A Jelly Tale of Woe and Strawberry Jam Recipe

Ever since I stepped off the path well-traveled (i.e. using other people's recipes) I knew that one day my jelly would fail to gel. Especially with my goal of using less sugar and more fruit.  The Strawberry Jam I made Thursday failed to gel. It's runny to say the least, and even when refrigerate, which gels even runny jelly. So lets give this story a happy ending and turn that runny jam into toast and jam.

4 reasons why jelly fails:

1. Didn't reach the correct temperature.
2. Not enough sugar. 
3. Acid content too low.
4. Not enough pectin.

I boiled the heck out of it - 3 minutes of a rolling boil at least.  A rolling boil is where there are big boiling bubbles even when you stir.

I'm not willing to add more sugar. Most jelly and jam recipes have far too much sugar in it. The ratio is often 1 cup fruit to 1 1/2 to 2 cups sugar. Insane! I want jelly fruit, not fruit flavored sugar. I reversed the ratio for this recipe to 1 1/2 cups fruit to 1 cup sugar, so I knew there was a good probability that it wouldn't gel. Still - no more sugar.

Acid content was good. 1 cup of lemon juice to that amount of sugar and fruit is fine.

What went wrong? I suspect my ruby liquid was a product of the last. By pureeing the strawberries before measuring, I used a much higher quantity of fruit than standard recipes would use. I think 1 1/2 boxes of pectin powder would have been fine, but 2 boxes would make it perfect.

How do I fix it now? Start by pouring all those jars of jelly back into the pot. Now rewash and re-sterilize those jars. I need to get another 1/2 box of pectin into the jam, but at this point, the powder would not dissolve in the slightly gelatinous state of the jam.

Also, I want to fix this recipe in a way that I can duplicate the recipe without having to go through this "re-batching" process again.  I'm going to use 1/4 cup of warm apple juice to dissolve the pectin. Next, bring the jelly to a simmer, and then add the juice/pectin mix to the pot.

I bring it to a rolling boil for 3 full minutes, and then re-jar them.

Result: It's much better, but still a slight bit runnier than I'd like. I'm leaving it as it is - it's a great Strawberry Butter, but next time I make it, I'll start with 2 packs powdered pectin.

And now the recipe in it's new and improved form:

Low Sugar Strawberry Jam Recipe

Yields about 70 ounces 

Ingredients:

•  7 cups fresh strawberries, pureed in the blender
• to measure after pureeing, first add 1/2 cup lemon juice to the blender, add strawberries and blend until you have 4 cups (that would 3 1/2 cups berries and the 1/2 cup lemon juice). Repeat once more for a total of 7 cups pureed strawberries and the 1 cup lemon juice called for below)
• 1 cup lemon juice (see above)
• 1 1/2 tsp butter
• 5 cups sugar
• 2 - 1.75 oz packs powdered pectin (such as Sure Jell)

A note on berry selection. If you look at my pic above, you'll see some green berries. Why would I put very unripe berries into the jam? Because the less ripe, the more pectin it has. A few unripe berries added to the mix are like pectin filled pearls and help the jam set better. But don't use too many; they're also less sweet.

Directions:

1. Prepare lids and jars like normal (see previous posts)
2. Put pureed fruit, lemon juice, butter and sugar in large pot.
3. Bring mixture to a simmer, and simmer on low for 15 minutes, while occasionally stirring.
4. Add both packs of pectin. Increase heat to med-hi and bring to a rolling boil for 3 full minutes while constantly stirring.
5. Remove from heat and ladle into prepared jars filling to 1/4 to 1/8 inch from top. Make sure rims are clean and screw lids onto jars.
6. Place jars in a large stock pot or a canning pot and cover with water plus 1 to 2 inches. Bring the water to a boil, and then boil for 15 minutes. This water-bath helps prevent the jam from spoiling.
7. The only thing left to do is to let it cool and enjoy!