On Saturday morning, I was up unusually early. I puttered around a bit, went for a run and then took the girls to the farmer's market. I went to get strawberries, more specifically strawberries for jam. I bought 6 quarts with the intention of making 5 batches of jam and having some left for nibbling.
I made freezer jam, just like I did last year. In my mind, I look forward to this day and I dread it all at the same time. I want to make the jam, but it is somewhat of a production. There is the gathering and washing of the jars, the trip to buy pectin and sugar and more often than not, another trip to the store when I run out of either jars or pectin or sugar. This year was different. I bought 5 boxes of pectin, 1 case of wide-mouth jars (which are my favorite, by the way) and a 10 lb. bag of sugar. I had just enough of everything.
Last year, I received lots of questions about freezer jam so I'm going to try to tell you what I do know from my experience. It doesn't make it right or wrong – it's just what I do.
1 quart of berries is about enough for 1 batch of jam. I say about enough because sometimes it's a little too much or sometimes a bit too little. I wash the berries, cut off the stems and slice them. I then mash them with a potato masher, leaving little some little chunks. I measure 2 cups of the mashed berries (and juice the mashing makes) for each batch.
Freezer jam uses a lot of sugar. I am okay with that. The recipe in the pectin box is 2 cups mashed berries to 4 cups of sugar. Yes, A LOT. But you have to use the right amount of berries and sugar or the pectin won't set up properly. There are
lower sugar pectins available, but I have never used them so I can't
speak to them. My mom has tried a low sugar one and did not like it.
I trust her judgment and continue to do what we have always done. I use Sure Jell pectin and I buy it at the grocery store.
A canning funnel is key. It cuts down on the mess in a big way which is good since it is a very sticky mess. You can normally find one in the grocery store with the canning supplies. If your grocery doesn't have the jars or the funnel, try a small, independently owned hardware store. You know, the mom and pop kind.
I use glass jars. I always have and my mom and grandma did too. Don't worry – they will do fine in the freezer as long as you leave about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch at the top of the jar for expansion. Glass jars break in the freezer when the contents expand and there isn't any room left. If you leave the space, you will be fine. According to the recipe, the jam lasts a few weeks in the refrigerator
or up to a year in the freezer. I've had jam for up to two years in my
freezer and it's been just as good. In fact, we will be finishing our 2008 supply before we crack open any of the 2009 jars.
It took me one and half hours to make the five batches – I normally have two different ones going at a time. There is some finicky timing, but this is what works best for me. I clean one quart of berries, mash, add the sugar and then start on a second quart. By the time I am finished cleaning, mashing and adding the sugar to the second quart, the first quart is ready for the pectin. Once that batch is jarred, the second batch is ready for the pectin. Once I have the second batch in jars, I start over with two more quarts of berries. Make sense?
The jam has to sit for 24 hours before it goes in the freezer. It's just about time for me to take care of that last step. And then I will take a break from jam for another year.
Or maybe just until the raspberries ripen.
Love those pretty strawberry lids!
yummy can I come over and taste the goodies?? the strawberries are not ready in my area-vancouver, canada..
Yummy! I love jam. I think you should try Pomona’s Universal Pectin! It is a two-step process, but very simple and it jells with any amount of sugar. I recently made absolutely delicious strawberry jam with two cups mashed berries to 1 cup of sugar.
Thanks for sharing your process!
wow Erin – you’ve inspired me!! Will do this next week with Cal (he loves to cook) – his last day of preschool is Wednesday; Abbott isn’t out til the 12th.
I really think I’m going to have to do this this year.
I do mine the same way and EVERYONE loves it. We have to wait until the end of June beginning of July for ours to be ready up here in the north country. I use a little mini cuisine art to mash mine. My kids also love it over Van Ice Cream.Ok now I’m getting a craving.
I always make raspberry, but I think I might be trying strawberry and blackberry too this year!
Looks great… raspberry jam is my fav!
Our strawberry jam was definitely a favorite among the things we preserved last year. The apricot jam is still in the freezer waiting like a stepchild to be given attention.
We have to wait a few more weeks for strawberry jam…so hard to be patient.
Last night, for the first time in years, I craved Strawberry Jam. I will need to keep this in mind when our Farmer’s Market opens next weekend. Thanks for the tips and info.
mmm. I’m patiently waiting for strawberries here too. I made about 16 jars of blueberry jam last year as my first attempt. The blueberry didn’t set up well, but it’s great on pancakes. I can’t wait to have a supply of strawberry in my freezer. Thanks for the reminder and inspiration that I need to get ready for this!
Yum. I do use the Ball no sugar pectin which really just means you can use no sugar or reduce it. I use half sugar and half apple juice which is super yummy. I love making strawberry jam and also freezing a bunch of berries for late summer ice cream.
I’ve never really been a canner but once I realized how easy it is I’ve been hooked.
My mom used to make grape jelly from our grapevine in the backyard. I never really paid much attention nor took much interest in the process. I wish I had. I think I may give your freezer recipe a whirl. We are in the midst of a move so no big batches but I could manage a batch or two. The jam looks delicious!!
Yum! We use rhubarb, too, and cut down on the sugar, using low-sugar pectin.
All I know is that your freezer jam is some of the best strawberry jam I’ve ever had. Yum.
mmmm, this looks like the same recipe we use 🙂 yum!!
yuuummmm, that jam would be super good in a bakewell tart!
Dee
x
We make strawberry jam as well here, only we make the kind that you boil in water. You only have to boil it for 10 minutes. It was so yummy last winter! I can’t believe how much sugar goes into it!!! 2 quarts of strawberries and 7 cups of sugar!!!
I need to find a way to decrease the sugar!
yum! for all our produce, i cannot find a cheap abundance of organic strawberries to make this worthwhile! we have added a huge number of plants, so next spring….?
nicola
http://whichname.blogspot.com
I made raspberry freezer jam last summer. While mine set up nicely, the sugar never really dissolved and made for crunchy jam. Any thoughts on what might have gone wrong? I’d like to try again but can’t do crunchy again.
At the end of the month I’ll be making my strawberry freezer jam as well. I completely agree…it’s a day I love and fear all at the same time!
The Boy and The Girl have seen this post…and are now begging to make jam with berries. I will now be getting some jars and adding this to the summer fun list. It will be the perfect mate to all that bread I have been making.
Yum! I always make one big batch with Sure Jell for the plenty-of-sugar folks in my family, and one big batch with Pomona’s Universal Pectin for the not-so-much-sugar folks. I think that the Pomona’s is just as tasty, but it has a different texture and spoils more quickly (even in the fridge) if we forget about it. We’ve got a bit of a wait yet–early to mid-July for strawberries–good thing I’ve got some left from last year’s picking.
I made freezer jam for the first time this weekend, and I think it was a success! A lot of work, but rewarding. Five batches though, wow! I will have to work up to that. :^)
Oh, that looks good. We’re still a month away from strawberries around here, but I’m going to do loads of jam as soon as I can. Last year I was too pregnant and cranky to pick enough berries for more than a jar of jam and a bit of snacking. Better timing this year!
Love that vibrant red! Still waiting for strawberries to ripen in our corner of the world…
We made strawberry jam this past weekend too. My freezer is full, so I processed my jars in a water bath canner. And I too am done making jam until the raspberries are ready.
a canning funnel, huh? okay.
Soon your Mother will make this year’s batch.
Dad
The jam looks wonderful! I haven’t made jam in years, perhaps it is time to try it again.
yum! i am insanely jealous that you can do your canning already…i am still a month or more away yet! enjoy the fruits of your labour (no pun intended)
wow, this looks so delicious!! i hope that you do make rassberry… i bet it would be so yummy.
i am going to try this over the weekend. i envied it all year last year! hope all is well in your part of the world!
I am so ready to give this a try. I am having a bit of a problem finding local berries as our u-pick patch was badly damaged by two summers of drought. I am on the hunt for berries and have my jars and pectin ready. Thanks for such detailed support!
YUM. This looks amazing!
We are of the same jam philosophy! 🙂 When IO get comments on the sugar content, I usually remind people “that is why a serving is 2 tablespoons” 🙂 Strawberry freezer jam is one of my VERY FAVORITE guilty pleasures. I made a small batch in April, but need to devote a morning to the big production! 🙂
We were able to store away 12 little containers of the strawberry jam. Such a hit in our house too.
Love the freezer jam! My husband refuses to eat anyother kind, and makes the batches in our house. We do use frozen strawberries when they’re not in season, cause you can never be without jam! This year we wised up and froze our own berries. Plus, he’s promised to make me a batch of strawberry-blueberry. Can’t wait to try it on pancakes.
Thanks for the post about freezer jam, I’m just getting ready to make mine in a week or two.
In Canada we can get Bernardin brand Freezer Jam Pectin. It uses 1.5 cups sugar to 4 cups mashed fruit. That’s actually why I make freezer jam, because it has less sugar. I often drain out a bit of the juice if its too runny so that the fruit sets nicely.
One thing I don’t have a lot of luck with is blackberry jam. The flavour isn’t WOW like strawberry jam, and it never gels great.
Just picked a ton of strawberries at Hubers yesterday. I’ll be making jam today!
… or the peaches…
Now that we have a freezer, I’m totally making some this year. We had such a funky cold spring that I don’t think the U-pick strawberries are going to be a go, but I’ll just take my cue from you and BUY some. lol.
Made blackberry today. Turned out pretty good. Will see in 24 hours:-)
Erin, thank you so much for the inspiration 🙂 Ive got my own batch waiting to go into the freezer! Youre so right about the memories that it brings back. Doing the things that my mother and grandmother used to do and using the things they used makes it feel like they are sitting in the kitchen with me. so so special to me! and now there is toast and jam to enjoy 🙂
i’m making it today! our berries were late this year. wish me luck; i am busy trying to channel my inner erin right now in homes that my jam comes out like yours. if only i had the makings for your maragaritas for afterward…
xo