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1
Choose just-ripe fruits as they appear through the summer and fall.
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2
I normally kick off the pot with some of the first sweet strawberries of the season.
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Place these in the bottom of your pot and, for every pound of fruit, sprinkle over 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of sugar.
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Leave this for an hour or so, then pour in about 4 cups of your chosen alcohol.
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5
Place the saucer on top of the fruit to make sure the fruit remains immersed.
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Then cover the pot with plastic wrap and, finally, a close-fitting lid.
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7
Carry on like this throughout the summer and autumn, adding raspberries, cherries, peaches, plums, damson plums, pears, grapes, and blackberries as they come into season.
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(I avoid currants and gooseberries because their skins tend to toughen in the alcohol syrup, and I find rhubarb is too acid for the pot.)
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Add the sugar each time too, and keep topping up the alcohol so that it always covers the fruit by about 3/4 inch.
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10
Do not stir the fruit at any point, just let it sit in its layers.
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When the pot is full to the brim, seal it tightly and store for a couple of months before you start enjoying the contents.
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12
Just prior to using, dig deep and give the contents a good stir to combine all the scrumptious flavors.
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13
Use within 1 year.
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14
If youre in a hurry, you can make bachelors jam in one go in August, when lots of different fruits should be available.
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15
However, I do find it more fun to add the fruit over several months, whenever I have a surplus.
