Last week, I had Solanah over to assist me in making some homemade Jam. I have never canned anything before, so I thought it would be much harder than it turned out to be. Because it was so much simpler than I believed it was, I figured I would share all the steps with you, so that you might try it sometime as well.
So then, let's start at the beginning.
1. Pick some berries, or get them at the store. Then you will need to measure them out, you will need about 10 cups of berries whole (not mashed.) I went with Blueberries, Strawberries, and a few Blackberries.
2. Smush the berries. Smash, scrunch, mash. Its helpful to have kids on hand for this part, but having a Solanah works well too. When all is mashed and smashed you should have about 6 cups of squished berries ready to cook!
3. Make sweet love to your lemon... get it prepped and ready to squeeze. as you will need 2 tablespoons of lemon juices. Making weird faces is optional.
4. We have a large pot, and in this large pot we added Squished Berries, 2 Tablespoons lemon juice, and now 4.5 cups of organic sugar! Delicious! Cook on medium high, we want to get a slow low boil rolling here.
5. Add the Pectin, which is a natural substance that forms the "jell" it is found in the baking section of your grocer. Now then, your berry mixture should be boiling, and you will be stirring. You dont want to burn to the bottom, so you got to keep on movin'. Boil your berries for about 5-10 minutes.
6. Keep your jars WARM in a sink full of hot water so they are ready for use. (lids should also be kept in a pot of simmering water.) Using a wide mouth funnel, scoop your berries into your 8 oz. jars.
7. Place lid on jar, and tighten rings lightly so that air can still pass through and cause a vaccum seal. Using a handy dandy jar lifter, place the jar in a canning pot, that is hot but not boiling. Turn heat up to high and put the lid on. Boil those bad boys for 10 minutes, then turn heat off and let sit for 5 minutes.
8. Using the jar lifter, pull the jars out and let them sit on a towel in a draft free area. They will need to sit for 12-24 hours to fully cool. You might here a chorus of popping sounds as the seal is set on the jars! This is the sound of VICTORY!
We left one jar open, so that we could enjoy the spoils of victory. I made some waffle batter, and made a brunch outside in the bright sunlight. I highly suggest this as a tasty finale to your jam making party.
So, I hope you have enjoyed this short tutorial on canning homemade jam. For reference, below is a list of items you will need to make this happen in your kitchen.
Jars, lids and rings (8 0z jars work well for jam)
Jar Lifter
Wide mouth funnel
Magnetic lid lifter (all three above things are sold in kits like this)
Canning Pot
10 cups unmashed berries
4.5 cups Sugar (depending on type of berries, some need more sugar)
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 package of pectin
A friend to help is also quite useful, but sorry, Solanah is taken. There you are, you now know how to make jam. Go forth and can some treats!
