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
It’s that time of year, when the hedgerows are bursting with delicious, deepest dark purple blackberries, just waiting to be plucked from their brambles. There’s something satisfying about picking fresh fruit that instantly transports me back to childhood – I would pick apples, blackberries, raspberries & cherries for my Mum to turn 
into the tastiest treats, carefully carried home (usually in my skirt turned inside out & filled with berries that stained – sorry Mum!). I’ve always grown blackberries in the garden – they are really easy to grow either in pots on the patio or along a hedgerow & the more fruit you pick, the more they seem to produce. Plus they have the prettiest little white flowers that the bees adore, so I’m doing my bit for them too!
For sweet dishes, the basic pastry I make is just butter, flour, sugar & eggs. One of the best tips I’ve discovered is to use icing sugar – your pastry will be smooth, silky & really easy to roll. Depending on the filling, sometimes I’ll add a bit of orange or lemon zest (or both!). It’s always fabulously fluffy in the middle, with that melt-in-the-mouth buttery taste. I have used this recipe for all kinds of pastry delights & it is easy to adapt, so you can change it up as you need or leave it simple & let the filling do the talking. Hands washed, aprons on!
Tip the flour into a large mixing bowl & then add the butter, eggs & 4oz of vanilla sugar or icing sugar. If you are using orange & lemon zest, add that too. Get your hands in the bowl & start mixing, squishing everything together to distribute evenly & make a pliable ball of pastry. Dust a worktop with flour & place the dough on top. Dust your rolling pin too (you don’t want the pastry to stick to it!).
your pie). Take the other pastry ball & roll it out, turn it & then roll again. If it’s a bit sticky, add another dusting of flour underneath before rolling – use a pallet knife to slide underneath if necessary. Try not to add too much flour to the worktop though, because it will combine with your pastry & become dry. Once rolled, transfer it to the prepared 
baking tin, making sure that there is no air between the pastry & tin. Use a floured finger to press it gently into all the corners or curves if using a fluted tin, or the dusted handle of a wooden spoon works really well.
Once your pie case is prepared, add the filling. I use regular, uncooked ripe apples or pears that have been peeled & cored, then sliced thinly & fanned out over the bottom of the pastry case. Top with a few luscious blackberries, dusted with a little cinnamon & a good sprinkling of vanilla sugar. Don’t over-fill your pie case – just one layer of sliced fruit & a few berries is sufficient – too much filling will make it soggy underneath (never a good look!) & the pastry won’t cook.
rolling pin to lift it & gently roll it over the pie. Pinch & press the edges together into a pretty pattern using your fingers, all the way around until it is sealed up nicely. If you feel like being a bit creative, cut out shapes with the trimmings to decorate – add after brushing with milk, then brush them too. When I’m making a pie with blackberries in, I like to decorate with flowers, because they look a bit like blackberries & sometimes I’ll add pastry leaves too. It’s just to use up any leftover pastry trimmings – no need to throw them away, just create some pretty shapes for the top.
After baking, remove your pie from the oven & place on a cooling rack. Leave it in the tin for a few minutes, as it will be easier to remove once it has cooled down a bit. Even if you are going to eat it hot, you don’t want to be burning your mouth – fruit fillings especially will be like molten lava & tend to be hotter than the sun, so give it a moment & save yourself (& your guests) some pain! If you’re going to eat it cold, just leave it to cool completely in the tin before cutting it.
If you’ve used a loose-bottomed tin, just push the base up from underneath & ease your pie onto a serving plate or board. Slide a pallet knife gently underneath the pie to separate it from the actual tin base. If you’ve use the greaseproof paper method, simply lift it out & transfer to a plate, then slice, serve & share! There are a number of ways to eat this delicious pie, but simple is always best – serve warm with a scoop of soft vanilla ice-cream.