Blueberry Jam and ...
It was a kitchen day. I cleaned the kitchen--washing pots, pans, counters, etc. And then I tackled my kitchen projects for the day. Then, I cleaned the kitchen--washing pots, pans, counters, etc.
I did both the normal and the abnormal, the seasonal and unseasonal, the local and the distant...
Now, I will tell you about the abnormal activity of making fresh blueberry jam in the middle of winter from Chilean berries. Tomorrow, you will hear all about my normal activity of ____ . :)
I enjoy canning jellies. I find something therapeutic about the process--sorting through berries, chopping or mashing them, cooking them with apple juice, coaxing the last bit of honey out of the jar, and then putting the product in the jars and into the water bath. I also like the sound of the jars sealing as they sit on the counter after emerging from the hot water.
I made a magical blueberry jam. I find blueberries magical because the outside is blue, the insides are green, but when you mash them and especially cook them, everything turns purple. I love it.
On Tuesday, I did some grocery shopping. We have a local store that sells produce very inexpensively and every day they run different specials on the items that just arrived. Nearly everything you get from them needs to be used either today or tomorrow, but it comes at such a low price, the little extra prep work when you get home is worth it. Unfortunately, they typically do not have organic fruits, but occasionally, you get lucky and the 88 cents a container strawberries or the 68 cents a pound grapes are organic! This time, though, I was able to get pints of conventionally farmed blueberries from Chile for $1 a pint. I brought them home with the intention of going through them that night since I could see there might have been a moldy one or two in each container, but I didn't end up going through them until today. I ended up with a pint of icky blueberries, so my price per container (because I got 5) ended up being 4/$5, or $1.20 a piece. Not too bad considering. I intended to freeze any we didn't eat right away, and then had a realization. The freezer is little. I just added bell peppers from my Tuesday's specials run, and I anticipate to have a lot of tomorrow's post to freeze. So, I thought, "Blueberry jam!"
I washed the berries thoroughly in a colander, and then sprayed them with a vinegar/water mixture to hopefully remove some pesticide residue. I let them sit for about 10 minutes while I grabbed the other ingredients for making a small batch of jam. I then rinsed the vinegar off of them, shook the colander to get some of the liquid off them. I got my large pot filled 1/2 way with water, put a round dish cloth in it to sink to the bottom, put the lid on, and turned on the heat. To do a hot water bath, you want the water to be hot when you add the preserves, not boiling, just hot. For my sized pot and stove, the water is heated almost perfectly by the time my preserves are done. Like with the Cran-Cherry jam, the jars of blueberry jam need to be lightly boiled (pan covered) for 10 minutes, and then left to sit in the water for another 5 minutes before being removed and left to rest on a towel on the counter for 24 hours. They should be sealed well before then.
I followed the recipe on the back of the Ball Low-Sugar/No-Sugar Real Fruit Pectin for blueberry jam with some sugar. At least, I thought I did. I ended up half a jar short. I think I skimped on honey. Next time, I will do half "No Sugar" and half "Low Sugar" since I don't like my jam to be too sweet. This is what is indicated below. My jam tastes like the filling for a blueberry jelly donut! (Now I need to buy a donut pan!) I hope yours will, too. :).
Blueberry Jam
makes 4 pint jars
3 cups clean blueberries
2/3 cups 100% apple juice
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon)
3 Tbsp pectin
1/2 cup or so of honey
In a medium sized sauce pan, combine the blueberries, apple juice, and lemon juice. Turn the heat on to medium/medium-high. Mash the blueberries lightly. They will continue to break down during the cooking process. Gradually add the pectin, stirring constantly.
Continue stirring until the mixture comes up to a boil that cannot be stirred down. Lower the heat slightly so the pan doesn't overflow, and slowly add the honey, stirring constantly. Bring up to a boil again for 1 minute, stir constantly. Remove from heat and let rest while you set up your jars.
Add the jam to clean, sanitized jars leaving 1/4 inch of head space (about up to the threads). Wipe the rims and add the lids and lightly tighten the bands. You can now either add them to the hot bath and process at a light boil for 10 minutes and then let it stand off the heat for 5 minutes, or put the jam in the refrigerator to consume within a week or so. If you process them, remember to let them stand on the counter for 24 hours. After that, check the seals and store in a cool, dark place. Enjoy!
I did both the normal and the abnormal, the seasonal and unseasonal, the local and the distant...
Now, I will tell you about the abnormal activity of making fresh blueberry jam in the middle of winter from Chilean berries. Tomorrow, you will hear all about my normal activity of ____ . :)
I enjoy canning jellies. I find something therapeutic about the process--sorting through berries, chopping or mashing them, cooking them with apple juice, coaxing the last bit of honey out of the jar, and then putting the product in the jars and into the water bath. I also like the sound of the jars sealing as they sit on the counter after emerging from the hot water.
I made a magical blueberry jam. I find blueberries magical because the outside is blue, the insides are green, but when you mash them and especially cook them, everything turns purple. I love it.
On Tuesday, I did some grocery shopping. We have a local store that sells produce very inexpensively and every day they run different specials on the items that just arrived. Nearly everything you get from them needs to be used either today or tomorrow, but it comes at such a low price, the little extra prep work when you get home is worth it. Unfortunately, they typically do not have organic fruits, but occasionally, you get lucky and the 88 cents a container strawberries or the 68 cents a pound grapes are organic! This time, though, I was able to get pints of conventionally farmed blueberries from Chile for $1 a pint. I brought them home with the intention of going through them that night since I could see there might have been a moldy one or two in each container, but I didn't end up going through them until today. I ended up with a pint of icky blueberries, so my price per container (because I got 5) ended up being 4/$5, or $1.20 a piece. Not too bad considering. I intended to freeze any we didn't eat right away, and then had a realization. The freezer is little. I just added bell peppers from my Tuesday's specials run, and I anticipate to have a lot of tomorrow's post to freeze. So, I thought, "Blueberry jam!"
I washed the berries thoroughly in a colander, and then sprayed them with a vinegar/water mixture to hopefully remove some pesticide residue. I let them sit for about 10 minutes while I grabbed the other ingredients for making a small batch of jam. I then rinsed the vinegar off of them, shook the colander to get some of the liquid off them. I got my large pot filled 1/2 way with water, put a round dish cloth in it to sink to the bottom, put the lid on, and turned on the heat. To do a hot water bath, you want the water to be hot when you add the preserves, not boiling, just hot. For my sized pot and stove, the water is heated almost perfectly by the time my preserves are done. Like with the Cran-Cherry jam, the jars of blueberry jam need to be lightly boiled (pan covered) for 10 minutes, and then left to sit in the water for another 5 minutes before being removed and left to rest on a towel on the counter for 24 hours. They should be sealed well before then.
I followed the recipe on the back of the Ball Low-Sugar/No-Sugar Real Fruit Pectin for blueberry jam with some sugar. At least, I thought I did. I ended up half a jar short. I think I skimped on honey. Next time, I will do half "No Sugar" and half "Low Sugar" since I don't like my jam to be too sweet. This is what is indicated below. My jam tastes like the filling for a blueberry jelly donut! (Now I need to buy a donut pan!) I hope yours will, too. :).
 |
| One of three and a half. |
Blueberry Jam
makes 4 pint jars
3 cups clean blueberries
2/3 cups 100% apple juice
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon)
3 Tbsp pectin
1/2 cup or so of honey
In a medium sized sauce pan, combine the blueberries, apple juice, and lemon juice. Turn the heat on to medium/medium-high. Mash the blueberries lightly. They will continue to break down during the cooking process. Gradually add the pectin, stirring constantly.
Continue stirring until the mixture comes up to a boil that cannot be stirred down. Lower the heat slightly so the pan doesn't overflow, and slowly add the honey, stirring constantly. Bring up to a boil again for 1 minute, stir constantly. Remove from heat and let rest while you set up your jars.
Add the jam to clean, sanitized jars leaving 1/4 inch of head space (about up to the threads). Wipe the rims and add the lids and lightly tighten the bands. You can now either add them to the hot bath and process at a light boil for 10 minutes and then let it stand off the heat for 5 minutes, or put the jam in the refrigerator to consume within a week or so. If you process them, remember to let them stand on the counter for 24 hours. After that, check the seals and store in a cool, dark place. Enjoy!
just like blueberry filling in a donut!
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