Homemade Blueberry cinnamon jam is the best starter recipe for anyone who wants to begin canning. Good blueberry jam is so hard to find but you can find blueberries all year round and sometimes you can buy them at a good deal. That’s when we make blueberry jam.
The equipment I find useful when making jam:
- medium pot and a potato masher
- water bath canner with rack
- jars 250 ml (the smaller the jar, quicker to eat and less time it will be exposed to air)
- canning Set
- Fruit Pectin Crystals ( 1 package per recipe)
Preparing your jars and lids:
- Wash about 6 jars and lids with hot and soapy water and rinse well.
- To sterilize the jars, place them in the canner and let the water come to a boil. Reduce the heat and keep the temperature of that water to about 180F. Leave the jars in until ready to use. If the jars are not hot when it’s time to ladle in the jam, the jam being too hot may crack the jar.
- Toss the lids in that same water only when the temperature reaches 180F. Set the screw bands aside.
Preparing your Station:
On a clean surface spread out a kitchen towel, this will be your work space, then you will need long tongs, a plastic ladle, a wide mouth funnel, a magnetic lid lifter, a bubble popper / measurer and a jar lifter.
Difference between fresh lemon squeeze Vs lemon juice in a bottle
When using fresh lemons and limes, the amount of juice and the acidity of that juice can vary greatly from fruit to fruit. By using bottled juice, you ensure that your preserves have a consistent level of acidity, which makes them safe for canning.
Why use fruit Pectin?
The Fruit Pectin allows the jam to set. Without incorporating it in the jam, there would be no consistency. The jam would be liquid and runny.
A few notes I took while making jam:
- I find it easier to wash and crush the blueberries in small batches. It is also easier to spot any bad ones. Now, if you prefer to wash all the blueberries first and then crush them altogether, go ahead, that works too.
- To figure out, what is a full jar of jam, we used the measurer when filling up the first jar. We then realized that the measurement is on the bottom of the first lip in the jar. It is referred has “headspace”.
- When I finished filling the jars, I was only able to ladle 5 full jars. The 6th jar was only filled half way, so we didn’t put it in the canner with the others. We let it cool and tried it on toast and them stored it in the fridge.
- Keep a kettle of hot water on stand by. If necessary you will need to pour some of it into the canner if the water bath isn’t 2 inches above the jars. The process of bringing the water bath to a boil will be quicker.
- While the jars are in the cooling process, you will hear a pop as they seal. Now, if the sealed lids move up and down when pressed, that means there is air in it. In that case, if it is only one jar, don’t throw it away, simply store it in the fridge and that will be the first to go or you can process the jar again using a new lid.
- To reseal a jar, you will need to remove screw band, wash lid and sterilize it. Wipe the rim with a dump towel and then dry it. Place the lid on the jar and screw the band finger tight. Place the jar on the rack in a pot or canner of boiling water. Repeat the water bath process and repeat the cooling process. Wait and listen for the pop.
Altitude (feet) Increase water canning processing time
- 1001 to 3000 feet – 5 minutes
- 3001 to 6000 feet – 10 minutes
- 6001 to 8000 feet – 15 minutes
- 8001 to 10000 feet – 20 minutes
Blueberry Cinnamon Jam
Delicious and homemade with the rich flavour of blueberry and a twist of cinnamon.
Ingredients
- 4 cups blueberries, stemmed, washed and crushed
- 1/4 cup lemon juice, bottled
- 1 package (57g) fruit Pectin
- 1 cinnomon stick
- 4 cups sugar
Directions
- Step 1 After preparing jars, lids and station, In a strainer, wash the blueberries. Go through them and pick out the bad ones. Wash and place them into a wide bowl.
- Step 2 Crush them in small batches using a potato masher.
- Step 3 Transfer them into a measuring cup and continue crushing them until you have 4 cups of crushed blueberries.
- Step 4 Place them into a large pot, add in the lemon juice and stir.
- Step 5 Sprinkle a package of “Pectin” evenly over the berries and stir to combine.
- Step 6 Add in the cinnamon stick. Turn on high heat and stir frequently to not burn.
- Step 7 When it starts to boil, pour in the sugar. Stir constantly, until the sugar dissolves and bring the mixture back to a hard boil.
- Step 8 Once it gets to a hard boil continue stirring for 1 whole minute, and the jam is now ready to go into the jars. Turn off the heat and remove the cinnamon stick.
- Step 9 With the long tongs, transfer the jars onto the prepared station, place the funnel onto a jar and ladle jam into it, 1/4 inch (0.5 cm) below the rim.
- Step 10 Wipe the jar rim with a napkin to remove any extra jam.
- Step 11 With the the magnetic lid lifter, pick up the lid from the hot water and place it straight onto the jar.
- Step 12 Apply the screw band, until finger tight. Do not over tighten. Repeat the process with the other jars.
- Step 13 When ready, set the jars on the rack in the canner. Make sure there’s at least 2 inches of water over the top of the jars, if not, add hot water.
- Step 14 Cover the canner and bring the water to a boil. When it starts boiling leave it in for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Step 15 Remove the jars from the canner without tilting them, and place them on a towel to cool for at least 24 hours.
- Step 16 During this time be sure the lids are properly sealed. If not, unscrew the jars, wash and place the lids in hot water, wipe the rims thoroughly and repeat the process again, and let cool for at least 24 hours.
- Step 17 Label and store the jam in a cool, dry and dark place and it will be edible for a year.
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