Raspberry Jam Recipe

Summer is here and it’s the perfect time to craft some home-made jam using this raspberry jam recipe.  Today’s venture uses those little .4oz sample packs of low or no-sugar needed pectin that Ball has included in their pint jar bundles.

I decided to take the plunge and make raspberry jam instead of the heavy favorite, strawberry.  Call me a rebel.  It doesn’t seem to matter if you go with fresh-picked or store-bought berries.  I picked mine up at Costco.  I love that place!

Raspberry Jam Recipe

• 1 1/2 cups crushed raspberries (make sure to measure the berries after they are crushed)
• 1/3 cup unsweetened fruit juice (I used 100% juice white grape from Welch’s)
• 1/2 cup sugar (you can use the proper amount of sugar-substitute or  1/2 cup honey instead.  The Truvia blend works well for jellies and jams and there is no conversion to worry about)
• .4 oz envelope of Low or No-Sugar Needed Pectin
• 1 pat of butter

Prepare your canning jars and lids.  If you’re not sure how to do this, The Pioneer Woman has a great tutorial for canning jams.

Combine your crushed raspberries, fruit juice, butter, and pectin in a 6-8 quart sauce pan.  Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil.  A rolling boil is one that can’t be stirred down.  No matter how much you stir, those bubbles keep coming!

Add your sugar to the mix.  Return to a full rolling boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and skim off any foam, if necessary.  Since I started adding the pat of butter to my jams, I’ve had no foam at all. Score one for butter!

The package says it makes 2 half pint jars.  You can use 1 pint jar if you want.  I found this recipe will yield that amount plus about 1/4 cup extra so you can try some of your new raspberry jam as soon as it cools.

This may not fall under the truly lazy theme that most of my other recipes adhere to, but making jam has turned out to be a lot of fun, especially getting the kids involved with the process.  I like having them in the kitchen with me for a little bit of KP duty.

Enjoy your very own home-made goodness using this simple raspberry jam recipe!