This year I made ‘fridge jam’ which doesn’t have as much sugar in it and therefore has a lighter set and has to be kept in the fridge once it has been opened. I tend to keep mine in the fridge anyway, and I like a soft-set jam ever since I had my Aunt Doris’ blackcurrant jam inflicted on me as a child – basically the best way of getting it out of the jar was a chisel rather than a spoon.

Anyway, it turned out very nice, although I think most of my strawberries are floating towards the top so it probably wouldn’t win any show prizes. I also ran out of jars, so J, who also likes jam is getting a surprise jar as shown in the picture. He is always saying how much he likes cheese…

On the strawberry subject – I picked the first of the wild ones from the garden yesterday – the cultivated ones aren’t ready yet.

The jam smelled lovely when it was cooking and I’ve put it in some nice (recycled ‘Bonne Maman’) jars with decorative disks round the top – but I’m not entirely convinced that it has set hard enough and it may not keep very well. I suppose better that than set too hard. When I was a child we used to stay with my Aunt in Cornwall who was a notoriously awful cook (shepherds’ pie you could have poured out of a jug, instant whip made with water rather than milk etc.) and one of her ‘specialities’ was blackcurrant jam which was so stiff that not only was it difficult to get a spoon in to, but that it retained its shape when emptied out of the jar (and probably if it was thrown against a wall).

Anyway – I am just making a loaf of bread to accompany it. Doubtless even if it is not very nice my father will eat it anyway – he is a great one for jam.

It occurred to me looking at the pictures I had just taken of both, what iconic images of the Scottish summer they are. A little piece of paradise is sitting by your own bluebell wood on the banks of the Donich, eating strawberries you grew yourself.