Small Batch Mixed Berry Jam Recipes

MIXED BERRY JAM RECIPE

Steps:

• Wash a pint jar, but do not dry. Add about an inch of water to the jar and place in the microwave and on high for 2 minutes. Using jar grips, pour out the hot water and place jar on a clean towel until ready to pour in the jam.
• If you aren't planning on using temperature to know when the jam is ready to pour, then place a small saucer in the freezer.
• Rinse and weigh the berries. Add to a sauce pan with the lemon and sugar.
• Heat on low, stirring frequently until the sugar has melted.
• Increase the heat to medium and bring the jam to a boil, stirring frequently.
• Bring the jam to a full boil, stirring constantly. A full boil is a boil that cannot be stirred down. You may need to increase your heat level a bit to get there and to sustain the boil while you are stirring.
• Stir constantly at a full boil for 14 to 16 minutes. Test* @ 12 minutes, then cook another minute or two if needed OR at 14 minutes add a candy thermometer to the pot and use temperature to know when the jam is ready. Skim off any foam remaining on the surface of the jam.
• Remove from the heat and pour into the clean pint jar. Screw on the lid. Let cool, then refrigerate. This jam will keep in the refrigerator until you finish it off, which won't take long.

SMALL BATCH MIXED BERRY JAM

Steps:

• Toss the berries and sugar together in a large, heavy-bottomed pot such as a Dutch Oven. Let sit for at least 15 minutes, periodically tossing to coat and to dissolve the sugar (this process helps coax the juices out of the fruit). Place a small plate in the refrigerator to chill (you'll use this later to test the consistency of the jam).
• Bring the fruit to a strong simmer over medium heat until the berries burst and the juices start to boil, about 15 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high. Cook the jam, at first stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon or spatula, then more frequently as the juices thicken. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and the fruit has begun to break down, 40 - 50 minutes. How much it breaks down will depend on the fruit's type and ripeness: for example, strawberries are likely to retain more of their shape, while raspberries will break down almost entirely. As the jam cooks, the liquid will reduce, the sugars thicken and the natural pectins activate. You'll notice the liquid go from a rapid, rolling boil with smaller bubbles to a slow, thick, tar-like boil with larger bubbles: This is the stage at which it's most important to stir constantly along the bottom of the pot to prevent scorching and sticking (sugar is heavier than water and will concentrate there, increasing the chance that the fruit will burn) It's also the stage at which splattering may occur, so take care in stirring.
• Once the jam reaches a slow, thick boil, add lemon / lime / orange juice and continue to cook, stirring constantly until the jam returns to its previous consistency (before you added the juice), about another 5 minutes. To test the consistency, spoon a bit of jam onto the chilled plate, return it to the refrigerator and chill for 2 minutes. Drag your finger through it: it should hold its shape on either side without appearing watery or runny. If it's not there yet, cook a few minutes more (note: some fruit, like strawberries, contain more water and less natural pectin than other fruit, like raspberries. This means the jam will never be quite as thick or gelled, but it will still be delicious).
• Once jam has reached the right consistency, remove from the heat. Add jam to an 8-ounce canning jar, mason jar or two 4 ounce jars and store in the refrigerator.

EASY SMALL-BATCH BLUEBERRY JAM

Steps:

• Mix blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon in a saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until thickened, about 30 minutes.

EASIEST MIXED BERRY JAM

Steps:

• Chop the frozen fruit from each bag into pea-sized chunks (you can mash the thawed fruit with a potato masher if you prefer larger fruit chunks in your jam - I don't, I like jam that has a chunky texture, but spreads easily).
• In a large pot, combine fruit and sugar.
• Bring mixture quickly over high heat to the gelling point (it actually takes quite a while, in excess of ten minutes - and stir constantly, or fruit will stick to the bottom and burn).
• After fruit has reached the gelling point (thick enough to slide, as one 'flake', from a cold spoon), remove from heat.
• Ladle into sterilized jars, apply seals and rings, and process for 15 minutes, with whole jars submerged at least 1-2 inches under boiling water.
• That's it! Six bags, six cups. Chop, mix, boil to the gelling point, fill jars, process, DONE, all in less than an hour.
• NOTE: the Ball Blue Book calls for 9 cups of "berries" (i.e., blackberries, young berries, dew berries, etc.,) - six 12 oz. bags of mixed berries yields slightly less, but approximately that much.

MIXED BERRY JAM FROM FROZEN BERRIES - SMALL BATCH

Steps:

• Put all the ingredients in a large saucepan, and let stand for at least one hour as the fruit defrosts. This can be overnight.
• If using the wrinkle test for the setting point, place a couple of side plates in the freezer.
• Heat the mixture on a very low heat to allow the sugar to dissolve and the fruit to release its juice. Stir gently occasionally.
• Heat jam jars in a low oven to sterilize at 100°C/220°F/Gas Mark 1.
• Once all the sugar has dissolved, turn up the hob and heat the jam quickly to a rolling boil. After a couple of minutes, start testing the jam's set using your favourite method.

SMALL-BATCH RASPBERRY JAM

Steps:

• Place a few small plates in the freezer. Stir berries, sugar, lemon juice, salt, and half the orange zest in a large, heavy pot. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar and mashing lightly with a potato masher. Skim foam from surface. Cook, stirring more frequently as jam thickens, until it has the consistency of very loose jelly, 8 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Remove a plate from freezer; drop a spoonful of jam on it. Return to freezer for 1 to 2 minutes; nudge edge of jam with a finger. It should hold its shape. If jam is too thin and spreads, return it to a boil, testing every minute, until jam holds its shape on plate.
• Strain about half the jam through a fine sieve into a bowl; discard seeds. Return strained jam to pot; stir in remaining zest. Return to a boil, then remove from heat. Let cool before using or storing.

MIXED BERRY JAM

Steps:

• Add the fruit, vanilla & sugar into a saucepan. Scrunch up using your fingers to begin pulling the juice from the fruit.
• Place the saucepan onto a high heat and bring to a boil. Clean the froth off the liquid for a few minutes, then reduce the heat to simmer for 30mins.
• Decant into a dish and allow to cool down fully before using.

TRIPLE BERRY JAM

Steps:

• In a large heavy pot, combine the berries and sugar; let them sit for 1-2 hours until the sugar has dissolved into the fruit and created a syrup.
• Place the pot on the stove top and turn burner on to medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low, stirring often until the fruit breaks down and the mixture starts to thicken slightly about 30-35 minutes. I use a masher to break the fruit down even further as I don't like a super chunky jam but feel free to do what you like. Just before the jam is down, stir in lemon juice and zest. When the jam is almost done, it will still be a little loose (it will firm up as it cools), but should coat the back of a wooden spoon.
• Remove the jam from the stove and pour into 3 (or 4) clean half-pint size glass jars or similar. Cap and cool completely on the counter before transferring jam to the refrigerator for 4 weeks or freeze for up to 6 months.

SIMPLE, SMALL BATCH BLACK & BLUEBERRY JAM

Steps:

• Add your berries and lemon juice to an enamel or stainless steel sauce pan and cook them over a medium flame.
• Just as you begin cooking, mash them with your potato masher, making sure to leave some berries chunkily mashed. Allow to cook for about 3 minutes until bubbling.
• Add the sugar, stir and increase to a high flame. Bring to a bubbling boil. Once the berries are boiling, reduce to a medium simmer for about 5 minutes. Continue to stir.
• If the jam still appears to be very liquidy after that 5 minutes of simmering and stirring, add cornstarch. The sourness of your berries will be a factor in the consistency of your jam. If they're sour, it may not require cornstarch, if they're sweet, they may require up to 2 tsp. If you've added cornstarch, give it a nice stir and let it cook for another two minutes on a simmer. Once the consistency is a syrupy thickness, it's done.
• Remove from heat and allow to cool in a container to room temperature. Then cover and refrigerate.