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strawberry jammin'

It's been a couple years since I've made homemade jam but since there have been bunches of strawberries in the markets, how could I not?  Not to mention, it's so very yummy!

Aren't strawberries lovely - just to look at?  Who could resist taking a few pictures?


At our last home, I had a strawberry patch for making jam (if I could get to the berries before my boys ate them all).  But this year, we just bought several pounds.  This has been a longer process than I remember which probably has something to do with having a teeny one in the house and big brothers who are constantly on the go. Kudos to those that end up with 52 jars of jam for the year!



I really wanted a recipe with less sugar than the typical 4-7 cups, so I tried Stephinie's recipe and it turned out very well!  I did pulse the berries a bit in the food processor so that brought the berries down to a little over 8 cups.    For my own sake - when I'm looking for recipes for next year, I've summarized it below.  

- 8 cups crushed strawberries (slightly over 4 lbs)
- 1/4 c lime juice
- 1 c water
-  2 c sugar
- 1 box (1.75 oz) low/no-sugar pectin


Bring strawberries, lime juice, water and 1.5 c of the sugar to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure your mixture doesn't boil over.   

Mix pectin with remaining .5 c sugar and pour into boiling strawberries.  Stir to make sure everything mixes well and you don't end up with lumps at the bottom.

[While you're stirring, be sure to take a nice deep breath and enjoy that sweet syrupy smell that I'm sure would make a hummingbird swoon.]

Cook additional 5 minutes and remove from heat. Skim off any foam. 

Then pour into hot jars and seal as instructed by manufacturer.  I did go ahead and process my jams for 10 minutes in a water bath which is also why I reduced the cooking time from the original recipe. 

And there you have it, homemade soft-set reduced-sugar jam. Each batch made about 9 cups of jam.
  

I'll make another batch tomorrow with a bit more sugar for gift-giving and such.

5 comments:

legendswife said... Best Blogger Tips

Yum! I am so thankful its been nice here in Minnesota with an early spring. I'm anticipating farmers market and jams:)

Anonymous said... Best Blogger Tips

wowa faithy, looks yummy! can't wait till our little strawberry patch comes in! you should send me a bottle. ;)

Handbags*and*Pigtails said... Best Blogger Tips

Yeah now that Im drooling over my screen... this looks SO yummy! We've never tried Strawberry jam. The past couple of years we've done peach jam and then this past year we did peach jam, blueberry jam, and apple jam. Its so nice to have those fruits throughout the long winters.
Missing you as always,
Sarah

faith said... Best Blogger Tips

Sarah, I would love those recipes if you would care to share. I need to get myself to the library and find some good books! And, I can't wait to see pictures of the big birthday bash.

Anonymous said... Best Blogger Tips

That looks so delicious! I just found your blog from JCasa and your photos are gorgeous!

Have a great day!
~Angie