Ahhh! The perfume of fresh apricots
Walking on to Gonzales Orchards’ property is like stepping in to
a warm apricot-scented bubble bath. I am immediately transported to
summer days of my childhood as soon as I breathe in the sweet,
pungent smell of apricots warmed by the morning sun.
I didn’t spend my summer days cutting them like most kids my age
did, but the smell never fails to remind me of the apricot orchards
near our farm and the sweet smell and taste of Mom’s homemade
apricot jam that lined the countertops every year.
Ahhh! The perfume of fresh apricots
Walking on to Gonzales Orchards’ property is like stepping in to a warm apricot-scented bubble bath. I am immediately transported to summer days of my childhood as soon as I breathe in the sweet, pungent smell of apricots warmed by the morning sun.
I didn’t spend my summer days cutting them like most kids my age did, but the smell never fails to remind me of the apricot orchards near our farm and the sweet smell and taste of Mom’s homemade apricot jam that lined the countertops every year.
I spot Patti Gonzalez amidst her crew who are vigorously cutting cots in preparation for drying them. The big smile on her face reveals her passion for what she does as she makes her way through the assembly line giving instructions along the way. She briefly looks up and acknowledges me. Before she heads over to where I stand, she hollers up to who I later find out are her daughter and a few of her daughter’s friends. Meanwhile her husband, Gary, comes and introduces himself to me. He extends his hand towards me, and the smile on his face reveals a jovial man who, like his wife, is passionate for apricots.
I discovered the Gonzales’ delicious fruit last year when I went on a hunt for fresh, local, organic apricots. Believe it or not, these are hard to find. A customer of mine told me she always bought great fruit from the Gonzales’ at her farmer’s market. I was surprised to find such a treat on the other side of my family’s ranch in Hollister. All of this time they were not even a mile within my reach and I had no idea!
Just as soon as Gary and I introduce ourselves to each other, Patti joins us and greets me with a big hug, calling me ‘Becky Girl’ as if she has known me for years. You can’t get service like this in San Francisco I think as she leads me to the pallet of boxes filled with apricots just picked that morning.
Patti opens a box and picks 2 large apricots off the top and offers one to me. We both sink our teeth in to this perfectly ripe fruit and its thick sweet nectar ripples over my taste buds as I try not to let the juice escape my mouth. Pure heaven!
I have feared the jam making process for years, believing only someone like my Mom was talented enough in the kitchen to pull off preserving fruit correctly. Tasting Gary and Patti’s fruit convinced me that I might need to suck it up and try making jam myself. With 300 pounds of delicious fruit staring me in the face, I couldn’t resist the challenge.
I left Hollister armed with pages of instructions from Mom and Grandma Herbert’s Apricot Jam recipe.
When Saturday came, I still felt intimidated by the project, but with a dinner party planned for 6:00 that evening, which I was to cook for, I knew I had to dive in. While I cut up the now very ripe fruit in small pieces until I had 4 cups total, the jars and lids boiled on the stove. I then transferred the fruit to a pot and added 3 ½ cups of sugar. I stirred them together until the sugar dissolved and left it alone until it came to a boil. Once it reaches the boiling point, I let it boil for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally so it does not stick to the pot.
After 30 minutes, the apricots and sugar had morphed in to a beautifully flavored soup that filled the house with that savory sweet scent that can make your taste buds melt in anticipation. I carefully removed the jars and lids from the water and turned off the stove. I dried off the jars one at a time, and filled them with the jam, leaving ¼ an inch of space at the top as the recipe instructed.
I put the lids on the jars as tightly as I could and left them to cool. Once they have cooled, the instructions say to press the tops down with your thumb, and if they have sealed properly, they will stay down.
Thankfully, mine did.
That evening, at the end of the dinner party, when we thought we couldn’t fit another thing in our stomachs, we eagerly opened a jar of the jam and spread a bit on slices of toast. It tasted just like Mom’s. Only maybe a little better, but that’s just because I made it myself.
With some left over apricots, I tried the following recipe from their website. The title speaks for itself.
World’s Best Apricot Cobbler
1/2 cup butter (or olive oil is a great substitute!)
3-4 cups fruit and its juices
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
Put the butter (or olive oil) in a deep casserole at least 9 inches in diameter and place in a cold oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If the fruit is not juicy, sprinkle it with some of the sugar and set aside for a while. Whisk together the baking powder, flour, and sugar in a bowl. Then add the milk and mix well. Mixture will be thin. When the butter has melted and the oven has reached temperature, pour the batter all at once into the dish, then pour the fruit and its juices into the center of the batter. Bake for 50 – 60 minutes, or until the batter is done and the top is golden brown. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
To see more recipes from the Gonzales’, visit their website: www.apricotking.com.
