Friday, December 30, 2011

Apple Berry Jam

I've been on a jam making kick and although my jam is a combination of sauce and a true jam, it works well served cold on toast or hot served over ice cream or drizzled over ham or pork roast or pork tenderloin. This is bold enough to stand up to a beef dish and sweet enough to use in thumbprint cookies.

4-5 lbs. apples, any varieties - I used golden delicious, Rome, Fuji, and Macintosh ($1.25)
2 Bartlett pears ($.50)
2 C. water (free)
1 pint black berries ($.50)
1 1/4 C. cranberries ($.50)
1 C. raspberries ($.75)
1 to 2 T. cinnamon ($.15)
1 tsp. nutmeg ($.05)
1 1/2 C. sugar ($.10)
1/2 C. brown sugar ($.10)

Peel and roughly chop the apples and pears. Slightly over-ripe fruit works best, it's sweeter and softer. This is a great way to use up apples that have gotten too soft for snacking.

Rinse berries and remove any stems, if necessary.

Add all ingredients except sugars to the pot and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Once apples are soft, add in sugars and stir. Use a potato masher to break up larger chunks of fruit (I actually picked up a bean masher at a Hispanic store for a few dollars and it works great for this purpose). Taste to check levels of sugar and spices.

Simmer for up to 1 hour, or until sauce reaches desired consistency.

Yields - 5-6 pints
Cost: $3.40
Cost per pint: $.57

No comments:

Post a Comment