Dangerously Delicious Jam

Found the first local apricots at the farmers' market this weekend They're so lovely, and the scent they send into the air as they sit on the kitchen counter is endlessly seductive. But I bought too many, don't want to refrigerate them, so the ones we haven't eaten go into this quick, delicious jam.  

Fresh Apricot Jam

¼ cup water

1 ¼ cups sugar

2 pounds apricots, including skin, pulled apart, divided 

vanilla bean, optional

juice of half a lemon

Stir the sugar and water together in a small heavy bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring until clear, 1-2 minutes. 

Pull apart the apricots, and add half of them to the syrup. Simmer until they disintegrate, stirring, for about 10 minutes.

Add the remaining apricots and vanilla bean, and stir for another 5-7 minutes, until the apricots soften. 

Remove the vanilla bean.  Slice it the long way, and run a knife along the inside edge to remove the seeds. Stir the seeds into the jam.

Add the lemon juice and cook for another 3 minutes.

This will keep well in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks - but it's unlikely to last that long.