Friends! A few nights ago I taught a class on making and canning strawberry jam. It was a great night of laughs and fun and of course, lots of strawberries! But no worries if you missed it….I have the recipe for you! keep in mind that if you haven’t canned before and aren’t sure if you’re ready to tackle that yet, you can always make this jam recipe and simply omit the canning steps…..you can freeze the jam instead! I hope you enjoy making the jam at home, and I truly hope you have an opportunity to savor strawberry season….it’s short!

Strawberry Jam
(Makes 4-5 half-Pint Jars)

To do ahead of time:
***Wash and rinse half-pint jars, lids, and screw bands.  Set screw bands and lids aside until ready to use.  Place jars in hot water bath canner, fill at least 2/3 of the way full with water, and bring to a boil.  Sterilize jars for 10 minutes, then turn down heat and let jars stand in hot water until ready to use. 
***Prepare the calcium water (included in the Pomona’s Universal Pectin package).  To do this, combine 1/2 teaspoon white calcium powder 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, and can save it for later use.

Ingredients:
4 cups mashed strawberries (about 2 ¼ pounds, or about 2 heaping quarts of whole strawberries)
2 teaspoons calcium water
1 ¼   cups sugar 
2 teaspoons Pomona’s pectin powder  

Directions:

  1. Remove stems and rinse strawberries
  2. Mash strawberries in a large bowl
  3. Measure mashed strawberries, then pour into a large sauce pan or cooking pot 
  4. Add calcium water to the strawberries and mix well
  5. In a separate bowl, combine sugar and pectin powder, mix well, and set aside
  6. Bring strawberries to a boil, then add the sugar-pectin mixture.  Stir vigorously for 1-2 minutes to dissolve the pectin.
  7. Return mixture to a boil, then remove from heat.  Skim and discard foam from surface of jam if desired.
  8. Remove hot jars from canner and fill jars with jam, leaving ¼ inch of headspace.  Remove   trapped air bubbles, wipe rims with a damp cloth, and put on lids and screw bands.
  9. Place jars back the canner, cover with lid, return to a rolling boil, and boil for 10 minutes.  (Add 1 minute additional processing time for every 1000 feet above sea level.)
  10. Turn off heat and allow canner and jars to sit for 5 minutes.  Then, remove jars from canner. 
  11. Allow jars to cool undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Then, confirm that jars have sealed.  Enjoy your jam!  Or, store properly for later use.

Recipe Credit: Allison Carroll Duffy