Make Today Eat Today Easy Blueberry Jam

Make Today Eat Today Easy Blueberry Jam

If you've been looking for a simple blueberry jam recipe that tastes amazing, but is easy enough to slay in a day, I have the perfect jam for you.

blueberry jam  on wooden board with a knife

Blueberry jam on wooden board with blueberries

Hey there, friends! This is the first post in my 'How I Jam' series. It's a mini series where I show you how you can make home made jams right from my own kitchen. They're easy to make, fun to do with kids and your family will absolutely love them and come back for more!

My first how to is going to be blueberry jam because blueberries are super easy to make jam from. Like most berries, blueberries create a good amount of their own natural pectin.

Pectin is a natural substance that most fruits have in their core and skin that traps the liquid and gels it as it cools down. 

Although blueberries have their own natural pectin, I find that not adding a little more makes my jam a bit too runny for my personal taste. With this recipe, you can choose to mash (or blend) the blueberries to a puree consistency to activate that pectin a little more or (like me) add extra to get a sure thing gelled consistency. 

I use Sure Jell for my jam. I have used Ball Real Fruit and have had equally great success with it. For the Sure Jell, it's a little less fuss an no measuring, so I opted to use it this time around.

This recipe will make about 4 pints of blueberry jam. So let's get jammin'!

Blueberry Jam Ingredients:

5 cups fresh, washed blueberries

5 cups sugar 

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tsp lemon rind grated

1 tsp cinnamon

1 package (1.75 oz) pectin

 

Blueberry Jam Directions:

Preheat your Ball or Mason jars in the oven on warm. Placing them on a cookie sheet works great!

Mash your fresh blueberries with a potato masher or ricer or blend them using a food processor. 

Add the mashed blueberries to a pot (if you mashed in a blender, bowl, or something other than a pot).

Add sugar and mix well

Turn your stove eye on medium heat and heat to a simmer. Simmer for about 2 to 3 minutes.

Add pectin, cinnamon, lemon juice and lemon rind and mix really well.

Ladle into preheated jars

Lid an let cool for about 3 hours and then refrigerate for 3 more hours if you want to eat it the same day. 

If you're jarring for the future, you'll need to use a canning bath.

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pin blueberry jam on wooden cutting board with blueberries - how to make easy blueberry jam

Instructions for Jarring in a Hot Water Bath:

Preparing your canning hot water bath prior to making your jam so that your hot bath is ready for your hot jars right after filling. To do this:

Fill your canning pot with enough water to cover your jars.

Heat to a boiling point

Place hot jars directly into the canning rack (One should come with your canning hot water bath pot, but if you don't have one, I've linked to one below.)

 

Carefully lower the rack with the jars into the pot and allow to bathe in the hot water for 15 minutes. 

Carefully remove the jars and set them on a towel on the counter to seal and set. The hot water bath will make the jam seem a bit runny, but they'll set very nicely once cooled.

Allow jars to cool without disturbing them for 24 hours.

If you hear a pop sound, don't worry. It's the jars sealing. If by the next day, all of your jars are not completely sealed, you will need to store the unsealed jars in the fridge. 

You'll be able to tell if the jars are sealed if they make a popping sound when you press the center of the lid.

 

I hope you found this post helpful, and even more, I hope you're excited to try the recipe for blueberry jam. 

Let me know how you like it in the comments below. I'm excited to hear your experience!

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