Home made Jam

[Tank]

Hi Guys,

I just thought i would share with you all my enjoyment of making my own home made jam

My wife came home with a bag of plums which were given to her by one of her elderly clients, my wife made some cupcakes with plums in and then with the rest 1kg we decided to make jam (very rustic)

It has even set and all i did was put the plums in some water added some sugar when soft and its was done tastes fantastic

Tank

 

[Scoffham]

I too have recently made lots of jam... I agree its a very enjoyable and satisfying process. I managed to gain 2kg of strawberries from a somerset farm whilst visiting family, 800g of chopped strawberries to 1000g of Jam sugar (contains more pectin).. then boiled on a rolling boil for 4 minutes.. couldn't be easier!

 

[Tank]

i just used normal sugar and then after heard about the Jam sugar, but it seems to have set fine

I am going to keep a look out for more free fruits.

How long is the jam going last in the fridge ( and i dont mean i am a big guy so not long lol)

 

[Mikey P]

It will last for ages! Months! Sugar is a natural preservative and that's why we make jam in the first place. I've had a jar of home made marmalade open in the fridge for about 5 months.

If you've enjoyed making home-made jam, I'd suggest you have a look at the River Cottage preserves book as it's very easy to follow - it becomes addictive!

 

[Toadflax]

After spending ages making blackberry and apple jam yesterday using a cooking thermometer to determine the set point (and constantly having the jam boil over the thermometer so I couldn't read it) I'm inclined to go for the Delia Smith method that I discovered afterwards (this is probably just a restatement of the old methods that have been used for years).

She suggests a fast boil for 8 minutes (I boiled more gently for nearly an hour to get my jam to set) then the cold plate test (spot of the jam on a plate that has been in the fridge - if after a few seconds it forms a wrinkly skin when you push a finger through the dab of jam then it's ready). If it doesn't set, boil for another 3-4 minutes and test again. Keep going until it sets.

She also says not to skim off any scum otherwise you'll lose too much jam. Simply stir in a small knob of butter at the end of cooking and the scum disappears (I can vouch for this).

Also, if you have any whole fruit in the jam, leave it to cool for 15 minutes before putting into jars, otherwise the fruit will just all rise to the surface.

If your jam does go mouldy after storage, just scrape the top 1/2" off, the rest of the jam should be fine.



Geoff

 

[Goatboy]

Skimmings

That was always the best bit of making jam with my Dad as a kid, having the skimmings on a piece. Happiness is a sticky chin as a kid. Used to always end up with a scalded tongue from taking the skimmings before they were cool.

Cheers
GB.

 

[Toddy]

I'm at that stage of jam making that I've no more space to plank it
I love the smell in the house when it's jam making time, and skimmings on a piece are right up there with all the good memories

In the pantry clear out to make room I found among the last years stuff one jar that was dated 1998........gooseberry........so I opened it and it was perfect
Properly made the stuff keeps for years.

I just use ordinary sugar tbh, and in the main I use the recipes and advice in the Scottish Women's Rural Institure cook book.

The last jam was seedless raspberry, and the batch before was rhubarb and strawberry.......loads of rhubarb and not a lot of strawberries, about 4:1, but the jam tastes more of the strawberries, it's lovely.

It's apples from the tree that'll be next, so apple and rowan jelly, and apple and rosehip jelly and bramble and apple jam

There's something incredibly satisfying about seeing all those shiny jars lined up tidy knowing they're just full of good stuff ready for a along cold wet winter and spring.

I can't eat dairy so I don't add butter to the jam, I only skim nearer the end of the boiling, and you can usually manage to get the skimmings to rim the pot, it makes it easier to dislodge them whole. It's not waste, it's just frothy jam that the kids eat quickly. The butter is supposed to keep fruit like blackcurrants soft too, but I find if I just go slow that the fruit softens properly anyway. This years blackcurrant is very juicy, makes great wee tarts for Son2 to have as a snack.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[scrogger]

That Rhubarb and Strawberry sounds good I wonder how it would work with Rasps we have a profusion of those and Rhubarb we inherited on the allotment. Made a Rhubarb and ginger chutney last year which I wasnt to impressed with.

We also have an old apple tree thats loaded with apples, we have a moulinex juicer type thing which you basically push the apples into and it chucks apple juice out the other side, do you reckon I could make some sort of cider??? not really thought of it till now.

cheers

Andy

 

[swanscot]

I made a batch of blackcurrant jam last week. This was the first time in several years, but previously I've made pounds and pounds of different fruit jams.

She suggests a fast boil for 8 minutes (I boiled more gently for nearly an hour to get my jam to set) then the cold plate test (spot of the jam on a plate that has been in the fridge - if after a few seconds it forms a wrinkly skin when you push a finger through the dab of jam then it's ready). If it doesn't set, boil for another 3-4 minutes and test again. Keep going until it sets.

She also says not to skim off any scum otherwise you'll lose too much jam. Simply stir in a small knob of butter at the end of cooking and the scum disappears (I can vouch for this).

Geoff

I didn't bother with the jam thermometer this time, but simply dropped a wee bit on a plate and it wrinkled pretty quickly. I forgot to chill the plate beforehand (I should have remembered this! I always hung around when mum did the saucer test). I remembered to add a knob of butter to remove the scum.

BTW I, too used ordinary sugar, but blackcurrants are high in pectin.

 

[al21]

Should be making Damson jam next week. Always a favourite in our house, and never make enough to last more than a year.

Brambles are good this year, but the Plums were caught by a frost and have been a little disappointing.

Looking forward to the crop of Quince my Mother has in her garden. I must get one planted here.

As other have said, use ordinary sugar, but if your fruit is low in pectin throw in a few crab apples. I also go with the cold plate and wrinkle test for the setting point.

Just got back from my Mothers where I found a jar of Medlar jelly from 1989, delicious!