Jam, jelly, preserves, confiture. Whether you make your own or buy it, what's your very favorite flavor? It's hard to pick just one, of course, so if you have more favorites, tell us in the comments. What's the best jam you've ever had (and, incidentally, what do you like to eat it on?)
We like a good loaf of plain bread, or a crusty baguette, with fresh butter and a spoonful of jam. It doesn't get much better than that! We had a baguette with strawberry jam and salted butter this morning. We also love jam with goat cheese - try wheat crackers, soft chevre, and fig jam.
Here are a few favorite jam reviews and recipes from the archives:
The Jam Report
• We Love Jam's Apricot Jam
• Griffins' Raspberry Extra
• Hafi Black Currant Preserves
• TJ's Prince of Denmark Strawberry
• Duchy Originals Raspberry & Lime
• TJ's Organic Raspberry
• Dundee Orange Marmalade
DIY Jam
• Fig and Sesame Jam
• Help! Our Jam Is Too Hard
• Recipe: Peach, Plum, and Ginger Jam
• Recipe: D.I.Y. Cranberry Jam
(Image: Flickr member Will Pate licensed for use under Creative Commons)
Bacsac Bacsquare 04...

blueberry, please. My favorite store bought brand is Hero.
Knott's Boysenberry. So wonderful, not too sweet, and beautiful on toasted sourdough.
Aprium-Pluot. Oh, and Pepper-Pluot.
My sister-in-law's dad, who lives in Wisconsin (and is 80-some years old!), makes many varieties from fruit grown on his own land, and we are often the lucky recipients. The one I'm currently enjoying is black raspberry, and his chockecherry is AMAZING, but my Mom wouldn't give me any of that. I have 'regular' raspberry and a blueberry-rhubarb in the pantry too.
the Crab apple jelly that my mom always made when we were growing up in Ireland. And of course her famous Damson jam from our over 100 year old damson trees.
for me it greatly depends on the application. grape is best on pb & j sandwiches. strawberry is best on biscuits. raspeberry (with seeds!) is best on toast.
blackberry or ginja berry!
While I do love grape jam for PB&J sandwiches, my favorites on toast include:
Blackberry jam
blueberry jam
mango jam made by my sister in Haiti using Haitian mangos
and my grandma's apple jell
quince.
smuckers used to make it but no longer. luckily my grandmother was able to find it somewhere in northeast ohio, so i'm in stock for a while. =)
there's an ny-based jam/chutney seller, beth's farm, who has a stand at various greenmarkets around the city and all their stuff is amazing! the golden pear chutney is my all-time favorite. seriously, when i moved out of the ny area for a few months i continued ordering the stuff off their website!
any such name, they have a quince chutney as well that is delicious, also can be ordered from their site (i swear i don't work for them, heh): bethsfarmkitchen.com
- pumpkin marmalade
- lingonberry jam
- apple-vanilla french jam (you know, the kind of thing you pick up once and don't pay attention to the maker, go back and can't ever find it again)
Blackcurrant. I was especially hooked on the fruit spread that Trader Joe's carried that had blackcurrant, pomegranate and something else in it, but it appears it's no longer on the shelves.
Homemade strawberry-rhubarb
i like red currant and plume or prune butter as some might call it,
black raspberry, because it's my fave fruit.
but, lots of others are wonderful too - it depends on the brand/who made it, how sweet, how fruity, etc.
I know I can't keep the stuff in my place because I'll eat it all.
I tend to prefer variety, but my favorite go-to is citrus marmalade. That said, strawberry on a pb&j is so comforting. And my latest jam that I've fallen in love with is sour cherry.
By far the most surprising jam I've had was ginger (just ginger). Wonderfully spicy-sweet. I picked up a jar at a festival/holiday market during a trip up to Vermont/New Hampshire and I'm savoring the last of it. I need to find a local source!!
Raspberry!
Another vote for boysenberry.
When I am craving something sweet but don't want to destroy my diet with candy I make some toast and slather it with raspberry jam (never jelly and never seedless).
It works like a charm and makes me think about our raspberry bushes in my childhood home.
Rose's key lime marmalade is amazing. I've only ever seen it in New Hampshire, so I stock up whenever I go.
Also, homemade plum and homemade apricot using fruit from neighbors' trees.
Apricot-pineapple. Love the contrasting flavors. I must be the only one since it's so hard to find. And non-existent in organic.
I found Rhubarb & Berries at Cost Plus. My new 2nd favorite.
My favorite jam (at the moment!) is the Victoria Plum Jam, made by the England Preserves company. I live in London, and shop weekly at Borough Market, where company sells their jams and other preserves. It's wonderfully tart, and absolutely delicious! They have many other yummy flavors too, like pear and vanilla butter, kentish bramble jam, and redcurrent rhubarb and vanilla jam.
http://www.foodfullstop.com/supplier/England-Preserves/5-27-0.html
Any kind of berry - blackberry, raspberry, boysenberry, olallieberry. Yum!
Chili Jam! From Terra? in Sonoma?
Mango chutney.
Raspberry. Hands down.
Raspberry all the way.
blueberry jam
Raspberry all the way, ever since I was a kid. I may stray from time to time to marmalade or cherry jam, but always come back to raspberry.
Definitely blackberry
Guava jelly! As a little girl, at times when I would eat absolutely nothing else, I could always be convinced to eat toast with guava jelly.
I like mine with a little kick - Pepper jelly, preferably Chipotle. Mmmmmm!
Micks Peppourri Red Hot Pepper Jelly!
Pike Place Market
raspberry, with seeds, please
fig!
but i also love white peach, strawberry & vanilla or strawberry & pepper, banana jam, good old blueberry, and apple!
among others =D
Blueberry. Wild Maine blueberry from my FIL's land, to be specific. Also, amaretto peach jam...I'm getting it right by trial and error, but it's still so good!
I usually only like homemade jam: apricot, strawberry-rhubarb, and marmalade. I do like store bought cherry compote. It has actual whole cherries in it and isn't overly sweet. I am not sure of the name, but it is sold in a small jar with a blue-green top and label.
black cherry jam.
homemade apple cinnamon, hands down.
Staud's of Vienna does a "special edition" Blood Orange Marmalade with rum (sold only at Dean & Deluca) which is, unfortunately, my very favourite.
My other favourite is orange marmalade with whisky -- my current favourite is Tiptree's:
http://www.britshoppe.com/tiorwhma12oz.html
(it is sooo good on a toasted Montreal-style sesame bagel with butter accompanying softly-scrambled eggs... mmm...)
My nana's tomato jam. Before I die, I have to learn how to make it, so I can take it to heaven with me.
Raspberry and blueberry preserves, yum!
Blackberry! FTW.
Saskatoon berry!
Alaskan raspberry chipotle (on toasted sourdough bread). And our friends' homemade hot pepper apple jam (straight out of the jar on a spoon!).
Jalepeno.
RASPBERRY. I love the CRUNCH of the seeds!
Cherry butter -- it's like a cherry jam. I love it, and it makes depressing winters a little easier to bear.