We love having Mixed Berry Jam on hand, and we are almost out. That isn't acceptable, so jam making is on the docket! I thought I'd take pictures this time and post up this little tutorial. Enjoy!
Pour your 4 pound bag of Costco Mixed Berries in a large stockpot. I measured about 12 cups of fruit.
We like strawberries in it, too, so I added a 2 cup measure of frozen berries, too. That makes 14 cups of fruit, in total. That's just an estimate, since it was measured frozen, not thawed and crushed.
Put your jars on a half sheet pan and heat them in the oven to 250 degrees. This helps to prevent the jars cracking when you add molten hot jam.
Next I added 8 tsp. calcium water to the berries. Then I mixed 8 tsp Pomona pectin with 2 cups of white sugar. Whisk them together well! This was not added to the berries until they were at a boil. That takes a while, since you are starting from frozen. Be patient and don't burn your berries by heating them on too high of a temperature!
When adding the Pomona pectin, use a large whisk and WHISK that fruit and add the pectin/sugar mixture slowly. You don't want pectin clumps!
At this point, you could add more sugar, but 2 cups was plenty for the entire batch for us.
Heat the berries back to boiling and boil of one minute. Add hot jam to the hot jars. Use a canning funnel. Headspace is 1/4"for jam. Make sure to wipe the rims of your jars with a damp cloth. If you dampen with white vinegar, the rim gets even cleaner!
Simmer lids, if needed. Newer lids do not call for the simmering step, I have read. My lids were bought some years ago, so they are not new-fangled and weird.
They were simmered like a proper lid should be.
Add rings and process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. (Check your elevation to make sure the time is the same for your elevation!) I use a steam canner rather than water bath.
Remove your jars to a dry towel. Use a jar lifter, not your hands! Let sit overnight. Remove rings, note the contents on the lid, and store out of direct sunlight.
Jars can have flaws and when they do, they let you know. Boo for flawed jars!
I'll make this recipes another two or three times to make enough jam for the year. I put some directly into the fridge without canning, but it won't last long. This recipe made 12 1/2 pints.
