COOKIN’ WITH MAE / JAM!

My first Cookin’ with Mae post! I am so excited!  Earlier in the day we spent time with our favorite neighbor, Mrs. Brenda. She always stocks us up with plants, recipes, and food – always! This time we arrived home with daylilies, baby bellies full of freshly picked strawberries, a box of pectin and a recipe for strawberry freezer jam! So, naturally,  we made it immediately.

In case you’re in the mood to make some toddler-friendly jam, here are some step by step instructions!

Step 1 / Find the jars you wish to use (1-2 cup sizes are best) + clean them.

I chose 1 cup mason jars, but my neighbor always uses 1/2 cup plastic butter tubs with snap on lids and they work perfectly.

Step 2 / Clean strawberries. You will need two cups smashed berries for the jam, ^ this is too many strawberries, but as you’ll see later, Penelope made sure there were no left overs.

Step 3 / Pluck leaves + cut off tops. (Our chickens go nuts  for strawberry scraps!)

Step 4 / Snack break :)  ^ Dirty dishes photo bomb  ^

Step 5 / Place strawberries in bowl (too much detail?)

Step 6 / SMASH!! – you can use a processor, just make sure not to puree the strawberries.

Step 7 / Another snack break. ;)

Step 8 / Mix 4 cups sugar (not sugar substitute, it will not set right) + two cups smashed strawberries.

Let sit for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Step 9 / [While the sugar-berry mix settles] Stir 1 box pectin + 3/4 cup water in small sauce pan. Pectin may start out lumpy. Bring to a boil on high heat, and stir constantly. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

(This recipe came in the pectin box – and it has a large chart to use for all types of jam!)

While I did the sauce pan business, Penelope finished off the remaining strawberries.

Step 10 / Stir pectin slime into sugared strawberries. Stir constantly until sugar is completely dissolved (about 3 minutes).

Step 11 / Pour into prepared containers, leaving 1/2 inch of space at the top for expansion during freezing. Cover.

Step 12 / Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours until set. Refrigerate for 3 weeks. Otherwise, store in freezer for up to 1 year. Thaw in the refrigerator.

I am not typically a jam / jelly kinda lady, but I love this stuff! We will be making apricot and blackberry jam next! Who wants some?