day 20 - a hobby of yours. Last year we had so many tomatoes I didn't know what to do with them. So I started exploring in the canning world, my first recipe being canned salsa, and I have been hooked ever since! I even participated in a fun jam exhange earlier this summer. Here are the recipes I sent to Leslie, my jam exchange partner. (Left one is tayberry jam, the right one is strawberry jam).
Tayberry Jam
3 pounds tayberries
1 ¼ pounds sugar (2 ½ to 2 ¾ cups)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1. Sterilize your jars and put 5 teaspoons on a plate in the freezer, to test your jam for doneness later.
2. Set aside approximately 1/3 of the berries.
3. Combine the rest of the ingredients (remaining berries, sugar, and lemon juice) in your jam pan.
4. Bring the mixture to boil.
5. After the mixture thickens a bit, add the remaining berries. I added mine at about 10 minutes, which was about halfway through the cooking process. This late addition of the berries helps your jam to have a nice texture in the end.
6. Boil the jam until it sets, using a large, shallow, stainless-steel spoon to skim the stiff foam off the top as it cooks. I started testing my jam for doneness at about 15 minutes and considered the jam finished at around 20 minutes. (Keep in mind that lots of factors can affect your cooking time; it may be very different for you, so be sure to watch the mixture and test it.)
To test your jam for doneness: Remove the pan from the heat. Use one of your frozen spoons to scoop up a little bit of jam -- not a whole spoonful. Return the spoon to the freezer and wait 3 minutes. Retrieve the spoon and hold it vertically. If the mixture runs very slowly or not at all, it’s done. Alternately, give the mixture a little push with your finger. If you see creases or wrinkles, it’s done.
7. Take care of any final skimming and ladle the hot jam into your sterilized jars. I processed mine for 5 minutes in a hot-water bath, which is appropriate for fruit at my elevation. Yields about 5 half-pint jars.
Simple Strawberry Jam
5 cups hulled mashed strawberries
7 cups sugar
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 49g package powdered fruit pectin
1. Place 8 or 9 8-ounce mason jars in a large hot water bath canner (or pot). Cover with water and bring to a simmer.
2. Simmer center lids in separate saucepan full of water.
3. Place mashed strawberries and lemon juice in a separate pot. Stir in pectin until dissolved. Bring strawberries to a strong boil.
4. Add sugar (measure beforehand so you can add it all at once), then return mixture to a full (violent) boil that can’t be stirred down. Boil hard for 1 minute 15 seconds.
5. Skim foam off the top.
6. Remove one jar at a time from the simmering water. Pour water back into the pot. Using a wide-mouth funnel, fill each jar with jam, being careful to keep the liquid/fruit ratio consistent. Fill jars so that they have 1/4-inch of space at the top.
7. Run a knife down the side of the jar to get rid of air bubbles.
8. Wipe rim of jar with a wet cloth to remove any residue or stickiness.
9. Remove center lid from simmering water and position it on top.
10. Put screw bands on jars, but do not overtighten!
11. Repeat with all jars, then place jars on canning rack and lower into the water.
12. Place lid on canner, then bring water to a full boil. Boil hard for 10 to 12 minutes.
13. Turn off heat and allow jars to remain in hot water for an addition five minutes.
14. Remove jars from water using a jar lifter, and allow them to sit undisturbed for 24 hours.
15. After 24 hours, remove screw bands and check the seal of the jars. Center lids should have no give whatsoever. If any seals are compromised, store those jars in the fridge.
