Keepin’ Your Summer JAM Playin’ Through The Year! Strawberry Freezer Jam!

JAM… nothing is better on a piece of buttered toast, in plain yogurt, over ice cream, on a crumpet or croissant… strawberry especially! When my good friend Joe Becwar mentioned that he was making jam this summer, I was intrigued and “needed” to be there to see how it’s done.

Growing up in Wisconsin in a large family, Joe’s mom made the family jam. Although she certainly made the traditional cooked variety, she also made something called Freezer Jam – no cooking required! That’s what Joe shared with me. And what I am now sharing with you! Easy is an understatement.

He brought pectin back from his summer visit to Wisconsin but you can find it in stores everywhere. There are kinds that exclusively require granulated sugar, and others that allow for different sweeteners. I’ll be exploring those options for my next batch. I didn’t realize we weren’t actually going to cook it when I bought the jars – glad we used them anyway. You can use any container as long as it has a lid. The recipe yields about 40 oz. of jam. We made 3 batches and mixed it up with 8 oz. and 4 oz. jars.

Here’s how:

INGREDIENTS:
• 1 lb. fresh strawberries
• 4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 package pectin
• 3/4 cup water
• empty jars with lids to hold about 40 oz. jam

DIRECTIONS:
1) Wash, de-stem, and slice 2 cups berries.
2) In a bowl, add berries with sugar and mix well until it is a creamy consistency – let sit for 15 minutes.
3) Add water to saucepan and mix in pectin.
4) Over high heat, stir until it comes to a rolling boil and continue to stir for one full minute.
5) Add pectin to strawberry sugar mixture and mix until the sugar is fully dissolved.
6) Fill the jars/containers – leave about 1/2” empty from the top for expansion – and cover with lids.
7) Let sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
8) Refrigerate or freeze. It will last 3 weeks in the fridge, up to a year in the freezer.

Put whatever you’ll use immediately (or within 3 weeks) in the fridge. Keep the rest in the freezer and transfer to the fridge when you’re ready for more!

My love and thanks to Joe (and his mom) for sharing this fun and delicious recipe!

Yum!

Annette