When we‘ve made great preserves at home, the flavor never deteriorates from the original berry. In fact, it is magnified; that’s what preserving should do. It should concentrate and magnify what’s special about the food.
So says organic farmer Anthony Boutard about their organic preserves. Of course, he does his processing—not at home, but in a commercial kitchen where both he and Carol adhere to the highest standards of producing in small batch amounts. Attention to detail and individual care permeate the process, from the first picking of the fruit at its ripest, to the processing in the jar using only the barest essential organic ingredients.
Watch some of the related videos at Ayers Creek Farm and an excerpt from Anthony’s recent book: Beautiful Corn: America’s Original Grain from Seed to Plate
More about their fresh fruit preserves
Anthony and his wife Carol grow a variety of diversified crops on their certified organic Ayers Creek Farm. Over the years, CUPS has done a number of videos about the Boutard’s and the food they grow and have witnessed first-hand the knowledge and the care that they both apply to farming. As Anthony has said before, he grows food that he wants to eat himself (and does!) and sells at the local Hillsdale Farmers Market where he’s able to explain a new crop to a clientele that has grown accustomed to his New England charms and his seriousness about producing delicious food.
The same dedication goes into the berries (and plums) that he grows and processes. As you watch this short video, it becomes apparent that these are farmers that in a sense are bucking the trend, striving to achieve the highest common denominator in what they grow and process—not focusing first on increasing yields and profits.
One of the interesting things Rebecca and I learned from our recent visit , is the role that pectin plays in the processing of commercial preserves. Carol was adamant, you don’t need to use pectin at all—and should not, if you start with the freshest and highest quality whole fruit. Adding pectin decreases the amount of fruit that’s used. Beyond what’s naturally present in the fruit—their preserves contain only organic fruit, sugar, and lemon juice.
For the Boutard’s, adding pectin to the ingredient list would lower the cost of production and potentially increase their profits. It would also dilute the flavor of the natural fruit.
As food purists and farmers, that’s something they will not do.