I can still remember the very first time I ate fresh raspberries. I was 20 and I bought some on a whim to try. OMG I was so surprised at how good they tasted. They really were like the raspberry lollies you can buy.
The first time I realised you could grow raspberries was when I saw a friend plant some in her garden. So I knew that any garden I had would have to have some. So I planted my first lot at the end of winter in 2020.
I have a lot more now and there are so many. I love eating them, but I also knew that I wanted to do something else with them as well.
Making Jam
Last summer I bought a heap of apricots. It looked like they were going to go off so I thought, I will make jam. I had no idea what I was doing, but I knew you had to add a lot of sugar with the fruit. So that’s what I did. Then I looked it up and saw that I should also put in lemon juice, which I did.
I don’t normally like apricot jam, but I loved this and it all went very quickly.
It gave me an idea. What if I collected some of the raspberries and made jam with them?
That is what I did.
Over a few weeks I went out and picked some every day. While I have a lot of plants, they don’t produce a lot each day.
I would collect them, wash them, dry them and then stick them in the freezer. They were frozen individually and then put into a container once they were done.
When I had half a kilo it was time to make some jam.
You can find the recipe I used here, Raspberry Jam. The recipe isn’t clear on whether or not you can use frozen berries, but it seemed to work out fine.
I put all the raspberries, sugar, and jam in a pot and turned on the stove.
It didn’t take long for them to cook down and be ready for the jars.
I didn’t quite get two small jars.
However, it is so good. I thought it would be really sweet, but it has a slight tart taste which is nice. Dave loves it.
I don’t know how long this jam will last, but it is so nice to be eating something that I made. There really is something about eating produce you have grown or cooked, like the jam.
If you ask me the best way to eat it is on sourdough toast. Yes, I’m still making my own bread.
Can you believe the colour of it? It is such a vibrant red.
I have now started collecting more so I can make more. I will have to set up my little studio area so I can experiment with some food photography using it. Maybe some scones with cream too.
I’ve been watching the Great British Bake Off and it has inspired me. I love shows that do that.
Have you ever made your own jam? How was it? Do you have any tips?
Take care.
Best
Sint Niklaas Belgium
With us it is now winter 7 degrees during the day -1 at night.
We have raspberries in our garden of 5m x 5m.
Every year from June we have to pull berries every day for 1 month.
this is would draw 15 kilos the friends come for themselves.
We also use it to make and freeze wine and preserves.
A tip to have tasty berries for a cake or ice cream.
The next thing is that we never wash the berries.
You put them separately from each other on a plastic saucer
and then she puts you the berries in the freezer when they are frozen you can loosen it
and put those berries in a closed box afterwards you can easily detach them
for an ice cream or on a cake.
Let it taste you
regards
hugo
That all sounds great, but I do wash them, we have problems with rats and birds, so it is more for that. I do freeze them the same way.
Thanks for the tips Hugo. It certainly sounds cold where you are.
Raspberry jam is one of our favorites! Yours is lovely!
Thank you Dorothy, it is my favourite too. Well one of them, I also love homemade plum, but not bought plum jam.
My first love is blackberry jam, but raspberry is right behind!
Blackberry jam is also a favourite around here Dorothy.
I have made jam from fresh strawberries. It was good. Home made jam is more tasty.
There is something about homemade jam. Strawberry jam sounds good, I’ve never liked it, like the apricot jam, but maybe if I made my own I would. Thank you.
When we lived in Melbourne, we had a very old apricot tree in the back yard. It was a prolific producer and I made buckets of jam. Your raspberry jam looks great.
That tree sounds great Carol. I planted a dwarf one last year, and I can’t wait for it to start producing, and yes, making lots of jam as well. Thank you Carol.
My mum used to make jam but I admit not from our raspberries we always ate them (in quantity) fresh. Oh I so miss raspberries fresh of the bush.
I have made jam from quinces off my japonica in the past but nothing else though I have always intended to make some from dried apricots. So I am not a good source of advice but my memory of my mother’s jam making is that you normally use about equal weight of fruit and sugar though I think the exact proportions my vary depending on the fruit. That if the fruit has a low pectin content (like strawberries) you need to add lemon juice or apples or commercial pectin from a bottle (my mum bought “Certo”). That you just boil it all up until testing produces the right level of jelllyness. Pop it in sterilised heated jars and seal and store – Yummy!
Sounds like your mum did a lot, and I think everything you have said is true or what you do. I don’t know that I will ever become a massive jam maker, but I like the idea of having a couple of jars of stuff that I have made in the fridge or cupboard. I used lemon juice, which seemed to work well. Thank you RJ.
I have never made my own jam but I’d love trying this out…looks pretty good
Thank you, it is amazing, you should give it a go if you can.
Your jam looks so delicious, Leanne! Yum. ❤️
Thank you John. It is pretty good.