JAM SESSION

A new cookbook from Sqirl, the cult-favorite Los Angeles café, revisits its origin story at a moment when the pantry is a pleasure center

Vanities/Books

"WHEN I SAY PICKY, I did not eat fruit," Jessica Koslow says of her childhood palate, the sole exception being raspberries. In a twist, the chef grew up to be a produce whisperer, creating a line of jams in 2011 called Sqirl. When her cafe opened a year later, ricotta toast slicked with preserves drew devotees. Now, amid a bread-making boom, The Sqirl Jam Book proposes an apt hobby. Photographed by creative director Scott Barry, the book is full of unexpected whimsy, from impromptu sculptures to recipes that bubble "like the La Brea Tar Pits." Seek out local fruit, or order a jar of Koslow's Persian mulberry. Jam sales have helped keep Sqirl aloft in this challenging time (preserves indeed). "It's the heart and soul of everything that we do," she says.

Laura Regensdorf