Reciprocity (Quince jam cocktails)
“I didn’t bring anything,” Sandra declared as she walked in my front door.
“You brought yourself,” I replied, “and that’s enough.” She had come for tea and spirits, dusk arriving early, leaving us lit by candlelight. We snacked on Harbison cheese wrapped in spruce bark and rye crackers from our friend Jess’ cheese shop. They went perfectly with quince jam I made from the fruit of our friend Genevieve’s tree.
While making the jam, I saved the yellow quince peels and steeped them in vodka, which had been chilling in my freezer. This I now mixed with white vermouth, a dollop of the coral-colored jam, and ice. Sandra shook it in my ancient IKEA cocktail shaker and strained it into vintage coupe glasses. I topped them with champagne (my friend Emily’s suggestion). The Lady Trade.
As the evening unfolded and we'd caught up on life and family and what we were up to, Sandra reached for the tarot deck I had left on the table, a deck I had bought at the store Sandra had co-founded in our town. “Would you like a reading?” she asked. “I’d love one,” I said. I poured us small cups of hot ginger tea mixed with apple cider and whiskey. She led us in a 10-card spread, a layout I hadn’t used before. The heart of the matter, my career transformation and the dynamics fueling it, my obstacles, goals, and where I was going, all laid out before us. Her presence in my interpretive process, and her own reflection of the beauty she saw, was such a gift. She came and left with empty hands, but an exchange had occurred, both of us feeling refreshed and grounded.
This dance of reciprocity is a pattern I've observed over and over, especially in communities of women supporting each other in their life's journeys. Genevieve, who gave me the quince I'd transformed into jam and cocktails, had also shared her garden with me, a spontaneous offer she made in the spring while I was helping her dig it out. We shared the planting and watering and the learnings from our successes and failures. Her daughter Sylvia helped, spraying soapy water on the fluffy insects that swarmed our kale.
Reciprocity comes from an open heart, without expectation of outcome. Like Genevieve's tree she didn't plant sharing its fruit with us unbidden, we share our fruit with each other, sometimes in jam, sometimes in spirit.
Recipe as feeling: Reciprocity (Quince jam cocktails)
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Gather the fruit that’s been given to you.
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Transform it with your inner gifts.
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Infuse it with spirit.
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Share it with friends.
Actual recipes
Quince jam
Makes 4 8-ounce jars. With such a small quantity, I did not pressure-can these; they keep in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks.
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound quince
3 cups water
Juice from 1 lemon
2 cups sugar
About an hour of cooking time
EQUIPMENT:
1 large heavy-bottom pot like a dutch oven
4 8-ounce jam jars with lids
1 small plate (place in freezer)
Peel, core, and chop the quince. Save the peels for quince vodka (see below). Boil the water, sugar, lemon juice, and quince together and then turn down the heat to a steady simmer, with small bubbles across the surface of the jam. Stir occasionally and adjust the heat as needed for about an hour, until the color is sunset orange and the texture has thickened and passes the frozen plate test, where a spoonful of jam placed on a frozen plate and tilted vertically runs slowly, not quickly, or wrinkles up when you push it with your finger. Let it cool slightly, and then pour into jars, the perfect size for sharing.
Quince vodka
Place the leftover peels into a jar and cover with vodka. Steep on the countertop for a day and then place in the refrigerator. After a week, strain out the peels, and put the yellow-tinted vodka in your freezer until it’s wanted for cocktails.
The Lady Trade (Quince jam cocktails)
I made several variations of this (one with Campari, one with vermouth but no sparkling wine) and this one is my favorite. Serve up in coupe glasses if you have them.
INGREDIENTS:
Makes 2 cocktails, easily made in larger quantities with the same ratio
2 oz. quince vodka
2 oz. white vermouth
1 spoonful quince jam
Ice for shaking
Sparkling wine to top
Shake the vodka, vermouth, jam, and ice in a cocktail shaker, strain into a glass, and top with sparkling wine.
Published October 19, 2022
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