Strawberry Honey Freezer Jam
Yields: 4-5 cups of jam. Prep Time: 25 minutes. Cook time: 15 minutes.
Stores for up to 1 year in freezer
Local strawberries and honey are a match made in heaven! This jam is a fantastic way to preserve the harvest and is delicious on morning toast, scones, or with yogurt. Feel free to substitute the honey for equal amounts cane sugar or maple syrup. Want to try something new? Try adding 2-4 Tbsp balsamic vinegar in step three below to make Strawberry Balsamic Jam!
Ingredients:
2 ¼ lbs local strawberries, rinsed, with stems removed
½ cup water
2 tsp Pomona’s calcium water (found in package of Pomona’s Pectin)
1 cup local honey
2 tsp Pomona’s Pectin powder
Preparation:
Wash and rinse five ½ pint mason jars, lids, and screw bands. Set aside until ready to use.
In medium size sauce pan, mix together strawberries and ½ cup of water. Mash berries to desired consistency with potato masher. Bring berries to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer for 1-2 minutes, or until the berries have softened slightly. Remove pan from heat.
Measure out 4 cups of cooked strawberry mixture. Pour measured mixture into clean sauce pan. Add calcium water. If any left over, it can be used for something else. (See tip above for making Strawberry Balsamic Jam!)
In separate bowl, combine honey and pectin powder. Mix well and set aside.
Bring strawberry mixture to boil over high heat. Add honey-pectin mixture, then stir vigorously for 1-2 minutes to dissolve pectin. Bring preserves to boil, then remove from heat.
Fill clean ½ pint mason jars with hot jam, leaving ½" headspace within jars for jam to expand in freezer. Put on lids. Cool jars in fridge for 2-4 hours. Label jars and put in freezer.