How to Make Jam with Your Summer Fruit
I grew up down the street from a peach farm and remember my mom buying one box of pretty ones for eating and one box of tattered and bruised ones for turning into cobbler and jam. I carry on this tradition by hitting up my local farmers market for bargains by purchasing fruit that needs to be used up immediately - you know, those bruised peaches and very ripe berries. The sellers will often just want to get rid of them by the day's end, so I offer to take those unwanted fruits off their hands and turn them into jams for the winter blues, and they always give me a great deal.
1. Small-Batch Vanilla Bean Strawberry Jam
You don't need a ton of fruit to make jam, and this recipe proves it. All you need is 4 cups of strawberries, and for some added depth of flavor, a vanilla bean.
Make small-batch strawberry jam
Ingredients:
4 cups strawberries, hulled
1/2 cup sugar
juice of half a lemon (about 1 Tbsp.)
1 vanilla bean
Directions:
In a bowl, roughly mash your strawberries with a potato masher (you may need to lean into it at first, to get them going) or squish them with your fingers. Put them into a large skillet. With the tip of a knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds; add them to the pan along with the pod.
Add the sugar and lemon juice and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often and breaking up large chunks of berry with your spoon, until it thickens and your spoon leaves a trail across the bottom of the pan. (It should take about 10 minutes.) Cool and remove the vanilla pod.
Makes about 1 1/2 cups. Store in a covered jar in the fridge.
Related: 24 sinfully sweet dessert recipes in a jar
2.
Apricot Vanilla Jam
For the apricots that you had hoped to eat fresh but are on their last leg, make sure to use them in this jam. Keep in mind you will need 2 lbs of fresh apricots. While the author was warned about a reduction in sugar resulting in unset jam, but she did it anyway and her jam turned out fine.
Make apricot vanilla jam
3. Peach Freezer Jam
This recipe can be made with no sugar or up to 3 cups to go along with the 2 lbs of peaches. Also, this is freezer jam which means you don't have to boil the jars; you just let them sit out for about 24 hours, then pop them in the freezer until you are ready to use.
Make peach freezer jam
Related: 12 summer fruit pies you can make without a pie pan
4. Double-Berry Freezer Jam
I have to admit, I've never combined berries for one jam. This recipe calls for strawberries and blueberries, the perfect pairing. I must try this.
Make double-berry freezer jam
5. Blueberry-Lemon Honey Jam
This recipe is going to require a blueberry sale as it calls for 11 cups of them. Good thing blueberry season is right around the corner! The addition of sugar and honey with lemon zest will even out the flavors.
Make blueberry-lemon honey jam
Related: 7 food additives you should think twice about before eating
6. No-Recipe Cherry Jam
David Lebovitz does it again with another delicious concoction while giving you the confidence to go at without a proper recipe.
Make no-recipe cherry jam
7. Blackberry or Raspberry Jam
Head to the farmers market and find the better deal, raspberries or blackberries, and choose your main ingredient. You will only need 2 cups. This is a refrigerator jam, so it may not make it through the winter. If that's your goal, then store it in a jar in the freezer.
Make blackberry or raspberry jam
- By Macki West
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