The recipes are in sections so all of the jams together, the lemon curd, jellies, chutneys etc.  Those recipes in the sections are a little repetitive but that is because the method is the same in each, master one and the whole sections opens up for you.

I absolutely love chutneys as they go so well with cheese but I am a little fussy, I do not like raisins and sultanas in chutneys because they always remain just a little too firm/intact unlike other fruits and for me they just detract from the flavours you actually want to taste.  I spend hours usually searching for chutneys that sound good and that hopefully won't have sultanas in but those preserves are few and far between.  Christmas this year took on a whole new meaning as a month before I bottled my own chutney free of the little bullets or large pieces of fruit (another thing that is annoying to me) and so my chutney for my Christmas cheeses was absolutely perfect. 

The way Emma writes, everything feels doable and possible and having gone through the book the first thing I wanted to make was the crab apple jelly.  The gorgeous pink set jelly really stood out from the first moment I went through the book.  Before I could make this however I had to find crab apples which believe me was no mean feat.  I need to start going on country walks so that during the next crab apple season I won't find myself on eBay paying what can only be described as an extortionate amount for 1kg of crab apples.  (Unlike apples etc, you cannot buy crab apples in the shops).  When they arrived they were so uninspiring looking that it did make me wonder what I was doing and whether it would even be worth it but I followed Emma's instructions and despite being totally fleeced for my crab apples, as they cooked away and the spices started to emanate through the house I began to feel really excited.  As I bottled my beautiful clear pink Jelly I could barely wait until the following Sunday when we could eat with roast pork.  My jelly should probably have been boiled a little longer as it was fairly soft set but I was really happy with the soft set, (another great thing about making your own is you can tailor to your own personal taste).  The softer set jelly is perfect for sausage rolls and soft set or not my gosh it tastes so good.

Buoyed on by the skills I learnt from this fabulous little book, I have since made lots of jams including strawberry, cherry and orange marmalade (which really was the best marmalade I have ever eaten) as well as watermelon jelly.  What I also learnt is just how happy people are to receive homemade items.  Things you may worry about the average receiver possibly will not notice and if they do, it is unlikely they will care. 

A few things to remember, to keep your preserves you should sterilise your jars, this is just a case of washing in hot soapy water then into a hot oven for 15 mins and bottle straight away.  If it is a chutney it will need to sit for a few weeks.  The Christmas cheese chutney I made was initially so sour that frankly it was horrible, nothing like it smelt while cooking which was enticing.  A chance flick back through the art of preserving and I thought I would leave it to mature as suggested.  6 weeks later and oh my word it really was everything I wanted it to be and so much more, it is delicious and I can't believe the difference aging it made.

There are pieces of equipment that help with jam making and if you are considering doing it very often then it will be worth investing in them.  By and large however you will be able to do everything you need to do without specialist equipment. 

If you want to get into preserving then this really is the book for you, it is a great guide.  I certainly feel I have learnt a new skill.  Jam making does need some skill but follow the steps in this book and it is a skill you can learn.

Recipes 6/10
Readability 7/10
Knowledge learnt 9/10
Total 22/30