JAM Session

October 27, 2011 By in cooking, Food Tags: , , , , , 137 Comments

Last Spoon we talked about butter, so now let’s talk about jam.

I can’t think of anything lovelier than opening a jar of homemade preserves in the dead of winter (okay, as dead as a California winter can be) and being hit with the scent of fresh peaches, still warm from the sun.  If you really want to ruin your children for life, feed them homemade jam.  I speak from experience.  I can never look at Smucker’s again.  It’s a twofold affair really. There’s of course the sublime taste of the fresh fruit, straight into the jar, that cannot be matched by anything at the store.  More importantly, though, is the memory of my mother standing over the stove in the cool of an August morning, stirring and pouring and tightening lids, and packaging up little bits of our summer for us to pull out on cloudier days to come.

Making jam is not hard, so please don’t be scared away by the length of this post.  I meant to put this up a few weeks ago so everyone would have more of the season to find fruit, but I had a camera fiasco….  In any case, depending on where you live you can probably find a last crop of figs or strawberries, or perhaps even late harvest peaches. If you can’t, save the recipe for next season.   Sealed jams should last approximately 1 year when stored in cool, dark areas.  I plan to give my jam out as Christmas gifts this year alongside a small bag of homemade cookies or treats.

PICKING FRUIT: When you look for fruit the most important component is flavor, not to be confused with sweetness.  Some of the best jam I made was from plums that weren’t very soft or sweet, but had an amazing tang.  You can always add sugar, but you can’t recreate flavor.

plums

Plums from the Ferry Building Farmer's Market. Very tangy and flavorful but not too sweet.

Now…let’s jam.

SONOMA STRAWBERRY JAM I had been having trouble all summer finding good strawberries.  Every basket I tried just didn’t have any flavor.  As September passed and October began to draw to a close I gave up hope of finding any that were worthy of jamming.  However, one evening a very special someone brought home a flat of fresh, sun-ripened strawberries from Sonoma, and my summer was made.  We sat at our counter all evening picking at the small, juicy red treasures, and I still had enough for a whole batch of Sonoma Strawberry Jam.

You’ll Need

Have all of your equipment and ingredients ready to go before you start.  Again, it’s not hard, but once you get started cooking the fruit the process needs to happen quickly.  You will need 8-12 jam jars and metal lids, which are usually available at hardware stores.  I like 4 ounce and 8 ounce sizes.  You will also need a wide-mouthed jam funnel (like this one), a long magnet for lifting sterilized lids onto the filled jars, plenty of clean dish cloths (dry and some dampened), a long-handled strainer or sieve, one envelope of pectin (I prefer the Certo liquid/gel kind) cut opened and sitting upright in a cup or bowl, and a large stockpot.   Set it all up like this…

jam setup

For strawberry jam you will also need

  • 1 teaspoon unsalted butter (optional but helps prevent foaming during the cooking phase)
  • About 4 baskets (pints) of strawberries
  • 7 cups sugar

Here’s How

  • Set up all of your equipment, close to the stove.  Measure out the sugar into a bowl and set aside.
  • Unscrew all the lids from the jars and put the flat lids into a pot or heat-proof bowl.  Pour boiling water over the lids to sterilize them and set them aside until you’re ready to put them on the filled jars.  Wash the rest of the jars in hot, soapy water, dry, and set aside.
  • Wash the strawberries and pull out their stems, taking care not to take too much of the fruit along with them.  Using a pastry blender or potato masher, crush them into small pieces.  Measure out 4 cups of the crushed fruit.  If you have extra, save it and pour on top of ice cream or yogurt!
  • Put the fruit into the large stockpot and turn on medium-high.  Add the sugar slowly, and then the butter.  Turn heat on high and start stirring!
  • When the mixture comes to a FULL BOIL (still stirring constantly) add the pectin.  Be sure to squeeze the gel out carefully – don’t squeeze the package too hard or you’re going to have a real mess on your hands.  Allow to boil for 1 minute and then take the pot off the heat.  Carefully skim as much foam as you can off of the top.
  • Place the jam funnel on top of a jar and ladle jam mixture into the jar so that it comes to within about 1/4 -1/8 inch of the top.  Wipe the rims with one of those damp cloths you had handy and then use the magnet to drop a flat lid on top.  Quickly screw the rim on.  It’s okay if you don’t have a magnet; just use tongs or very clean hands to drop the flat lids on.
  • When all the jars are filled, quickly go back and make sure all the lids are tightly screwed on. Then, invert all the jars for exactly five minutes.  This is what will seal them.  Note: if you are selling your jam the USDA mandates that you must use a hot water bath to seal the jars instead of the inversion method.  There should be simple instructions for this included with your pectin.

  • When your five minutes are over turn the jars back over and spread them out so plenty of air can flow around the jars, helping to cool the jam.  You will need too let them stand like this, untouched or bumped for about 24 hours while the jam “sets up” or gels.  During this time the lids will also seal completely.  Listen for the fun little popping noises as the flat lids pull themselves inwards.  After 24 hours check to make sure all of the lids have done this.  If one failed to seal stick it in the fridge….cook’s treat.

FRUIT VARIATIONS

If you’re making PLUM you will need about 3 1/2 pounds plums, which you should pit, finely chop, and simmer with 1/2 cup water for about 5 minutes.  You should get 4 1/2 cups cooked plums.  Using this as the fruit, follow instructions above and use 7 1/2 cups sugar.

If you’re making FIG jam use about 3 1/2 pounds of figs and 4 lemons, to make 4 cups of finely chopped figs and 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice.  Follow instructions above but use this, along with 1/2 cup of water, and 7 cups of sugar.

chopped figs

If you’re making PEACH jam use about 4 pounds of peaches and 2 lemons, to make 4 cups of finely chopped fruit and 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice.  Follow instructions above but use this mixture and 7 1/2 cups of sugar.
TIP: Pair jam with your favorite cheese!  This is a wonderful sweet and savory combination that is perfect as an appetizer.  In Europe, a standard breakfast in many places is a crusty piece of baguette with some sweet jam and a single slice of Swiss or some other sharp cheese.

creamy brie with fig jam

peach jam with blue cheese

strawberry jam with swiss

plum jam and manchego

There is something magical about making jam; bottling up that fresh taste of spring and summer.  I look forward to playing around a bit this winter with pears, spicy apple butters, and marmalade.   Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy.

Recipes adapted from Certo, but mostly from my mom.

137 Responses

  1. mmmmmm!!!!! These cheese and jam combos are making me hungry! And those strawberries look wonderful–I have not seen anything like those in my local farmers market.
    Great blog!!!

    Reply

  2. OMG you know I love me some jam! Get in my belllllllllly. Let’s move to England tomorrow and open up a bed and breakfast… I will do the cleaning; you do the cooking obvi. xoxoxKB

    Reply

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  14. This looks amazing! You really have a writing and cooking (and photography) gift! I’m so glad I was told about your blog!….and front page of wordpress?!!!! Great job lady! I’ll buy your cookbook……… ;)

    Reply

  19. What a delicious post! I love making fresh jam and now that summer is arriving here in South America, I’ve got all sorts of fruit options :)
    When I make strawberry jam I don’t use pectin and it turns out fantastic…actually I’ve never used pectin in any of my jams…I wonder what the difference is?
    Here’s a link to my blog my the strawberry jam recipe if you’re interested: http://alongwayaway.wordpress.com/2011/10/08/how-not-to-buy-strawberries-in-buenos-aires/

    Reply

    • Hi Kvolman! The pectin is derived from citrus fruits and just helps with the gelling in jams and jellies, especially if you’re trying to preserve them for more than a few weeks.

      Thanks for sharing your recipe – I look forward to checking that out! Sounds delicious!

      Reply

  29. Beautiful photos! I especially appreciate learning about the inversion method for sealing the jars. Thanks!

    I made jam this summer and my new favorite flavor combo is peach with vanilla. Just scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the fruit mixture, then tuck half inch pieces of vanilla pod right into inch jar just before sealing. Delicious!

    Reply

  30. Nice! I will have to try out the inversion method next year too. I usually just process in boiling water. cool photos for sure! Peach-vanilla does sound good, but maybe not as good as my friend’s peach habenero recipe…now that makes a tasty cheese combo! Cool to find a canning post done so stylishly. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  37. Those look really delicious! I love the pictures, there so modern looking! Wow, just looking at them makes me want to have some jam, and cheese. =D

    Reply

  38. My grandmother makes apricot jam but she actually pours the finished product into an air tight jar then lets it sit in the sun for weeks. She believes the more sun it’s exposed to the better it will taste and I have to say, I agree! It was so hard to walk past the jars and not stick your finger in there for an early taste–her jams were always fantastic.

    Reply

  39. I love homemade jam. Although, I make mine in the bread machine, and during the winter I use frozen berries, and peaches. Though I do prefer fresh fruit, the frozen still works deliciously. And, yeah. my kids are ruined for store-bought jam. Great post!

    Reply

  40. Such a nice post! I was only surprised that you included the step of inverting the jars for 5 minutes… I just took a canning 101 class (and blogged about my first-ever strawberry jam), but we used a hot water bath method instead of inversion… It seems so much easier to just invert them! Do you think there are any drawbacks to that method vs. a hot water bath?

    Reply

    • Hi Allison! The water bath is sort of the extreme version of sealing. If you want to sell your jam you have to use the hot water bath – this is the FDA recommended way. But, for just having at home or giving as personal gifts the inversion method is totally fine. Just make sure that you check each lid after a day or so to ensure that it has sealed and you can’t pop it inwards. If it’s sealed, you’re good to go! Thank you for reading!

      Reply

  52. I’ve been making home jams for about 20 years. About 5 years ago I discovered Pamona Pectin. This wonderful product (made in the USA) lets you do jams which are sweetened a) not at all b) low sugar c) honey. I make mine with 25% white sugar. The resulting jams, I can sell to diabetics!

    My treat tonight was
    a) warmed, multi grain bagel
    b) large glass of Black Berry Wine ( home made)
    c) wedges of Brie Cheese or extra old cheddar
    d) good dollops of SALAL Berry Jam! OMGd!

    cooking times are reduced by 50%!

    I also recommend Black Currant or Huckleberry Jams with above cheeses, / wine!

    Rod Burns
    Bold Point Farmstay
    http://www.boldpoint348.wordpress.com

    Reply

  53. I totally agree with you that homemade jam spoils you. My Dad has always made jam at home and the shop bought stuff just doesn’t come close in flavour. We also had homemade juice from the redcurrants and blackcurrants in the garden. Made in a similar way to the jam, but the sugar is added later (if I remember correctly).

    Reply

  59. We made a plum jam this year! We followed an an OLD recipe that we have used many times before, but this year it had a very caramel flavour to it, and not the usual deep fruit flavour. Any ideas?

    Lee (closet jam maker)

    Reply

    • Hi Lee! I wonder if maybe you cooked it a tad too long? The sugar may have actually started to caramelize by the time you transferred to the jars. I find you only need to boil the mixture for exactly 1 minute after adding the pectin, and then I remove the pot from the burner. Hope that helps for your next batch!

      Reply

    • Betty – thanks for stopping by! Maybe she’ll give you a lesson? Then you can steal her tips and share with us ;) Don’t be scared of making your own though! It takes a bit of time but as long as you start with good fruit I’m sure yours will be delicious!

      Reply

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