I had never made jam before this past spring. Truth be told, I never took a liking to jam because they were too sweet for me. Nevertheless, I made a goal in January of 2023 to pressure can 125lbs of food, and water bath can 25lbs of food, and jam is the perfect place to practice. So, I started with this strawberry jam recipe.
I searched for all natural recipes and discovered it was difficult to find one that didn’t use what I felt was an entire bag of processed, bleached sugar. If I am going to eat jam I want it to taste like fruit, not like sugar. This recipe changed the jam game for me forever. I actually enjoy putting this on my sourdough bread, and you can still smell the strawberries from the jar! It’s very different from any other jam I have tried. I hope you enjoy.
I grabbed a small box of strawberries from one of our local farms, Stepping Stone, and when I went home I measured it out. 5 1/2lbs of strawberries was equivalent to 4 quarts, or 15 cups, or 1 gallon. These measurements should help you based on how many strawberries you have to use or when comparing recipes.
This recipe makes 5 pints.
Strawberry Jam Recipe Ingredients:
- 4 quarts fresh, in season strawberries
- 4 cups honey (you could also substitute in sucanat)
- The juice of two lemons
- 1 pat (or slice) of butter, to prevent foaming
- 2 packets liquid pectin
Steps:
- Wash and process strawberries by removing the tops and cutting in half.
- Place all ingredients into a large pot.
- Over medium to low heat, bring your strawberries, lemon juice, honey, and pectin to a simmer.
- Slowly cook down your strawberries while mashing with a potato masher until thickened. I do not add the mixture to a blender because I like to have chunks of fruit in my jam. This process should take about 45 minutes.
- Should you encounter to much foam, add 1 pat of butter and stir.
Once your jam is to the thickness or consistency you’d like, you can water bath can according to your local canning guide/safety standards/extension office recommendations etc.
