The World of Milk Jam

When the Greek and I returned from my winter vacation, we were in for an unpleasant surprise. Our refrigerator had turned off while we were away and everything in it had spoiled: the apple jelly and chutney we had made in the fall after going apple picking in northern California, the various condiments that we liked to use to give our food a little boost (that is, everything but the sriracha; much like the cockroach and the rat, sriracha is forever), the ice cream that we are never without and, worst of all, the jar of Matcha Milk Jam that I had decadently bought at Craftsman and Wolves after getting my first paycheck in the fall after  months of unemployment.

Always one to try to find the silver lining, however, I decided that not only did this mean that our refrigerator would now be stupendously clean for the new year, but that I could also use this opportunity to try to recreate the Matcha Milk Jam at home. But even though I always have a ready supply of matcha powder for any tea drinking or baking whim and would happily consume it on a daily basis, I suddenly felt that I needed to try something different. I needed to make a milk jam flavor of my own.

Milk jam, which is also known as dulce de leche (candy of milk or, literally, jam of milk) or confiture de lait, is similar to sweetened condensed milk, but is thicker and more caramelized in terms of its flavor. In different countries, it comes in different flavors: in India, it is flavored with cardamom and eaten as dessert; in France, it is served with fromage blanc; in Puerto Rico, it’s said to be made from unsweetened coconut milk. In short, the possibilities are endless.

For me, if I was going to abandon my love of Japanese flavors, there was only one other path to embark on. In the past year, I developed a serious interest in Persian cooking. I found the flavor combinations–rose, lemon, saffron, walnut, cinnamon, cardamom, pomegranate, lime and pistachio–to be nothing short of inspiring, as well as aesthetically pleasing to the eye. When I thought of the milk jam flavor that would reflect my current kitchen love affair, it combined several of these flavors: namely rose, cinnamon and lemon.

Although I like to use rosewater when cooking, I also sometimes feel that it’s too potent; if you add one drop too many, your food can quickly go from pleasantly flavored to overly floral (i.e. soapy; I find this to be a similar problem when cooking or baking with lavender). Because of this, I decided to use the dried rose petals that I had picked up at a local Middle Eastern market when I baked this Turkish cake. If you have any tea filter bags (I like these ones), it’s really quite simple to stuff the bag with your flavors of choice and to attach it to the side of the pan (yes, that’s a binder clip; this was a very ad hoc kitchen project, but it worked!) so that it will infuse the gently simmering milk with its flavors. If any stray rose petals escape, they can easily be captured with cheesecloth or with a metal tea strainer.

I should add that I was hoping for this milk jam to take on a rosy hue as it ever so gently simmered (keep in mind that making milk jam can be a bit of a kitchen project; it takes about 2-2 1/2 hours to make and requires your attention since you have to watch to make sure that the milk doesn’t burn or form a skin), but it didn’t. Midway through making it, I decided that I could possibly add a bit of color by adding a few hibiscus leaves to the tea bag; while this did result in my getting a few beautiful swirls of purple, they faded away once I stirred the mixture. Had I had some pomegranate molasses (this too had perished in the fridge), I might have added a few drops for a tangy note, as well as a splash of color. All of that being said, a muted milk jam is better than no milk jam at all and, if you make this, I’m sure you’ll feel the same.

It’s the kind of spread that can be used to sandwich cookies, to fill thumbprints, to be hidden between two layers of spongy cake, or to be eaten by the spoonful on the sly. That short list doesn’t even begin to exhaust its possible uses.

Making a Persian-style milk jam wasn’t enough for me. In one of my more whimsical moments, I decided to make semi-fancy toasts for breakfast; I called them Persian Milk Jam toasts: walnut bread (here’s the recipe I used), Rose Petal and Lemon Milk Jam, Sour Cherry Preserves and a scattering of dried rose petals. It’s as good a use for this spread as any of the others.

General milk jam tips:

Use caster sugar or, if you don’t have it in your pantry, put some granulated sugar in the food processor and make your own. This will make for a smoother milk jam.

Apparently, using baking soda (1/4-1/2 teaspoon) will give your milk jam a more caramelized appearance.

Rose Petal and Lemon Milk Jam

Method inspired by Farmette

2 cups whole milk

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

200 grams granulated sugar, ground in the food processor and turned into caster sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons dried rose petals

2-3 strips (about 2 inches each) lemon peel

1 cinnamon stick

a few hibiscus leaves

-In a small filter bag, combine the dried rose petals, strips of lemon peel, 1 cinnamon stick and a few hibiscus leaves. Attach to the side of a small saucepan (I recommend a binder clip).

-Add the milk, caster sugar and sea salt to the saucepan and stir to combine.

-Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once the milk starts to bubble, turn down the heat to the lowest possible setting immediately. You don’t want the milk to froth, burn or to form a skin.

-Continue to simmer ever so gently for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until reduced by about half, stirring the mixture every 10 minutes. If necessary, skim any foam that appears with a cheesecloth.

-Once the milk jam has reached your desired consistency (it can be as thick or as thin as you like, although do remember that it will continue to thicken as it cools, place it in a sterilized jar and allow it to cool before putting the lid on and placing it in the fridge.

Persian Milk Jam Toasts

walnut bread

Rose Lemon Milk Jam

Sour Cherry preserves

crushed rose petals, for decorating

Toast your bread and slather it with milk jam. Place a spoonful of sour cherry preserves in the center of the slice and then sprinkle the toast with dried rose petals.

Jam Profile: William Werner of Craftsman and Wolves

Back in November I met a friend for lunch at San Francisco’s Craftsman and Wolves, a self-titled “contemporary pâtisserie” where you’re not likely to find your run-of-the-mill baked goods. In fact, part of the fun in going there stems from discovering the unique twist that Werner and his team put on the usual pastries. Rather than a plain old (delicious) chocolate croissant, you’ll find a stacked work of buttery art with a layer of chocolate so shiny on top that you can almost see your reflection in it; similarly, a muffin studded with sausage, chives and cheese may look like your average breakfast fare, but then you take a bite and immediately realize there’s soft-boiled egg inside (they call it “The Rebel Within,” which seems more than apt). Whenever I find myself in this shop, I always enjoy a lengthy perusal of the pastry case, but this time around I instead found myself gravitating towards the small selection of preserves in the back–the Passion Fruit-Olive Oil Curd, the Café Au Lait and the Matcha Milk Jam. Really, it was the vibrant green color of the Matcha Milk Jam that caught my eye;  in the fall, I always become a little nostalgic for the year I spent in Japan and, since this jam seemed to promise to transport me back in time, I decided to buy some. I’ll also confess that I was feeling decadent enough to buy some of the Passion Fruit-Olive Oil Curd, too.

The next morning I immediately opened the Matcha Milk Jam and slathered it on my morning toast. It was silky, sweet and grassy in just the way matcha is supposed to be. I was so intrigued that I couldn’t help but wonder about Werner’s process: how does he choose these flavors? why focus on milk jams, a sweeter spread? As it turned out, I would get answers to my questions. After I took over this blog, I started thinking that it would be great to feature not only Werner and Craftsman and Wolves, but also some less common jams, spreads, and add-in ingredients; fortunately, Werner agreed to an interview, and he and I met last week at Craftsman to talk about his jam philosophy, the shop, expansion plans, etc. He was also kind enough to send me some lovely photos that he had taken, which I’ve used throughout this post.

For those of you unfamiliar with William Werner, before opening Craftsman and Wolves, he worked as a pastry chef at the Ritz-Carlton and at Quince in San Francisco’s Jackson Square. It was at the latter that Werner said he had first started experimenting with and making preserves. He explained that he had always been intrigued by the technical aspect of jam making–“the manipulation of fruit,” as well as by the more whimsical and creative side of the process–the idea of “preserving a moment in time.” Werner’s interest in both sides of this process eventually led to a pop-up shop, the Tell Tale Preserve Company, which focused heavily on jams.

Talking to Werner, I got the impression that his turn to milk jams was fairly inevitable. As a pastry chef, his mission seems to be to tweak classics, personalizing them in playful and thoughtful way. He said that he first encountered milk jam (or, as it’s more commonly known, dulce de leche) when he was living in France; watching the mother of a friend slowly boil down the milk that otherwise would have spoiled left a lasting impression on him. And as his work with jams and spreads evolved, he was convinced that milk jam offered him the unique opportunity to play with the “sweeter side” of jams and spreads. As he put it, you often have your fruit preserves and then your chocolate sauces and caramel; milk jam is really the space in between these two extremes.

When I asked Werner what inspired him, his answer was simple: he makes what he wants to eat himself. In terms of confitures, this may be Meyer Lemon Yuzu; in terms of candies, this may be a caramel made salty by the addition of a delicate white soy sauce. Werner and his team at Craftsman, it seems, are always coming up with new ideas and flavor combinations, as well as trying to work uncommon ingredients into the shop’s sweets. Interestingly, the confitures aren’t featured in Craftsman’s pastries; they do, however, make an appearance in the shop’s afternoon high tea service, which has become so popular that it’s going to get its own shop.

Until recently, you either had to be a Bay Area local or an online shopper at Heidi Swanson’s Quitokeeto to try Werner’s confitures, but the good news is that, as of tomorrow, an online shop is opening that will feature them, as well as other shipping-friendly Craftsman and Wolves creations (sadly, I don’t think The Rebel Within will be part of the online selection, but there’s a reason to visit San Francisco!).  If you order anything from the shop, Werner will also be including recipe ideas for the confitures since a lot of people who have bought them have written to him to ask how they could use them; he says he likes them on a toasted baguette (I concur), but there are other ways you can use them, too. Milk jam goes well with ice cream, shortbread and cake; it’s just the thing for people with a sweet tooth.

If you do make it to San Francisco, here are the shop’s hours, which is worth stopping by if you’re in the area:

Monday through Thursday: 7am – 7pm
Friday: 7am – 8pm
Saturday: 8am – 8pm
Sunday: 8am – 7pm.

Even if milk jam doesn’t turn out to be your thing, I’m sure that something on the menu, which changes seasonally, will appeal to you.