Well Preserved: A Jam Making Hymnal

The subtitle for Joan Hassol's Well Preserved reads, "A Jam-making Hymnal." This is aptly so, since the book is much more than a cookbook. Hassol wants to impart more than the simple knowledge of how to make jams; she wants the reader to understand them. Hassol's own jam business, Well Preserved, was an outgrowth of her lifelong passion for the fruits of her native New England, and what she has learned in life and business is collected in this volume. As a result, the approach is personal--full of great opinions, good advice, and, incidentally, wonderful jam recipes. As in anything with nature and fruit, the approach must be seasonal. The book is divided by season and includes the chutneys and marmalades of winter along with the jams of spring and summer, followed naturally by a section on breads and muffins on which to spread your new creations. Flowing throughout the book are Hassol's reflections on the bounties of the land and the people who have made the journey with her. Hassol is reminiscent of another well-known New England food writer, John Thorne, and for her, food represents a path to the soul--cooking is simply the vehicle that gets you there. Well Preserved is as much a personal story as a cookbook, yet the appeal is universal. She understands that to make something as simple as jam requires an understanding of nature and its seasons. It would not be an exaggeration to say the book is disguised as a metaphor for life--with some really great recipes. --Mark O. Howerton