Marmellata We’re All Craving Now!

There’s something truly special about Autumn mornings.  Early morning walks in the local woods reveal a ravishing crop of colour – from auburn red & golden yellow leaves to deep green holly, their spiky & spectacular foliage defiantly remaining gloriously glossy amongst the backdrop of crisp, colourful leaves, deliciously damp air & thorny hedgerows bearing beautiful fruits.

Seasonal fruits & berries are especially full of flavour, perfect for packing into an array of pastries & pretty desserts.  Then there are those less-than-perfect pickings, the ones that don’t quite have the same aesthetic appeal – these are my favourites.  Those punnets of berries marked down in the shops are like gold!  Perfection is OK, but it doesn’t always mean flavour.  Maybe they’re a bit squishy or rather over-ripe, but those berries are full to the brim with flavour & can be turned into tasty treats galore.  A recent trip to the local shops resulted in a bag full of berry deliciousness, perfect for a homemade jam-session.

This is one of my favourite & easiest ways to turn that berry bounty into a juicy jammy-crammed spread for cakes, toast & treats.  It’s not overly-sweet, having a slight twangy tartness that gives it a fresh-fruit flavour.  Also, you can use fresh or frozen fruit, or both – I like to mix them, topping up the fresh with frozen ones whenever needed.  Now, before you start rolling your eyes & wandering off, jam making needn’t be difficult, time-consuming or messy.  Trust me, I’m not one for faffing around in the kitchen – this is literally punnet-to-pan jam in under 30 minutes (not including waiting for it to cool though – I’m not a magician!).  Intrigued?  Hands washed, aprons on & let’s get jamming!

What you need:

400g Fresh or Frozen Raspberries
200g Fresh or Frozen Blackberries
300g Sugar (I use regular sugar, nothing fancy)
2 tablespoons Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice (half a lemon approx*)
2 tablespoons Cold Water
(* Keep that squeezed lemon half for the end of the recipe)

3 Jam Jars & Lids (the mixture makes 2 full & 1 half jars approx)
3 Cupcake Cases (all will be revealed later)
1 Medium-sized Oven-Proof Glass Bowl
1 Stainless Steel Saucepan (not your best non-stick one)
1 Small Plate or Saucer

What to do:

Firstly, let’s do a little prep!  Put the small plate or saucer into the fridge for testing your jam at the end.

Next, here’s how I sterilize jam jars.  Pre-heat the oven to 165*C.  Wash the jars & their lids in hot soapy water, rinse & shake off the excess water.  Place them on a clean baking tray in the oven (keep the jars the right way up) & bake for 10 minutes or so.  I like to get these washed & ready to go in the oven for when I start making the jam, so it saves time (multi-tasking at it’s finest!).

Remove the tray from the oven & leave on a cooling rack – do not touch the insides of the jars or lids once cooled (or you’ll have to start again).

That’s the prep done, onto the jamming!  Pop the berries into the saucepan, add the water & fresh lemon juice, then gently heat on low for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally.  This is to soften the fruit skins & allow the juices to be released.  For those of you asking, “where’s the pectin?”, it’s in the lemon juice – all citrus fruits have large amounts of natural pectin in them & that’s what helps with the firming process of jam.  It also saves you money, because you don’t need to buy special sugar for this recipe.

Remove from the heat, add the sugar & stir gently to dissolve into the fruit.  Put the pan back on the heat & turn it up a little, until the fruit begins to boil.  Bubble away for about 15-18 minutes. Important bit – DO NOT STIR!  Swirl very gently if you must, but set that spoon down!

To test the jam, scoop a teaspoonful onto the cold plate & tilt it slightly.  The jam should move a little, but very slowly, if at all – that’s how you know it’s ready.

Carefully, scoop into a clean, heat-proof glass bowl & cover with clingfilm – press it gently onto the surface of the jam, so you don’t get any condensation.  If you don’t want any seeds in your jam, put a sieve over the glass bowl to strain.  Rinse the seeds & tip into the composter.

Leave to cool until almost room temperature, then pop in the fridge for an hour to set.

While you’re waiting, the jam pan is looking a bit of a mess right now, so here’s how we turn it from sticky to sparkly again!  Grab that half a squeezed lemon, rub it around the inside of the pan & leave it there.  Add a tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda, a tablespoon of white vinegar & a good squirt of washing-up liquid – it will get fizzy & bubbly, don’t panic.  Half-fill with hot water, give everything a good stir around & leave it to stand on the side for half an hour.  Give it a wash in hot soapy water – all clean again!  I use this method for cleaning all my stainless steel pans & trays (I also use it for cleaning the cooker top & oven, but that’s another story!).

Time to jar up that jam!  Get your freshly sterilised jars & scoop that jam into them, leaving a half inch space at the top of the jar.  Place a cupcake case over the top, outer side up & press over the jar, then put the lid on & tighten.  Not only does it look pretty, but it helps make a better seal & also keeps your lids from getting gooey.

Once your jam is packed into pretty jars, either store them in the fridge or a cool pantry.  Once opened, definitely pop them in the fridge.  I cannot say exactly how long they keep, as it doesn’t last long enough.  However, it’s usually a week or two before they’re completely demolished.

Delectably dark & a gorgeously glossy garnet shade, this beautiful berry-crammed jam is so flavoursome!  Perfect spread on toast, sandwiched in a spongecake or simply spooned into pastry cups to make the jammiest of jam tarts.  Try adding a tablespoonful to a cup of Greek yoghurt, swirled around to make the most vibrant fruity breakfast treat. So next time you see punnets of pretty berries looking lost & unloved, pick up a few & get jamming! Stay hungry! Aimee 😉 x

 

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.