Each and every year, we’re astounded by the excitement that the rhubarb harvest brings for customers and culinary professionals alike.  Rhubarb is the very first local “fruit” to appear at the market, and truly marks the beginning of the Ontario growing (and jam making!) season.

Technically a vegetable, the celery-like stalks of rhubarb are generally treated as a fruit, traditionally being used for baked goods such as pies, crumbles, and jam of course!  In the early springtime it surfaces as several pink and green ombre stalks growing straight out of the ground, with large, fan-like leaves (which happen to be poisonous when eaten, so be wary!)  Extremely bountiful and easy to grow in our northern climate, rhubarb is a beautiful and productive addition to any Canadian garden. To harvest your plant, simply yank on one stem as close to the soil as possible while holding the rest of your plant in place at its base. Voila- fresh rhubarb for all!  

Raw and on its own, rhubarb is very tart and sour.  Personally, I love it sliced thin and tossed into summer salads (similar to using green apple), or diced into hearty chunks and dipped in sugar. For jam making in particular, rhubarb lacks natural pectin content and falls apart quickly when heated, yielding a softly set, compote-like preserve. Blending with other summer berries however (strawberries being the classic pairing) lends a more vibrant colour, as well as additional pectin for a more fruit forward, complex texture.  

If you are in Ontario, we exclusively use fresh rhubarb from Lennox Farm.  They have a lovely farm stand that’s definitely worth a sunny Springtime visit if you have the chance!

Without further ado, here are my tips and tricks for rhubarb jam making at home:

• Always use the freshest stalks you can find- still firm rather than droopy!
• The pinker your rhubarb, the richer and redder your jam will be.  More colourful rhubarb varieties grow as the season progresses, so I like to make my berry/rhubarb blends early in the season, and pure rhubarb preserves later for the richest, most appealing colour.
• Dice your rhubarb in large chunks to ensure you retain pieces of fruit in your final product, but not so long that you end up with an overly stringy preserve.  My general guideline is cross sections the length of a standard teaspoon, so when you scoop out your jam, the rhubarb fibers fit nicely on your spoon. Also, there’s no need to cut your stalks lengthwise- save a bit of time and effort, as these will fall apart naturally. Your rhubarb jam will likely start off looking like a fruit salad, but don’t fret, it will turn into jam before your eyes, I promise!
• No matter what proportion you use, always mascerate your rhubarb in sugar and lemon juice overnight before cooking, especially if you are using our local tough outdoor grown varieties.  This will ensure that your preserve will retain rhubarb’s quintessential stringiness, without being overly fibrous.
• Though strawberry rhubarb is a classic and tasty combination, don’t be shy to try other blends such as raspberry or cherry, or allow the delicate tartness of rhubarb to shine on its own in a pure fruit preserve!
• Rhubarb jams balance beautifully with a number of creative flavourings: some of my favourites include rose, vanilla, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, citrus zest, and maple, or even savoury options such as bay leaf, smoke, or peppercorn (these make a delicious cheese board preserve or glaze for BBQ or roasted meats.)
• Most of all, have fun and jam on!

I’m sure you can tell, we like to make things pretty around here.  Whether it’s adorning a wall with vintage planters, mirrors and thrifted floral artwork, or setting a table with the loveliest china we can find, we can’t help but dress up the world around us.  With so much beauty blossoming this time of year, we thought, why not bring the outside in, and beautify your desktop!  Thus, in collaboration with our very own Melody Tam, illustrator and designer extraordinaire, we bring you a new seasonal blog series, Freshly Picked Prints to make your tech *berry* sweet!

This month, we chose to create some cute, springtime graphic patterns using our signature emojis (also found on our Jam & Tea Pin Sets!)  Simply click the pattern, then right-click the newly opened image and save for Falling Teacups, Lemons & Lavender, or Strawberry Blossoms, sized to perfectly fit your computer desktop, tablet, or smartphone!

Mother's Day is right around the corner, and we are so excited about the jam and tea themed menu we’ve dreamt up for our Mother's Day Afternoon Tea that we wanted to share some of the highlights with you here.

Finally, Spring  is in the air!  As I’m sure you can imagine, this is one of our *berry* favourite seasons here at the jam factory.  Not only can we leave the door open with the beautiful, clean Canadian air filling the shop, but we begin to have all of the springtime bounty at our fingertips. The most flavourful berries and stone fruit of the year start to show up at the market, and thanks to all of the amazing growers that we work with, we also have the opportunity to get our hands on fresh petals- rose, violets, and elderflowers, all of which show their beauty during this sunny season.

What better way to celebrate the gorgeous weather than a tea-themed cocktail that promises to transport you to afternoon tea in an English garden?

-Serves 2-
Ingredients:

3 oz Dillon’s Unfiltered Gin 22
1 oz Lillet Blanc
5 dashes of Rhubarb or Cucumber Bitters
1/2 oz Wildflower Honey Syrup (4:1 ratio of honey to water, heated to a simmer then cooled)

1/2 tsp Jasmine Pink Lemonade loose leaf tea from Sloane Fine Tea
Edible Dried Rose Petals or Lavender Blossoms
Cucumber Ice
Sugar
Fresh Cucumber for garnish, sliced as thin as possible

Method:

• To make cucumber ice, add 1 large cucumber and splash of water to a food processor.  Blend completely, and add to 1 L of water.  Allow to infuse for 2-3 hours.
• Filter the cucumber water through a fine strainer, and pour into an ice cube tray.
• Allow to freeze overnight or until completely solid.

• To make floral dust to rim your cocktail coupes, add a tablespoon of dried flowers of your choice and a small pinch of sugar to a mortar and pestle. Grind until completely turned to dust.  
• Pour onto a small plate or teacup saucer, and add a teaspoon of sugar for sweetness and crystalline texture.  
• Using a small wedge of cucumber, moisten the rim of your glasses, and gently dip into floral dust. Set aside in a safe place.

• Combine Dillon's gin with the Jasmine Pink Lemonade tea leaves in a small bowl.  Flash infuse at room temperature for 5-10 minutes, then strain directly into your cocktail beaker.  
• Continue to add the Lillet Blanc, bitters, and honey syrup.
• Fill ¾ of the way with your homemade cucumber ice, stir thoroughly for approximately 1 minute, or until sufficiently cooled.
• Strain through a julep into your floral rimmed coupes. Garnish with a thinly sliced cucumber wheel, and enjoy!

Cheers to Springtime and fresh florals!

Barware available through Cocktail Kingdom or BYOB Cocktail Emporium.

When we first opened up our shop in Parkdale, our mission was to create a jam palace, filled with every fruit preserve you could imagine- a lineup of rotating seasonal creations with truly unique flavour combinations. But what paired well with fruit preserves?  Well scones and tea of course!  And so with a lot of love and care, our signature buttermilk scone was born. Little did we know that our simple, traditional recipe was about to take on a life of its own, quickly becoming  just as much a part of Kitten and the Bear as our jam!  

There’s absolutely nothing that compares to pulling a warm tray of scones out of the oven. The smell of melted butter and caramelized sugar swirls around you, and even though your fingers are burning trying to touch the hot pastry, you simply can’t wait to break them open and enjoy the rich steam escaping from that flaky inside.  

We wanted to bring this special bakery experience into the comfort of your home, so we recently launched our Frozen Mini Scones for you to take and bake. Roll out of bed, pop a couple scones in the oven (dressed in pjs of course), and fill your home with the smell of freshly baked pastries like we do here at the shop bright and early each morning.  

Always on the hunt for more excuses to eat a batch of scones, we have come up with a bunch of mini scone hacks that we are so excited to share with you! We weren’t sure where to start, but after some deliberation we went with a  classic- the Baby Bacon, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Sammie!

-Serves 2-
Ingredients:

1 pack KATB Frozen Bake-at-Home Mini Scones
4 farm fresh eggs
4 strips artisan cured bacon
Fresh chives
Your favourite cheese (we love aged cheddar)
Condiments & seasonings of choice (we’re into a sprinkle of Old Bay & jam)

Method:

• Remove your Frozen Bake-at-Home Mini Scones from the package, space evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and bake at 350 F.  When you notice that the scones have started to turn golden brown (about 15-20 minutes in) rotate the tray and take the opportunity to place a small slice of cheese atop each scone.
• While your scones are baking, fry up your bacon strips and set aside on paper towel to drain.  
• When the scones are evenly golden brown and cooked throughout, remove them from the oven and immediately sprinkle with freshly chopped chives (so they stick).
• Prepare eggs to your liking-  my favourite is softly scrambled with a splash of milk whipped in, but Bobby & Alena prefer sunny side up!  
• Break each mini scone in half, and build your sandwich to your personal breakfast satisfaction- stack your eggs, bacon, cheese, a sprinkle of Old Bay and a dollop of mayo, jam, ketchup, or any other condiments of your choosing.  
• Place the cheesy top half of the scone on your mountain of brunchy goodness. Your sammies should still be hot enough to melt the cheese inside, however if they have cooled off too much, feel free to return them to the oven for 3-5 minutes.
• Serve immediately and enjoy into the afternoon! 

Mother's Day is one of our favourite special occasions here at KATB, and we couldn't be more thrilled to announce we’ll be hosting a delightful event at our little Parkdale shop this year. We’ve teamed up with our good friends at The Bake Shoppe, Coriander Girl, and Sloane Fine Tea to present an intimate Mother's Day Afternoon Tea for you and the ladies you hold dear!

In honour of this truly special day, we will be shutting the doors to our shop and welcoming you to leave the busy streets behind to join us for an intimate experience fit for a queen! On Sunday, May 8th we will treat guests to a world of savoury delights, jam and tea themed cocktails, sweet treats from The Bake Shoppe, a selection of Sloane Fine Tea, and of course our famous house-made preserves and mini buttermilk scones. This creative, colourful spin on the traditional afternoon tea service will surely be an experience to remember for tea and treat lovers alike.

Topped off with a gift bag brimming with surprises and a take-home bouquet from the magical florists at Coriander Girl, it’s promised to be the perfect way to spend Mother's Day. Whether you're the Queen of the household, an Aunt, Grandmother, expecting Mother, kitten Momma or a jam & scone lover looking for a fun experience, we look forward to hosting you on this dreamy day!

Welcome to the colourful, lovely life of Kitten and the Bear!  

It's hard to believe that we are coming up on Kitten and the Bear's 5th birthday. It seems like just yesterday my husband Bobby and I started this adventure as a small side project to create something magical together, and over the years we’ve watched it grow into so much more. It makes me smile to think back on how far we’ve come from our tiny KATB online shop- we now have a beautiful storefront in our favourite bit of Toronto, we’ve met the most amazingly talented people from all over, and there’s something so special about knowing our jam is nestled in all of your pantries. In short, it’s absolutely surreal and oh so astounding.  

Here in our little world of fruit, sugar, and butter, we've enjoyed more yogurt parfaits, tea cocktails, cheese boards, and confiture-topped ice cream sundaes than you can dream of.  Within the pages of this blog you can look forward to endless delicious jam-centric recipe ideas, plus a glimpse into what goes on behind the scenes in our kitchen, the team that we like to call our “jamily”, and more. We’ll also be featuring guest posts from all of the friends we've met along the way - from farmers to bakers, tea sommeliers to style icons, chefs to bartenders- the list goes on and on!

Our sugary world is pretty sweet here at KATB, and we thought it was about time to spread the love!

Sophie