Results of jam making

[keepersdaughter]

Well here it is the results of my first attempt at jam making. Nine pounds of strawberries, 2pts each of raspberries blackberries. I got my jars etc sterlising. I found a big pot I used years ago for a chilli barbeque. Perfect I thought, so I put the pot on to boil while prepared the fruit. Though picked only a couple days ago the strawberries were already turning soft & mushy so I decided to make a berry jam using strawberries, raspberries and blackberries.With the washing, hulling, drying and mashing the kitchen looked like a scene from the emergency room of Grey's Anatomy on a Saturday night - a bit of a bloodbath. The fruit mixture cooked down, the jars and lids were sterlised and ready to go but after 45 mins. the big vat of water would produce only a gentle simmer while my stress levels were verging on a fast boil. Lightbulb went off in my head and I decided to process the smaller jars individally in ordinary pans. The mixture had a flavour i couldn't quite pinpoint, then I realised the dark ooze with slight molasses taste was not the blackberries but a thick layer of burnt sugar on the bottom of the pan! After all the effort i was determined to have something to show for my effort so here they are two little Burnt Fruit Jam jars. :D (pics to follow)

[eleanor2]

keepers be proud of yourself that you tried.next time i am sure you will not burn the sugar.your two jars of jam lok lovely.please tell us what it tastes like when you try it.

[Rustic Pumpkin]

I'm not sure what you mean when you talk about processing the jars individually in a small pan. Do you mean steralise them? If so, there is a much, much easier way.

Just thoroughly wash all your jars and lids, and arrange the jars on an ovenproof tray not touching each other. Pop them into a warm oven for about 20 minutes and they are ready to go. Alternatively, run them through a quick cycle on the dishwasher which also sterilises them.

If you meant that you processed the jars after filling them, like canning, then this is quite unnecessary and a lot of extra work. All you need to do is ladle the just off boiling jam mixture into warmed sterile jars and seal with wax paper and your lid (if desired) or a cellophane lid.

[Treehugger]

Loving the jars keepers. Where'd you get them from? Very retro!

[Oola]

You can get jars like that from John Lewis (and Waitrose) Treehugger!

well done KD, have you used the jam yet? I am yet to make my own, but this year on my allotment I have some raspberries that are looking very promising (no fruit cages or netting, so don't know if the birds will get to them first).

The thought of my own jam on some croissants or a freshly baked baguette gets my taste buds going....

[keepersdaughter]

Hello girls, R ustic Pumpkin, this is all very new to me so I've probably got my terms wrong. I looked at a few sites on the internet and think i followed what I suppose is the old fashioned way. I did steralize them in the dishwasher, then canned on the stove in hot water as I was worried about it forming bacteria or such. I suppose it was more learning about the whole process of canning etc. that I was intrigued with. I kind of have a romantic notion of loads of jars lined up in the pantry with lots of home grown produce in pretty little jars to see you through the winter. Since I don't have a garden right now, just a heavily wooded 'yard', it's a bit of a moot point. Still I love messing around in the kitchen and trying new things. As to taste, well it's rather tart, i added lemon juice and followed a low sugar recipe using white grape juice. Not the best of recipes and I wouldn't try that particular recipe again. BUT, I'm going to be posting a thread about a lovely lady i met at a craft fair last week and again today. She makes the best jam I've ever tasted. I bought some last weekend and found her at another craft fair this morning. All her berries are grown on her farm. Strawberry and lavender, elderberry, hibiscus flower, violet and muscato grape. Each one absolutely delicious. AND, here's the best part - she's invited me to her farm and is going to teach me how to make it. She's also writing a book on berries and herbs, country and folklore etc. and has done loads of research looking up old recipes. Her farm is called Fairywood Thicket after the wild elderberries that grow there and started her interest in producing all these wonderful home grown jams and jellies. There's a lot of folklore attached to the elderberries and flowers that is fascinating. I'll try posting more later this weekend. My daughter and I also went to a very large antique fair, just for something to do, look and browse, but I'm exhausted and still got to think about making dinner. Talk later :) . x
Here's a picture of some of her jams - the pale pink one on the right is the violet flowers - it's so pretty!

[Rustic Pumpkin]

You can get jars like that from John Lewis (and Waitrose) Treehugger!

well done KD, have you used the jam yet? I am yet to make my own, but this year on my allotment I have some raspberries that are looking very promising (no fruit cages or netting, so don't know if the birds will get to them first).

The thought of my own jam on some croissants or a freshly baked baguette gets my taste buds going....

IF you don't net them or do something, the birds will get a feast and you will starve! lol!

My canes are very small this year, with only two or three sprigs of fruit on each so I have covered each sprig with those little net bags that come with soap tablets. It looks a bit funny, but I will get MY fruit, small amount that it is, and NOT the birds!

[buecherwurm]

I use any jar with a tight fitting lid like from mayonnaise or mushrooms etc. Fill in the jam, clean the rim and screw on the lid. Then turn the jar upside down. This will take all the air out of the jar. You might even hear a little plop. Leave the jars like this until the jam has cooled down.

[keepersdaughter]

Sorry buecherwurm, just saw your suggestion, thanks for that. I'll certainly keep that in mind, much easier than what I did. :)

[Pippa]

If you want a good recipe book for Preserves that is pretty foolproof then try Preserves by Joanna Farrow, it is a Good Housekeeping book and explains all about equipment and sterilising etc. I can recommend it.

[sunflower]

Yesterday, we went to the local 'Pick your own' and bought £3 worth of Gooseberries. From this I made 4 gooseberry fools, 1 crumble and a 1lb. jar of jam. The jam tastes OK, but I think I'm losing my touch. Both last year and this year I have been using modern recipes from the Net...usually I use Mrs. Beeton. The end result of the modern recipes is a very sweet well set jam with only a mild flavour of the fruit. What recipes do you use when making jam?

[sunflower]

Also, I have just realised that, both last and this year I have used preserving sugar. In the past I have always used granulated......maybe this is the cause of the mild result?

[Pippa]

I think there is a difference between Preserving sugar and Jam sugar, Sunflower. I think preserving is for fruit with a high pectin content, ie. Gooseberries and Jam sugar for low pectin as it has added pectin ie. strawbs and rhubarb. I also think that silver spoon sugar is beet sugar and tate and lyle is cane sugar which might make a difference. Please don't quote me on any of this, merely my own observations.