Her fruit preserves and jellies strive to capture the vibrance of the fruit. Artisan Preserves is a limited production business, with no more than 200 cases made each year from rare heirloom fruit. Some is gleaned from rare fruit grower friends or open space, and some is purchased from organic, biodynamic or sustainable orchards. Several varieties of preserves are only made in single case amounts
Growing up on a remnant of one of Southern California's original Valencia orange groves, with an ancient Blenheim apricot tree on the property, and picking wild blueberries as a child developed my taste for older varieties of fruit and informed me as to what tree ripe should mean. Using hard to source fruit means that I want to maintain the quality of these unique flavors. I have personal relationships with growers that I purchase or glean from. I do not refrigerate fruit. I purchase or pick what can be worked in a timely manner, and re-order or pick again if more is needed. My educational background is fine arts and anthropology. I try to bring that to my preserve making. Since flavor, color and texture are important to me, my preserves are made in very small batches with no more than 7 pounds each. I prefer to use a spectrum of fruit ripeness, from a bit fairly green to a bit fully ripe for complexity and to take advantage of the fruit’s own pectin, rather than adding it. As a traveler and a student of food anthropology, I like to use unusual fruit from less frequented parts of the globe, such as Cornelians. Also I like to examine ethnic food traditions Yuzu Kosho a Japanese condiment of Yuzu zest, salt and chili translates into a salted marmalade with fleur d sel that is locally harvested, or heirloom Northern New Mexico crushed chilis, coriander and cinnamon with quince. I am always thrilled when my product is appreciated by the community that the flavor tradition came from. I do the graphics for my labels myself. My daughter is my webmaster. I feel fortunate to be able to create my product in a personal way
My own history with preserving is from childhood and is more extensive than fruit preserves. I am an avid preserver of sauces, condiments, pickles and fruit of all kinds for personal use, as well. I enjoy sharing my knowledge by teaching classes through Relish Culinary Adventures in Healdsburg California
Elissa Rubin-Mahon
