Yay, it’s finally strawberry season!  I know that lots of you further south have been enjoying local berries for a while now…. but here in Maine, these things just take a while, you know? In any case, if you are itching to make some jam, I have a great recipe for you–No-Cook Strawberry Freezer Jam!  It’s delicious, and super-easy to make.  The recipe is below, along with a step-by-step video I recently made (along with lots of help from my boys) for the good folks over at Pomona’s Pectin.  Enjoy!

Connor and Ian’s No-Cook Strawberry Freezer Jam

Yield: 4-5 half-pint (8 ounce) jars

To do ahead of time:
***Prepare the calcium water.  To do this, combine 1/2 teaspoon white calcium powder (included in the Pomona’s Universal Pectin package) with 1/2 cup water in a small, clear container with a lid. Shake well before using.  Note that you will have more calcium water than you will end up using in this recipe; simply store it in the refrigerator for later use.

Ingredients:
2  1/4 pounds strawberries  (or, about 2 generous quarts)
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
3 teaspoons Pomona’s  pectin powder
4–12 teaspoons calcium water

Directions:
1.) Wash and rinse jars, lids, and screw bands, or other freezer-safe storage containers.

2.) Place strawberries in a colander and rinse thoroughly.  Then, remove and discard strawberry stems.

3.) Transfer strawberries into a large mixing bowl and mash them thoroughly.  A potato masher works well for this.

4.)  Measure 4 cups of the mashed strawberries. If you have any extra, use it for something else.

5.) Transfer the measured quantity of mashed berries back into the large mixing bowl.  Add sugar to the mashed berries and mix well.

6.) Bring water to a boil.  Then, pour the boiling water into a blender or food processor.  Add the pectin powder, vent the lid, and blend for 1-2 minutes, or until all the pectin powder has dissolved.

7.) Pour the hot liquid pectin into the mashed strawberries and mix thoroughly.

8.) Add 4 teaspoons of calcium water to the strawberries and mix well.  A jell should appear.  If doesn’t, then continue stirring and adding calcium water–1 teaspoon at a time–until  jell appears.  Please note that the jell , or set , may be softer than that of cooked jams. This is normal.

9.) Transfer jam into storage containers, leaving at least 1/2 inch of headspace at the top.  Place lids on containers and store in the freezer.  When you’re ready to enjoy your jam, store the thawed jar in the refrigerator.  It will last in the refrigerator about 1 week.