Strawberry-Loquat Jam

When I moved into my house seven (SEVEN?!) years ago, I had no idea what a loquat was. Sure, I'd seen the bushes here and there, adorned with pretty fruit at weird times during the year, but I didn't really know what it was.

And then, nearly a year after we moved in, my neighbor invited me to try a few Japanese plums. I wasn't sure about it, but he'd been eating them for years, and he was still alive. Right? Right.

The *huge* loquat tree that overhangs my fence.

So I tried one ... and then another ... and Drew and I couldn't stop! They were so incredibly delicious, like a sweet, juicy plum filled with gorgeous copper seeds. And I love plums!

I learned that the "proper" name for this plant is a loquat (or an Eriobotrya japonica, if you want to get really technical), though they are commonly called Japanese plums around here and Chinese plums in some other areas. It is edible, though the seeds - which are prolific sprouters, by the way - and the leaves apparently contain some deadly toxin, like cyanide.

A better view of the delicious Japanese plums.

This year, the neighbor's loquat is simply loaded. We've picked and picked from the tree, and it hardly looks like there are any missing. So, as usual when there is an abundance of something edible growing nearby, I try to come up with some use for it.

And since strawberries are in season, too, and since I happen to have some jelly jars and other necessary supplies, I decided to make strawberry-loquat jam.

Drew and I picked as many fruits as we could ... or, that is, until our arms were too tired to pick any more. We brought them inside and I washed them well. Then I squeezed the juice from the loquats until my hands were too weak, then I recruited Drew to squeeze the rest.

Washed and ready to be juiced.

I decided to make freezer jam since it doesn't require any proper canning techniques. I began by cooking the loquat juice with the pectin, then added strawberries and sugar (and a little local honey!) to finish it off. It seemed a little sweet, but I figured I could live with that. Once the jam was ready, I placed in freezer jam containers and placed it in the fridge so that it could set before freezing.

Strawberry-Loquat Jam

The real test, however, would be how it tasted on a biscuit. Since I couldn't wait to find out, we changed our dinner plans from pork chops with a parsley pesto and cherry tomato pasta to (freshly laid) scrambled eggs with extra sharp cheddar cheese and hot buttermilk biscuits.

Surely this needs no explanation.

While I thought the jelly was too sweet when sampled on a teaspoon, it was actually just right. I can imagine this glazing a nice brie served with water crackers or layered, perhaps, in a lovely goat cheese torte. But on a piping hot, fresh from the oven biscuit? Divine! This strawberry-loquat jam definitely passed the test.