The start of strawberry season is always a game of patience as we wait for the most luscious strawberries to come to market. When those strawberries hit their stride, our kitchen is transformed. There's nothing like the sweet smell of strawberry jam cooking! These handsome red berries are resplendent on their own, and we always love to accentuate their playfulness with an exotic spice: pink peppercorns. Possessing a ton of flavor and very little heat, pink peppercorns amp up the convivial side of Spring's first fruit. Have you been eagerly awaiting strawberries' arrival, too? Our Strawberry-Pink Peppercorn Jam is now available online! There's no better partner for ricotta on toast, and a spoonful or two will brighten up your morning yogurt. We promise this jam will put a spring in your step!

Take a peek inside our strawberry-filled kitchen:

Your darling momma will receive a gift-wrapped set containing one jar each of:
- Strawberry-Rose Jam
- Lemon Marmalade with Cardamom & Lavender
- Greengage Plum Jam

Pre-order now and we'll ship them to arrive before Mother's Day. Be sure to include a gift message telling your adoring mother just why she's the best!

Send your mom some jam!

Members receive three jars, which are frequently flavors that we've made in limited quantity or that are not available on our website. Plus, you're paying only $10 a jar!

Sign up now for: 6 months of jam or 12 months of jam

Last month's Jam Club members received one jar each of:

- Pear-Plum Jam
- Orange-Kumquat Marmalade with Saffron & Cardamom
- Early Summer Peach Marmalade

Yum!

Now let's make a CARD! »

The method for this "instant book" card comes from How to Make Books.

First you'll need to download the PDF of our hand-designed Valentine: BCF VDay Card

Print out the card on 8.5" x 11" paper -- something with a nice weight to it, but not as heavy as cardstock.

1. Gather your supplies
Card print-out, bone folder (if you have one), scissors, destination envelope

Now it's folding time! Be sure to press all folds well, with your bone folder or your fingernail.

2. Short edge folds
Lay the paper illustrations side DOWN, and fold the 8.5" (short) edges together.
Half a sheet of illustrations will be facing you.
Fold one 8.5" edge back to the crease you just created.
Flip over, and repeat with the reverse side.
You'll have effectively folded the paper into quarters as an accordion.
Don't forget to burnish (heavily crease) these folds well!

3. Long edge fold
Unfold, again placing illustrations facing down.
Now you will fold the paper in half, this time bringing the 11" (long) edges together.
Burnish this fold well.

4. Cutting the crease
Unfold your paper yet again, but this time with illustrations up.
Refold along the very first crease you made, again bringing the 8.5" sides together.
Grab your scissors.
Cut through the crease you just made, but cut ONLY halfway across to the first fold.

5. Opening the book
Unfold again and lay the paper flat, illustrations up.
Pinch along the middle creases that are on both sides of the cut you just made, and lift up.
Pull these creases away from each other (I promise this will work).

6. Finishing the book
You now have four little spokes.
Rearrange them so that the cover is facing you.
Burnish the seam of your book well.
And you are done!

Happy Valentine's Day!
Love, Blue Chair Fruit

Want some extra guidance with your own paper folding? This video is quite helpful.

We're also printing these cards and including them as part of our Valentine's Day Jam Trio, complete with the corresponding flavors.  Click here to learn more!

Also included to sweeten the deal is a Valentine's Day book-card, "The Fruits of Our Love," hand designed by Blue Chair Fruit's Kate! This little card elucidates your love for your Valentine, employing romantic fruit witticisms highlighting each included flavor, of course! Each Valentine's Day Trio arrives with this card in its own red envelope, tied on with a blue bow; we've even stamped a petite red heart onto our signature blue chair wrapping paper.

Happy Valentine's Day from the Blue Chair Fruit team!

New Flavor: Apricot-Orange Jam

Our thoroughly luscious Apricot-Orange Jam, full of this beloved summer fruit, finds its effervescent sunny flavor highlighted by slender slices of orange rind. A true delight on toast or in a PBJ, or used as a pork glaze if you're feeling intrepid.

New Flavor: White Cherry Marmalade

Yowza, eating this marmalade is like tossing a handful of confetti into your morning! Our White Cherry Marmalade is full of itty bitty lemon rinds, which contrast beautifully with the rotund whole cherries throughout. A dash of almond extract accentuates the springy, warm flavor of this summer marmalade!

Bring Apricot-Orange Jam and White Cherry Marmalade home!

Members of the Jam Club receive shipments of 3 surprise flavors every other month; these flavors are frequently brand-new flavors not yet available to the public or small batches that may never show up anywhere else!

Last month's Jam Club members received one jar each of: Provencale Tomato-White Nectarine Jam, Rosemary-Damson Jam, Blood Orange-Chestnut Honey Marmalade with Rosemary.

Whether you're not sure which flavors to pick for your loved one or you know they have a voracious appetite for jam, our Jam Club is sure to please! Sign up for the Jam Club here.

We recently called on our Twitter community to share their favorite ways to enjoy our Thanksgiving flavors -- and boy, did they deliver! From incorporating cranberry jam into stuffing to smearing it on a leftover turkey sandwich, the ideas had us salivating.

There was one suggestion, however, that really intrigued our palates; Suz (Twitter @suzhowells) squished her recipe down to 140 characters: "Toss acorn squash wedges w/melted Cranberry jam, minced red chili & garlic, S&P. Roast @450, 25 min." We sent her our Thanksgiving Jam 2-Pack straightaway, and she sent us the full recipe:

Jam-Glazed Acorn Squash

Preheat oven to 450.

Sweat 1-2 cloves of finely minced garlic in 1T olive oil over low heat until fragrant & translucent.  Add one minced red serrano, kung pao or thai chili.  Add 1/3 -1/2 C jam (I'm thinking the Rosemary Damson would be awesome.  I've used your Bergamot for this in the past). Heat until jam melts and blends with garlic & chili.

Wash, seed and slice 1-2 acorn squash into wedges. Put in bowl with warm jam mixture.  Toss until all the pieces are coated, place in a single layer on a 1/2 sheet lined with parchment. Salt & pepper generously.  Roast for about 25 minutes, or until squash is fork tender and carmelized.

Caution: This is addictive!

YUM. Thanks, Suz! Anyone else have a unique way to use our jams for Thanksgiving? Get your own Thanksgiving Jam 2-Pack now!

Click here to sign up for this four-hour introductory jam-making class. This popular class will be Blue Chair Fruit's last jam-making class of the season, so reserve your spot now!

We love the rich, tart flavor of Damson Jam on toast (or stirred into yogurt), and our Orange-Kumquat Marmalade is a sweet marmalade with just enough kick to shake off a cold winter morning. Plus, these two jars are available at a special price. Yum!