Jam

This blog is fast turning into a food report rather than knitting - which it was originally supposed to be. Back to that another day, first we need to talk jam.


I went to Sainsburys yesterday and found a big box of strawberries for only 99p. They were going a bit mushy, so I decided to make jam. Rather than plain old strawberry, I wanted to try something a bit different, so bought a packet of frozen summer fruits. Home-made jam is such fun to do, so easy and makes the house smell so good, I urge you all to have a go.

3 ingredients in my jam - 1lb of strawberries, 1lb of frozen summer fruits, 2lb bag of sugar (I always use the sugar with added pectin - in the red bag).

Put the frozen fruit in a big pan and heat very gently until the juice starts to run out. Cut the stalks off the strawberries and chop each berry in half. Add to the pan and raise the heat until boiling.

Pour in the bag of sugar and stir until dissolved. If you don't stir, the sugar will burn, your jam goes black and it all tastes horrid. Then raise the heat even higher and let the jam get to a 'rolling boil'. This is what a rolling boil looks like - you can stir like mad, but it won't go back down.

After a few minutes doing this, test for a set. Take a spoonful of jam and place on a cold plate, leave for a minute, then drag your finger through the jam (try not to burn yourself!). If it wrinkles the jam will set, if not, boil for another couple of minutes and re-test. When ready, take off the heat and leave for 5 minutes. This stops any fruit rising to the top and makes it much more even looking in the jar.

Pour your jam into hot clean jam jars, put the lids on and wait until cold. If you possibly can.

If you possibly can't, then make some scones while it cools and eat warm scones, warm jam and cold whipped cream.

Believe me, every single calorie will be worth it and you will wonder why you ever bought jam in the first place when it's this easy to make.