Anyone else love the Cosby Show? I adored Clair
Huxtable and wanted to dress and be like her in so many ways. She was so
gorgeous, elegant, classy, intelligent, sharp, and a fantastic mother. Anyways,
I decided to make some strawberry jam this week and I thought about the episode
featuring Stevie Wonder. If you remember the episode, you remember Theo saying,
“Jammin’ on the one” while working on a song with Stevie Wonder. For some
reason Theo’s line, “Jammin on the one” came to mind as I was cutting up my
strawberries.
This is my third time making homemade strawberry jam
and it literally is a simplistic recipe. All you need are three ingredients:
strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. It’s so simple and I believe you and your
family will love eating something made with fresh ingredients. So many of the
foods we consume are filled with preservatives, artificial dyes, and other
ingredients I can’t even pronounce. I can’t help but wonder if what we are consuming
is behind the high rates of cancer and other sicknesses within our country.
Since having children, I cook a lot more using fresher ingredients and I have
challenged myself to learn recipes that have been passed down from generations.
It’s just something about the way my grannie used to cook and bake. She could
take a little and make something gloriously delicious. My grannie was recognized
as the biscuit queen within a small local town because her biscuits were so
moist and fluffy and she didn’t use a biscuit cutter. I still don’t know how
she formed her biscuits by hand and they turned out perfectly round every time.
It is my desire to provide meals that create wonderful memories for my children
and their children just like my grannie.
So here’s to cooking homemade jam and to being moms
who endeavor to make home the happiest and the healthiest.
Ingredients for pectin free strawberry jam
2 cartons of fresh strawberries
1 cup of sugar to start with (I taste and add more sugar to my liking throughout the process)
2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice (more or less to your liking)
Items needed
Mason Jars with lids...you can find jars at your local Dollar Tree!
Directions
Start your water bath for your mason jars. Gently boiling your jars in a pot helps to sterilize the jars. Click the link for more instructions on sterilizing jars for canning.
Cut tops off of strawberries, remove the hull, cut into chunks, and place in bowl. Use a fork to mash strawberries a bit and put strawberries in a pot. *Word of advice, if there is a ton of juice from mashing your strawberries, pour some of the excess off. This recipe doesn't use pectin so the extra moisture can take your jam longer to set.*
Pour in sugar and lemon and bring mixture to a slow rolling bowl. Cooking on medium for about 10 minutes. Stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam. I used my candy thermometer the first time but learned how to use the good ole plate and spoon test. Place a spoon and small saucer in the freezer before you start cutting your strawberries. Between 8 and 10 minutes, you can take some of the jam and place it on the spoon or plate and if it gels to the plate or spoon (isn't runny) and looks like jam, you are done! If not, cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes and test again on the either the spook or plate you didn't use the first time. Once strawberry jam is finished, pour jam into warm mason jars and remember to wipe rims with moist towel. Place your lids on and screw on your top and you are done. We use this jam on our breads for breakfast and in my husband's hot wing sauce recipe. It tastes divine!
****
Now let me preface by saying, my jam is made to eat immediately and stored in the fridge up to about 2 weeks. So, once the mason jars are filled, I don't place them back in the water bath to seal the jars. I usually just turn them upside down but you don't have to do this if you plan to eat yours immediately. Canning long term is a sensitive process that must be adhered to, so be sure to check out the link on the canning process. ****
Cut tops off of strawberries, remove the hull, cut into chunks, and place in bowl. Use a fork to mash strawberries a bit and put strawberries in a pot. *Word of advice, if there is a ton of juice from mashing your strawberries, pour some of the excess off. This recipe doesn't use pectin so the extra moisture can take your jam longer to set.*
Pour in sugar and lemon and bring mixture to a slow rolling bowl. Cooking on medium for about 10 minutes. Stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam. I used my candy thermometer the first time but learned how to use the good ole plate and spoon test. Place a spoon and small saucer in the freezer before you start cutting your strawberries. Between 8 and 10 minutes, you can take some of the jam and place it on the spoon or plate and if it gels to the plate or spoon (isn't runny) and looks like jam, you are done! If not, cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes and test again on the either the spook or plate you didn't use the first time. Once strawberry jam is finished, pour jam into warm mason jars and remember to wipe rims with moist towel. Place your lids on and screw on your top and you are done. We use this jam on our breads for breakfast and in my husband's hot wing sauce recipe. It tastes divine!
****
Now let me preface by saying, my jam is made to eat immediately and stored in the fridge up to about 2 weeks. So, once the mason jars are filled, I don't place them back in the water bath to seal the jars. I usually just turn them upside down but you don't have to do this if you plan to eat yours immediately. Canning long term is a sensitive process that must be adhered to, so be sure to check out the link on the canning process. ****
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