As soon as the weather starts to warm up I start thinking about the upcoming preserving and pickling season.  I already picked up a couple of gallons of distilled white vinegar at the supermarket a few weeks ago, and yesterday I saw that strawberries were on sale, so I bought a couple of pounds.  What you see above is the result of those 2 pounds of strawberries and a little more than a pound of sugar:  almost a quart of really fresh tasting strawberry jam.  I've been making jam and preserves of different kinds for almost 50 years but I have to admit that I've really refined my methods for sweet preserves like these only in the past couple of years.