. Pour into jars and keep it safe. And enjoy!

*or any fruit of your own choice