Did you also eat plenty of homemade strawberry jam as a child? We sure did at our home. My mom didn’t have much time to cook homemade food but once or twice a year she would spend the whole day making strawberry jam from fresh strawberries. She would then transfer it all into glass jars and freeze it. This way, we had a large supply of strawberry jam at almost all times!
Normally, you would preserve jam in jars by boiling the jar and making sure the lid seals properly. But I can see why my mom preferred the freezing method. It’s much simpler and you don’t need to worry about the kind of lid you’re using. If you have a big freezer in your garage or the basement then I see no reason to hassle with sealing the jars at room temperature. That’s how I do it!
I buy a lot of strawberries when they are in season. And even though I do love strawberries with almost anything, I save some of them for my jam-making sessions. It’s the cheapest method of enjoying good organic strawberries even in winter!
The jam my mom used to make had a very simple recipe. It was just fresh strawberries, sugar, and a package of universal pectin. And it didn’t need anything else because the strawberries were perfect on their own! I loved eating it slathered on a slice of warm toast. So nostalgic!
I tried making my version of that jam using a healthier sweetener. My first choice was whole cane sugar, the one I use in most of my baking projects. It tasted okay but I could tell that there was something off. It didn’t resemble the jam I remember from my childhood.
So I tried another, perhaps more natural sweetener – honey. And it turned out that honey works perfectly here! It blends better with the flavor of the strawberries without overpowering it. I honestly think it tastes just the same as the one made with processed white sugar from my mom’s recipe.
The proportions in the recipe make about 6 quart jars of delicious jam. Feel free to double or half it if you want to. I usually freeze all of the jars immediately except for one. That one will be enjoyed by me and my family the following evening!
Necessary equipment:
- a large mixing bowl
- a potato masher OR a food processor
- a medium mixing bowl
- a rubber scraper
- a large pot OR a French oven
- a wooden spoon
- a canning funnel
- a ladle
- glass jars with lids for storage
Ingredients:
- 5 to 6 quarts of strawberries
- 3 cups of raw honey
- 1 box of universal pectin
Instructions:
- Mash your strawberries in a large mixing bowl with a potato masher until they reach jam-like consistency. You can also put them in a food processor to make the job easier.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the honey with pectin powder. Stir them together well so that there aren’t any pectin powder clumps left. It will give your jam a nice texture.
- Prepare the calcium water found in the pectin box.
- Put the mashed strawberries in a large pot and pour in calcium water. Heat over medium heat and bring to a boil.
- Add in the honey and pectin mixture, stirring to combine. Keep stirring and bring to a boil again on medium high heat.
- After your jam comes to a boil, cook for two more minutes.
- Remove from heat.
- Scoop the jam into your glass jars using a ladle or a canning funnel (I recommend the canning funnel because it’s far less messy!).
- Put the jars of jam in the freezer and enjoy your homemade jam throughout the following months!