What I wish I was making this summer (even though it isn't summer yet).

I'm a Los Angeles native (well born in Manhattan, but raised in LA) and although I do love living by the beach (especially when I can go swimming) I don't love how long and warm our summers are (I know I know, what a thing to complain about). I really do hate being hot, unless I am swimming (which doesn't happen as often as I'd like), so my summer (2008) in Portland was so perfect. Portland weather was always a perfect temperature for me, it even rained a few days (this girl loves summer rain) and it was never too hot. I could run on the Willamette even in the height of a sunny afternoon and I had none of the heat related running problems I have in Los Angeles. But Portland summer weather is not the point point of this post, the point is..... this summer (almost summer) I miss Portland more than I did last summer, the main reason for this being the Pacific Northwests abundance of berries and my ongoing obsession with homemade jam (KatieMade Jams has a nice ring to it I think).

If you have known me for awhile you might have read my Summer in Portland blog (which I took down). I talked about and blogged about picking berries at Suavie Island and making jam all summer long. Los Angeles doesn't get the same quality berries as were available in Portland, nor do berries ever get as cheap as they were in Portland. Los Angeles also doesn't have Marionberries and sweet blackberries are always hard to find.

I love berries, all kinds and in/with anything. I could eat berries all the time and never ever get sick of them, and I especially loved picking my own. Partly because I could eat and pick berries at the same time (as shown below) and partly because it was so inexpensive to buy so many berries. I ate pints and pints of berries and made pints and pints of jam which was eaten and shared entirely too quickly.

So although I am happy for some upcoming pool beach time and sunny Saturday sewing afternoons, today I miss berries (picking and eating them) and then making jam with them. Maybe I will just have to buy a flat at a Farmers market and make a little bit of jam. Or I could order some Marionberry jam from Moppethill Farms (at the Portland Saturday market) and spread it on a tasty English muffin (delicious breakfast). If I was in Portland that English muffin would be substituted with Daves Killer Powerberry Bread or Sin Dawgs loaf, which was some of the most delicious bread I have ever had (and I do love bread). Maybe instead of making jam on the weekends, Skywalker and I can try a new waffle recipe every Sunday (yum, yum!).