Jam, Jelly and Marmalade

A nice survey of the history of jam-making and preserves for the layperson. * Digestible Bits and Bites * Hood traces the earliest forms of preserves in Persia and China, following the link between preserving and the availability of sugar, the contributions of railroads, jam's part in the emerging labor movement, and the rise of large-scale commercial preserving that shipped these comestibles to all corners of the globe. Who thought jam, jelly, and marmalade were just delicious foods to spread on toast, dress a pudding, or fill a tart? The truth? It's the history of the world . . . in a jar. -- Elizabeth Baird, best-selling cookbook author and member of the Order of Canada