Blackberry Jam
This week a local grocery store had containers of blackberries for 97 cents. When I stopped the other day I picked up quite a few packages to make some blackberry jam. It sometimes seems strange to pay money for something I used to pick for free in the hedgerows on the farm. At least I did not get any scratches while picking these.
If making jam and jelly remember there is always science involved. I use the recipes from the Kraft website, they make the Sure-Jell brand of pectin and have many great recipes on their website. They have all been tested in kitchens by home economists. There recipes if followed to the T always work and your preserves will always set up.
The picture above shows my smaller water bath canner. I had to wash the berries and smash them and then added the pectin into the mix. Once it comes to a boil add the sugar and bring it to a boil again. Below is a picture after it has gone through the second boil and is ready to be placed into jars.
The foam on the top on nothing to worry about. When I was a child and helping my mother make jam we called it scum. It is actually the sweetest part of the jam. To cut down on the foaming directions encourage you to add a pat of butter. I never bother putting butter in my jam. No one I have ever given the jam to has ever complained about how it looks when they open the jar. I guess they either do not care or are smart enough to keep their mouth shut. After all if you get a jar of homemade jam from someone you should just say thank you and run away to open it and eat by the spoonful.
I used what jars I had on hand and they are various sizes and shapes it seems like this batch just made a ton of jars. These will take up almost a whole shelf in the jam cupboard.
