Yesterday was a big day for jam making at Seven Oaks. I experimented with two batches, making them both without pectin but with different amounts of sugar. It is appalling how much sugar one is instructed to dump into jam making! The first batch used 4 cups of crushed berries with 4 cups sugar and the second used 4.9 pounds of berries with 4 cups sugar. (Weighing is going to be my tool of the future since it is faster and more dependable than measuring.) To both batches I added the juice of one lemon. The first batch made 5 half pints and 1 quarter pint jars. The second batch made 8 half pints and 1 quarter pint. I probably could have added more sugar to the second batch but as long as it sets up, I’ll be quite happy!

Here are the washed, hulled, sliced berries ready to smash.

Here they are smashed.

A boiling mess of hot jam, ready for the jars!

And then of course, the smiling results!

Next: an experiment using sugar AND pectin!