This is what I did yesterday:
A few months ago I bought a 5 pound bag of frozen organic strawberries and just finally got around to turning them into jam. I’ve made various sorts of jams and jellies but freezer jam is so quick and easy.
I allowed the strawberries to partially thaw and then dumped them in a large pot, juice and all. I gently heated them until completely thawed, sort of mashing them with a wooden spoon while stirring. This time I used Pomona brand pectin. I had not used it before. It has two packets in the box, one is pectin and the other is a calcium powder. It is sugar free and preservative free. You can read more about it here. One nice thing about it is that you don’t have to use a lot of sugar to make it work right. I used about two cups of organic sugar to five pounds of fruit which is a lot less than a regular recipe calls for. On the other hand, there is an additional step because you have to mix up the pectin in boiling water in a blender or food processor. Still, I think it’s worth it to avoid all that extra sugar.
After adding the dissolved pectin and calcium water to the fruit and sugar mixture, I stirred until well mixed and starting to gel. I then ladled it into jars, wiped them off and screwed on the lids. You are supposed to allow them to sit out at room temperature for a little while. I then put them in the refrigerator overnight until I had time to make room for them in the freezer. I now have eleven beautiful jars of delicious, homemade, organic strawberry jam to enjoy over the next several months.
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