Strawberry Jam

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs. strawberries (approximately 7.5 cups sliced or 10.5 cups whole)

• 3 1/2 cups granulated sugar

• 2 lemons, zested and juiced

1. Wash and hull strawberries. Cut into halves or quarters - depending on the size of the strawberries.

2. In a heavy bottom large saucepan on low heat, combine sugar, juice and zest of lemons. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes until sugar has dissolved - no longer grainy. Stirring occasionally.

3. Add strawberries to pan and stir to combine. Raise heat to medium-low so that there is a low boil (mark 3.5 to 4 on a electric stove). Stir occasionally. Skim foam as it raises to surface.

4. As jam thickens, stir more frequently to prevent it from burning. Cook for about 30 to 40 minutes.

5. Test that jam has jelled by placing a frozen bowl or plate in the freezer. Put a teaspoonful of jam on frozen plate and place in freezer for 1 minute. If jam wrinkles when pushed it has jelled sufficiently. If not, cook for an additional 10 minutes.

6. To preserve jam, place in clean class jars. Cover and place in a water bath for 10 minutes. Visit this site for more on canning jams and jellies: https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/uga/uga_jams_jellies.pdf

Yields: about 5 8-ounce jars or 10 4--ounce jars

Notes&Tips:

• Using fresh fruit to make your own jam and or jelly allows you to control the amount of sugar that goes into the finished product. It is also a very satisfying feeling to make such a simple thing that you will be using in the mornings on your toast or pastry.

• I like my jams to have pieces of the fruit when I spread it onto my toast. For this reason, I do not mash the fruit into a pulp as it cooks.

• I also like prefer jams over jellies because of the consistency.