Monday 19 July 2010

Double Berry Confiture

A couple of weeks ago, when my better half was home for the weekend, I took the opportunity to grab him to the supermarket to stock up on rice, milk powder and bulky items which I would have problem lugging home on my own. While wheeling the trolley around, I spotted a small crowd at the fresh fruits section. I left the trolley to my kids and went up to check out what was the deal...organic grown strawberries were going at one third the original price! That was really a good deal, besides, the strawberries looked very fresh with stems that were still bright green. I grabbed, 3, then 6 punnets and placed them in the trolley. You would think that would be enough, but the greedy me, went back to grab another 3 and a few packs of blueberries too!

The strawberries were sweet (not super sweet, but at least they were not sour) and juicy. For the next few days, we had strawberries after every meal (^^")

I used some to made a strawberry galette and a double berry jam, both of which were on the top of my to-do list.


I took the homemade jam recipe from this book, 低热量点心DIY...homemade desserts with low calories. 1/10 serving of this strawberry and blueberry jam contains 63kcal, and 0.1g fat. I am not sure whether the figures are true, but I would choose to believe it as the amount of sugar used is less than most jam recipes.

As with most of my past jam making experiences...the process of making homemade jam is so easy...much easier than cooking a pot of porridge. As suggested by the recipe, I prepared the ingredients the night before, and left the berries and sugar to sit over night in the fridge. The next morning, when I was ready to cook the jam, much of the juice was 'extract' by the sugar from the fruits. It took me less than 15mins to cook the jam and can it.

In the past, I have never liked fruit jams. I am the kaya and butter person. But, ever since I started making my own jam, my opinion about it has totally changed!

The finished jam is not sweet at all...I could still taste the slight tang from the berries. What I really like is the chunks of fruits on my slice of toast. It is the best berry jam I have ever had....really, nothing beats a bottle of homemade jam :)

Try it and I am sure you won't regret...especially if you happen to get the berries at dreat discount ;)



Double Berry Jam

Ingredients:
(yields about 300ml of jam)

200g fresh strawberries (I used 275g)
200g fresh blueberries (I used 125g)
120g granulated sugar*
2 tablespoons lemon juice**

Method:
  1. Wash and remove the stems from strawberries, cut into halves or quarters(for bigger ones), leave whole for small berries. Wash and drain blueberries.
  2. Mix strawberries, blueberries and sugar in a bowl. Cover and leave in fridge over night, or let it sit for at least 30mins.
  3. Transfer the mixture (including whatever juice that was drawn out from the berries) in the bowl to a stainless steel pot or a large saucepan. (Note: use non-reactive pots made with stainless steel, glass or enamel, avoid pots made with copper, aluminum or cast iron which would react with acid).
  4. On medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula or a wooden spoon, bring the mixture to a full rolling boil (when the bubbles do not stop or lessen when you stir it). Once the mixture starts to boil, skim away any excessive foams or bubbles, stirring constantly all the time.
  5. Keep at a slow rolling boil for another 5 ~ 10 mins, stirring constantly till the mixture thickens, becomes clearer and transparent (no more foams).
  6. Drizzle in the lemon juice and cook for a further 2~3 mins.
  7. Remove from heat. The jam will be a little runny when hot but the consistency will be just right after it has cool off.
  8. Ladle hot jam into hot sterilised jars, fill to the brim. Secure lids. Let cool. Once opened, store in fridge and best consumed within 1~2 weeks***.

how to sterilise glass jars and bottles:
Wash glass jars and lids in hot, soapy water, rinse well. Place jars and lids in a pot. Fill with enough cold water to cover the jars. Place over high heat and bring water to the boil. Reduce heat to medium and boil gently for 10 minutes. Remove jars and lids from boiling water and drain upside down over a clean tea towel. Preheat oven to 110 degC. Place jars and lids upside down on a baking tray. Place in the oven and heat for 15 minutes. Proceed to make the jam while the jars are in the oven. Do use glass jars with lids that come with a gum binder that seals them against the top of the jar.

Note:
*Do not reduce the sugar, as the amount is required to preserve the jam.
** Do not omit the lemon juice as it help to hold the jam together and enhances the flavour.
*** For safe eating practices, do examine the jam frequently for signs of spoilage.


Recipe source: 低热量点心DIY, by 大越鄉子

32 comments:

Kitchen Corner said...

Very admire your passion to make your own fruity jam! It's indeed a very good one.

Selen said...

I love your fool-proof jam recipes. Mango/passion fruit jam was the best jam I've made. I'll try this one too.

busygran said...

Wow! The jam looks luscious! I wanna make my own now!

Suhaina said...

looks very colourful. i had made blueberry juice last week.. may be try blueberry jam next time. thanks for sharing dear.

Baking Fiend said...

Looks like you got your blogging mojo back on track! the jam-making seems really ez, but i duno why i'm still holding back. :P Thanks for sharing the recipe. I'll bookmark this. :)

hanushi said...

I am also a kaya and butter (peanut butter, haha) person!
Since young, I always feel that jams (store bought) are always too sweet and artificial to my liking. Hehe... I never tried homemade jam before.

Anonymous said...

the jam looks great! now i can my breads with this instead of just "roti kosong" hahaha..

Anonymous said...

Hi! I'm a bit new to making homemade jams. Can you tell me why the jars need to be sterilized? What does sterilizing do? Thanks.

Joyce

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Joyce, you need to sterilise the jars so as to kill all the microorganisms that spoil food, then seal the jar tight to keep them out. Homemade jam has got no preservatives so this step is important.

Honey Bee Sweets said...

I used to make jam so often during summer in California when the fruits are adundant. Now that all those jars are shipped back and sitting in my store room, gives me a good reason to make some soon. Thanks for the lovely jam recipe.

Cosy Bake said...

Hhb,
Which supermarket was that you bought the good deal of berries? I need to het muskeg some too! And of cause to make the jam you shared here. Thanks! :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Honey boy, I got them from Carrefour, not sure whether they are still having the promotion.

ReeseKitchen said...

Very nice jam, me too, am not a jam person, but also not a kaya person too! I love peanut butter..haha! Btw, I also did some berries jam for some tarts next week. Blended strawberries, rapsberries & blueberries for a tutti frutti jam..;p

Pei-Lin said...

HHB, this is interesting! My American mom and sisters would make theirs with pectin. Yours doesn't contain pectin. As much I'd love to make jam, I don't think it works here because these berries come with a hefty price! Ouch! Man, you make me crave for my American mom's home-made preserves so much! They never fail to make raspberry jam and currant jelly every summer. I bet they've been doing this since the start of summer this year. They get so much raspberry that I always got to have a few BIG buckets of the berry for free. Hehehe ... (I froze them up though.)

Haha! I'm a kaya-and-butter person too, you aren't alone!

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

actually I made kaya yesterday,not a success recipe but taste ok. use fresh fruits to do jam, in fact it is very good, fresh and yummy.

Anonymous said...

Hi! When you put the bottle cap in the oven, do you remove the rubber binding? Can share where you usually get your jam bottle? Thinking of making some for a close gf who recently lost her mom.

BTW, am a silent reader of your blog for a while. Will visit your blog without fail everyday at work to check for updates :-)

Thank you for sharing so many wonderful recipes...you are such a generous lady...

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, thanks for checking my blog everyday, you don't have to do that, I can only update it once a week :)
No, I boil the cap with the rubber binding, and place it in the oven as well. Since the temperature is not very high, the rubber won't melt. I use 'recycled' jam bottles...before I started making my own jam, I used to get the blueberry jam from this brand "Smuckers'. This recipe will only be able to fill up one jam jar...around 330ml, so you need to look for a suitable size bottle. Hope this helps :)

Hearty Bakes said...

HHB, i love the combination of berries used in your jam. Looks berrilicious! Thanks for sharing!

Elin said...

I would love to try making my own fruit jam but the imported fruits like strawberries and other berries are so very expensive :( and never on sale ones. So normally I eat them fresh or use them for cakes :)

Thanks for sharing. Will one day try this out :)

pigpigscorner said...

It's berry season and everything is half price! Would love to try making my own jam soon!

mysimplefood said...

I have never made jam, as I am a kaya person too. I just made kaya. check out my post. But the way you describe how easy it is I should try, furthermore I am in USA now so fresh fruits are amazing!!

Jia Ying said...

Hi, may I know that in step 2, when you mix strawberries, blueberries and sugar in a bowl, do you add water?
Thanks ya :-)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Jia Ying, no water is added, just eh berries and the sugar.

Anonymous said...

thanks for the detailed steps on sterilising the bottles. i have been wanting to make jams but can't find detailed instructions on sterilising. yours are great! now i can finally start my jam making. thanks again!

dee

MH said...

Can I use frozen blueberries instead of fresh one? If yes, how to go about, if you don't mind? I need to clear some space in my small fridge. :(

Thanks to you, I'd learned how to froze blueberries. :)

Your digital scale, is it black one? ;)

Happy Homebaker said...

MH, yes you can use frozen blueberries. You just need to rinse and thaw the frozen berries and proceed as per step 2.
Yes, my digital scale is the black one, brand name is Tanita. It makes measuring so much easier :)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB
since u like to make jam, just to let u know that apricots are in season now. I bought fresh apricots (Aksun brand 350g for $3.50 at NTUC). Offer ends tmr unless it is extended.
They are the BEST apricot jam i've made using your recipe above. i called them my liquid gold :)
i chose the slightly under ripe for making jam (cos more pectin) n those ripe with a tinge of red kept to eat fresh.
Cheers, May

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi May, thanks for the info! Will love to try making apricot jam :):)

Anonymous said...

Hello ! Can I ask where you buy the jam jars from?
Thanks :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I didnt buy the jam jars those are used jam jars.

Trish said...

hi, i've made the jam last nite! it was great taste! thanks! by the way, im using those ikea jars , not with rubber binding. do u think i can leave them outside for a few days or they must be kept in the fridge even they are not opened yet.?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Trish, I have not used those ikea jars. For jam jars, after filling with the hot jam, the lid will be tightly sealed. It will give a 'pop' sound when it is opened, thus it is safe to store the jam in room temperature. I would think it is best to store your jam in the fridge just to play safe.