Yesterday, I washed about a billion red plums and chopped them up.
The color was incredible.
After about two HOURS of chopping golf-ball sized plums and cutting my thumbs on those stupid razor-sharp pits, I told my husband that this was probably going to be a one-time event. All that chopping was sapping my will to live. Or at least my will to make jam.
Then I added a bunch of sugar and some apple juice, and set it on the stove to cook down and soften, mashing them every so often with a potato masher.
Then I read the directions on Angie’s recipe and it said to measure the sugar very carefully or it won’t set right.
Oh.
Huh.
I shrugged and got out my little stick blender, then puréed the plums and strained them.
And got the most spectacular, the most delicious, red plum syrup I could have ever imagined.
We immediately poured some over frozen blackberries and ate them for dessert. We kept thinking of things we could do with this syrup. Pouring it over pancakes was a popular choice, with mixing it into iced tea running a close second.
After letting it cool in the fridge overnight, I added pectin, lemon juice, and corn syrup.
It is slightly less jelly-like than store-bought jam, so maybe there’s something to that whole “measuring” bit after all. But it is DELICIOUS and we made it ourselves! AND we got 10 little containers of jam for only $60! It’s a bargain, people!
Clearly, I excel at this homesteading thing.
* Lamest Blog Post Title EVER
Tags: Cooking, I can't follow directions, Jam
August 18th, 2010 at 9:39 am
Looks wonderful! Is it freezer jam? I am thinking about trying freezer jam this year since I finally have a freezer.
Tressa´s last [type] ..Puget Sound Orcas
August 18th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
Wow — you are such a thrifty homemaker.
LOL I have cringed every time we make major construction changes in our garden (we’ve done it a few times). It makes me think, “Now, how much did this tomato cost me?” Bwahaha!
Angie @ Many Little Blessings´s last [type] ..Chocolate Whoopie Pies
August 18th, 2010 at 1:41 pm
Tressa – Yep, it was freezer jam. If it wasn’t for all the chopping, it would have been a breeze. I think maybe I’ll try grape or maybe strawberry next time.
Angie – I don’t really understand why the adding of the sugar has to be so precise. The fruit has wildly varying amounts of sugar in it, so how can they say it matters how much extra you add, or even if you add any at all? I am not, however, deterred, and will probably try it again. Thanks for the recipe!
August 18th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
Yummy! That looks great. I’ve never tried making jam with plums. I had them coming out my ears this year. I’ll have to try it.
Oh, and skip counting. LOL. The best way I’ve found to motivate kids with skip counting is to use MONEY.
Counting by 5′s with nickels is so much more fun than with anything else, especially if they get to keep a few (wink). You can also practice counting by 5′s with the clock. If you do that it makes time and money so much easier to learn.
Daisy´s last [type] ..First Day of 2010-2011 School Year
August 19th, 2010 at 9:53 am
Those containers remind me of the one’s I used to store my breast milk.
Great job!!
What are you going to can next?
Connie Weiss´s last [type] ..Friday Funnies- Dancing
August 24th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
Ummmm…I don’t know about the sugar. Because my Mom says so. How’s that for an answer?
She’s made hundreds of batches of freezer jam over the years, so I trusted her.
You can do what you want, because she’s not your Mom.
Angie @ Many Little Blessings´s last [type] ..Ten Tips on Blogging Business-Law from SBSummit