Canning Raspberry Rhubarb Jam

My mother and I decided to try canning for the first time in my almost 40 and her almost 60 years. Don't tell her I told you her age...she's a bit sensitive about it...and for that matter, so am I. It was fun and intimidating all at once, but we emerged victorious...

 

Look at that gorgeous color! Really amazing...

Having never made anything more than freezer jams and compotes, I was nervous about the whole canning experience. But on this side of it, I would say it was relatively easy. You need to be able to do a couple of things well. First, you need to really be able to follow directions. This is not the time to adjust a recipe. Ensuring that the jam or jelly sets up requires newbies like me and mom to follow the recipe exactly. Otherwise, the end result would have been raspberry and rhubarb soup... Second, you must be able to organize all of your supplies ahead of time. This process is relatively quick and to reduce spoilage, you want the food and supplies to be hot. If you can do these two things, in no time, you will be a canning pro...

Using four cups of raspberries and 2 cups of rhubarb, we ended up with 4 12 oz jelly jars and two fridge containers. If you are giving these as gifts or you don't eat much jam, use the 6 oz jelly jars (resulting in 8). Something to note: the directions recommend that canning jam and preserves be done in small batches to reduce the chance of a big soupy mess...

Here are our two fridge jams...I added more fresh raspberries for texture before putting them in the fridge...

Here's the recipe we followed:
4 cups partially mushed raspberries
2 cups cooked rhubarb
8 1/2 cups of sugar
1 packet of pectin

You will also need:
4 12 oz jelly jars, lids and rings (I prefer the wide mouth jars, easier to fill)
a non stick pot to cook jam
a large canning/stock pot for the canning process
jar tongs
regular tongs or magnetic canning stick
funnel

Wash jars in dishwasher to sterilize...leave on heated dry to keep warm. Clean, cook and measure rhubarb, clean, partially mush and  measure raspberries, measure sugar and have ready. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of pre-measured sugar with 1 packet of pectin. Mixing the sugar and the pectin together helps reduce lumps of pectin.

Add water and lids (not rings) to a small saucepan and warm over medium heat, keeping it just below the boil, for 5 minutes or so.

Add enough water to stock pot to cover jars by about an inch, have it coming to a boil while making the jam.

Add berries, rhubarb and pectin mix to pot, and bring to a boil.  Make sure you stir intermittently to avoid burning the jam. When boiling, add the remaining sugar, stir well, and bring to a rolling boil. Let boil for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir to redistribute fruit in jam, helps avoid having fruit float to the top of the jars.

Fill jars with mixture, add lids and rings. Put jars in large stock pot with boiling water, let process for 10 minutes. Remove jars and let cool to room temperature.

In the first 15-30 minutes of cooling, check your jam to ensure it has sealed properly by pushing on the top of the lid with your finger. If it moves up and down, the seal didn't form. Pop it in the fridge and use as freezer jam.

If you have any excess, fill a fridge container and use relatively quickly.

Now, I followed the directions that came with the pectin to the letter because I wanted to ensure that the jam would set. It turned out a lot sweeter than my compotes and freezer jams turn out because I don't use nearly that amount of sugar. I am going to research a bit and see if there are alternative recipes not needing as much sugar.

Have you made jam or jelly? I would love to know how it turned out!

 

 

Comments

[Dee/reddirtramblings]

Excellent post on jam making. I remember from my favorite jam book the author writing "Jewels on the windowsill."~~Dee