blueberry jam

This past week I was graced with the pleasure of getting a new refrigerator, the old one being on it's last leg and sounding in need of a large muffler. The new one is small, sleek, black and very quiet. When I transferred my food into the new one I was struck at how I had been hoarding frozen blueberries and my first though was, these have to go. So I started browsing recipes for jam and came up with one of my own. Keep in mind, this was my first attempt and I was interested in making these to be eaten right away (mainly in the mornings atop my yogurt), so there is no canning or pantry storage instructions on these. I didn't even have a Ball jar, I just used an empty pepper jar I had lying around.

supplies:

empty jar (preferably Ball)
3-4 cups of blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1/4 cup of honey
1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Start by pouring the honey over the berries and let sit for 15-20 minutes at room temperature.

While the fruit sits, start boiling your empty jar & lid in a pot of water for at least 10 minutes to sterilize.

While your boiling jar is cooling down, pour berries & honey into a second pot with the lemon juice and start to cook over medium-high heat for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the fruit begins to break down a bit and it produces a translucent, tacky juice. It will start to cover the back of a wooden spoon at this point. The jam is finished.

I did not mash my berries and they stayed almost whole which is a texture I quite enjoy. You may prefer to crush yours down. After the jam cooled a bit I ladled it into my clean jar. If you were canning, this is the point were the closed jar of jam would go back in the hot water bath and be boiled for sealing. I just closed my jar and put it in the fridge.

Each morning since making this tasty concoction I have enjoyed it immensely on my yogurt or toast. I look forward to trying it again with fresh berries and even having a go at canning. Lovely gift ideas for giving away to friends and family.