Special Blackberry Jam

   I have gotten into canning a lot recently. It is cost effective, high quality since you chose the ingredients, and lots of fun.

Since Josh was in the Army, we qualified for WIC and we got a certain amount of fresh fruits and veggies every month. Kylie doesn't eat much of that stuff so I would always buy stuff I could freeze or use in a pie. Eventually though, my freezer filled up and I had to find something to do with all this produce. In stepped canning. I made strawberry jam for my first project and fell in love.

   My theory is that when you can, you should use the best ingredients you can find. Cheap, good quality is best because the idea is to save money and eat better. I found the blackberries for this jam at $.77/pint. I don't use any pectin, so there is a big savings there. I prefer a method in jam making called Long cook. What is the point in making something from scratch with preservatives when the whole idea is to make it healthier than store bought options? If you look at a jar of jam from the store, it has sugar, lemon juice, fruit and pectin. The same stuff as most canning recipes. By using a long cook method, you use more sugar and use natural pectin from fruit, but you get a softer set jam, which I like. 

  

   All under ripe fruit has a lot of natural pectin but apples and oranges have a lot of pectin no matter what stage of ripening they are in. That's where the "special" comes in with this jam. I usually use apples to thicken all my jams because they are so neutral in taste that you can not taste them in the finished product even when you know they are there. But I wanted to do something different this time and since I had to go to the store for the blackberries anyways, I decided to use oranges.

   If you are new to canning, please read up on it. Read as much material as you can before you make the leap into canning. Here are the most important things to know:

• Canning jars are a must. Don't try to use leftover jars from spaghetti sauce because they are not tempered right for home canning, so you run the risk of them breaking during the water bath. Go to Wal-Mart, invest in a dozen jars for about $10 and if it turns out that canning isn't for you, let me know and I'll buy them off you.
• You must use sterile jars, lids and rings. Boil them for a few mins right before you are ready to pack them with the finished product.
• Do not reuse lids once you have sealed a jar with them. It will either not seal correctly and you will have to re-process all of them. Or if they do seal, you run the risk of bacteria no matter how sterile you think the re-used lid is.
• Boiling water Bath Processing times vary based on elevation. As a general rule, if you live at 1,001-3,00 feet, increase the processing time in the recipe by 5 mins. 3,001-6,000, 10 mins; 6,001-8,000, 15 mins; 8,001-10,000, 20 mins.
• You  don't need to go buy any special canners or anything. Just make sure that you have a pot large enough to put your jars in and cover them with water by 1 inch.

Ok, on with the recipe.
This is gluten-free as long as you do not add the vanilla at the end!

6 cups blackberries (i used about 7 of the little containers from the store)

6 cups sugar (more or less depending on sweetness desired, but don't go below 5)

3/4 cup orange juice

1/3 cup lemon juice

2 T grated orange zest

    Rinse all the blackberries and put in a large pot with the sugar. Stir constantly over med-low heat until the sugar starts to dissolve.

     Add the juices and zest. Stir well and often. Bring to a boil and watch closely using a candy thermometer. 

The most important part of this is to get it to the right temperature since we aren't using pectin. If it doesn't reach 221*, it will never set right. 

It's gonna take a while, but all good things come to those who wait.

Now, if this isn't special enough, here comes the kicker. After it reaches temp and you remove it from heat, stir in a teaspoon of really good vanilla. Not the imitation kind, the real stuff. Even a scraped vanilla bean would be awesome. Not the pod, just the caviar. It makes a difference.

Ladle into sterile jars leaving about an inch of room at the top of the jar. This is called head space and you need it in order for it to process right and without making a huge mess.

Process for 10 mins. Allow to cool, one inch apart on a towel lined counter for 24 hours.

 Once cool, it is shelf stable for 12 months, if you can make it last that long. 

Mine made 4 1/2 pints. I didn't process the last one, just stuck it in the fridge for the morning. 

I'll let you know how amazing it is once the biscuits come out of the oven. 

In the mean time, go read up on canning...

Just an update here:
I have made this jam a few more times since I posted this recipe. I prefer to use a scraped vanilla bean at the end. The vanilla flavor is more pronounced and is totally worth the extra dollar or two to cover the vanilla.
You can;t go wrong serving this jam on fresh biscuits but it is just as good on any kind of bread and even in a peanut butter sandwich, if you can sacrifice some of this for the kids!

I hope you enjoyed this jam, and if you did, please comment and tell me! I'd love to hear what you serve it with!!!