Make Jam

Dear Tracy, 

I’ve been thinking a lot on the themes of “best summer ever” and “self care” as the summer slowly slides into fall. 

As a kid, my mom would drag me back to her home town in the middle of nowhere Appalachia to experience a country summer. Summer days of riding bikes, picking blackberries, hiding in the apple orchard, being told don’t come back in until the street lamps come on, canning peppers, and soaking in the sunshine. 

One of the best parts of summer is the abundance of fruit in season. 

Strawberries are sweeter. Blueberries are bigger. Blackberries are sweeter. Peaches are the juiciest. 

One of the best parts of winter was my mom’s blueberry pancakes with summer berries she froze for that moment or my grandmother’s strawberry jam over fresh biscuits as I watched the snow come down in our Michigan home. If I want to give those same memories to my son, that means making jam now. 

It’s really a two-for-one activity. The best of summer fruits preserved in a fun summer afternoon with the tiny human -and- the self care of jam on scones in the months to come? Sign me up! 

Making Jam is Easier Than You Think

Now, you can be complicated and cook a low sugar mix with little to no pectin, sterilize the jars in your oven, and seal them all in a hot water bath. That’s hard, hot, and sometimes complicated work. 

Or…?

You could make freezer jam. 

You Will Need:

2 tablespoons of Freezer Pectin 

2/3 cups of Sugar

1 2/3 cups of Fruit

Jars (or freezer safe plastic containers)

Directions: 

This works best in small batches. I don’t know why, but in large batches the pectin has trouble setting and the “jelly won’t jel” together.

Mix together pectin and sugar in medium bowl.

Clean and dry fruit. Cut, hull, or peel as needed. 

In a separate bowl: Let your tiny humans squish the fruit with a potato masher. It’s hilarious. 

Finish the squishing yourself to make sure it’s all nice and squished. 

Add to the bowl of pectin/sugar and stir constantly for 3 minutes to ensure there are no lumps. 

Pour into clean freezer safe jars/containers leaving 1/2 at the top. (Water expands, you need room for your jam to expand.)

Set on your counter for 30 minutes allowing the pectin to set and jam to get jammy. 

It’s good for 3 weeks in the fridge or a year in the freezer. So, leave a jar out and put the rest in the freezer for later! 

Easy, right? 

So easy! 

I can’t wait for you and your kiddo to give it a try! 

Love, 

Jess