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There are few things better than homemade jam…
Especially when you’ve made it yourself!
As much as I love to preserve and can, I always have a small moral crisis when decidinghow to preservefresh fruit.
Most jam recipes are super easy and great for a beginner, but they also require you to cook the fruit to oblivion (therefore eliminating a lot of the good stuff in it) and then add cup after cup of white sugar…
Not to say that I haven’t done it, but last weekend I sat there staring at 8 pounds of in-season strawberries and I couldn’t bring myself to cook ’em and sugar ’em to death.
So instead, I whipped uptwo batchesof raw freezer jam sweetened with raw honey that jelled so nicely you could almost hold the jar upside down without it falling out.
I know, I know– I can hear the murmuring in the crowd right now. Ya’ll don’t think that’s possible, right?
We’ve all been told that you HAVE to use lots of white sugar in order for jam or jelly to set. And then you have to cook it to finish the process.
Well, when you have a box of this stuff– the rules change a little.
You can make cooked or un-cooked jam with it and use either honey or a minimal amount of sugar to do the sweetening. It comes with a little packet of calcium powder in addition to the pectinthat enables you to have thick, set-up preserves, without a boatload of sugar.
Strawberry Freezer Jam Recipe
(Taken from the Pomona’s box insert)
- 4 cups of mashed strawberries– preferably homegrown or organic
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (This is optional- I believe it just helps the berries to maintain their color)
- 1/2-1 cup of raw honey (You don’t have to use raw, but if you have it, this is an ideal place to use it, since it will be able to keep all of it’s raw goodness. I love this raw honey.)
- 3/4 cup water
- 3 teaspoons Pomona’s Universal Pectin(affiliate link)
- 4 teaspoons calcium water (this comes with the Pomona’s pectin when you buy it)
First off, mix the packet of calcium powder with 1/2 cup water. Store it in the fridge- it will last for several months and be good for more than one batch.
Place your mashed berries in a large bowl and add lemon juice and honey. Stir well. It takes a bit of stirring to get the thick, raw honey to blend in with the berries, but it’ll happen eventually.
Bring the 3/4 cup of water to a boil. Add the pectin to the hot water and blend it until completely dissolved. (You’ll want to use something like a blender for this. I used my immersion blender, and it worked like a charm.)
Add the pectin/water mixture to the fruit, stir well. Then, add the calcium water and incorporate thoroughly. At this point, my jam was already very thick and wanted to jell up. If yours isn’t doing that yet, keep adding one teaspoon of calcium water at a time until it starts to set. Keep in mind that it will continue to set as it cools, too.
Place in freezer safe containers, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Stick in the freezer right away, or keep it in the fridge for a week or so.
Kitchen Notes:
1. You can usually find Pomona’s Universal Pectin at your local health food store, or buy it online HERE.
2. Feel free to substitute other berries in this recipe, like raspberries, blueberries, or cherries.
3. My jam was not overwhelmingly sweet. If you like yours a little sweeter, then add more honey to taste.
4. If you have zero honey, or have an aversion to the stuff, you can use plain, ol’ white sugar in this recipe, too. Or pure maple syrup. Start with a 1/2 cup or so of white sugar, and slowly increase to taste.
5. One batch yielded approximately 3 pints, but it’s easy to double.
6. Isometimesfreeze things inglass jars. I know, I’m a rebel. Just leave a generous amount of headspace (more than a 1/2″)
7. One box of Pomona’s pectin will make 2-4 recipes.
8. I love Bee Wild Raw Honey–they’re a small, family-owned company based in FL. And for a limited time, you can use my coupon code JILL to receive 15% off any order (excluding gallons).
No-Cook Strawberry Freezer Jam with Raw Honey
Ingredients
- 4 cups mashed strawberries
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (to help berries maintain color)
- 1/2–1 cup raw honey (I LOVE this raw honey)
- 3/4 cup water
- 3 teaspoons Pomona’s Universal Pectin (like this)
- 4 teaspoons calcium water (this comes with the Pomona’s pectin when you buy it)
Instructions
- Mix packet of calcium powder with 1/2 cup water, and store in the fridge- it’ll last several months and is good for more than one batch
- Place mashed berries in large bowl and add lemon juice and honey
- Stir well until raw honey is well blended with berries
- Bring 3/4 cup water to a boil
- Add pectin to hot water and dissolve completely
- Add pectin/water mixture to fruit and stir well
- Add calcium water, one teaspoon at a time mixing thoroughly until it’s thick and ready to set, keeping in mind it will continue to set as it cools
- Place in freezer safe containers, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace
- Freeze right away or keep in fridge a week or so
So there you have it, a wholesome raw jam with all the benefits of fresh strawberries and raw honey. It doesn’t get much better than that! I’m thinking I just might have to smear some on one of my homemade tortillas for a little afternoon snack…
Interesting in more perserving recipes? We’ve gotcha covered!
- Honey-Cinnamon Canned Peaches
- Peach Pie Filling for the Freezer
- Homemade Applesauce and a Canning Tutorial
- Six Tips for No-Stress Canning
- Canning Pears in Maple Syrup
Listen to the Old Fashioned On Purpose podcast episode #2 on the topic How To Can Jam Without Using Tons Of Sugar HERE.
This post contains affiliate links.
