When the world hands you strawberries...{Simple Strawberry Jam}

Strawberries were on sale at the store the other day. Gorgeous, deep-red berries that were just bursting with flavor. So, I bought 2 (2lb) packages of them. In addition to enjoying them fresh, I had this grand plan of making some sort of strawberry dessert with them. I took about 1.5 lbs of them and cut them up and mixed them with 1 C of sugar in a bowl to use as a filling or topping to shortcakes or maybe sponge cakes - I just wasn't quite sure what. As chance would have it, I didn't quite get around to the dessert making, but I still had these strawberries in sugar hanging out in the fridge.

What had happened to those strawberries & sugar in the 2 days since I stashed them was what is known as the process of maceration in which raw, dried or preserved foods are soaked in liquid in order to soften the food and to infuse the food with the flavor of the soaking liquid. In the case of soft berries (especially strawberries and raspberries) the typical method is to sprinkle the fruit with sugar (adding no other liquid). The sugar has natural desiccant properties and thus, pulls the natural juices out of the fruit. What results is a very liquid mixture and the nature of the strawberries changes considerably - from a natural fresh state to an almost translucent sugary softness which just happens to be one step closer to jam.

Simple Strawberry Jam

• About 1.5 lbs of strawberries 
• 2 C sugar (added in 2 additions)
• 1 lemon, juiced 
• vanilla (optional)

1. Wash and cut up berries. Toss them with 1 C of sugar & a splash of vanilla(if desired). Place in a large bowl and cover. Place in fridge and allow to sit at least 2-3 hours but for as much as 3 days.
2. Prepare 3 half-pint jars for canning when you're ready to make your jam. (see here for directions.)Pour macerated strawberries into a large open skillet and add the 2nd cup of sugar.
3. Bring mixture to a boil and cook until the mixture reaches 220F (a candy thermometer is very useful here) Stir mixture very regularly. As mixture cooks it will begin to foam and bubble; stirring is essential to keep the foam down.
4. Add lemon juice toward the end of the cooking (last 5 minutes)
5. Once your jam has reached 220F it has reached the temp needed to get a good set (see here for info on testing set)
6. Pour jam into prepared jars; wipe rims; apply lids and rings and process in waterbath canner for 10 minutes.
7. After 10 minutes of processing, remove jars from canner and let them cool on a towel on the counter (you should hear the tell-tale "ping"or "pop" of the seal happening)
8. Once the jars are cool enough to handle, remove the rings and check to see that the seals are good. (if jar(s) did not seal, store in fridge and use first.)
9. Store sealed jars (w/o rings) in a cool, dark place.

I was pleased with this small-batch preserving effort. It was pretty simple to do and doesn't really require any special equipment other than jars with new, fresh lids. Also, this small batch style means that you end up with 3 half pint jars of jam - just enough for your family to enjoy without having to store an enormous amount of giant jars that you might just never use.  While I hope you'll try your hand at canning some jam and would be happy to answer any questions you might have before you give it a whirl, you can also follow the entire process and, as in the case of bad seals, just store them in the fridge w/o processing the jars. Also, using freezer safe containers, you can store the jam for longer term in the freezer. 

Happy Canning!

sld

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