Homemade Christmas Jam Recipe
When you find fresh cranberries in the store, it’s your signal to make your Christmas Jam for the holidays. Giving homemade jam is a great gift to give during the holidays.
There are many delicious homemade jam recipes to choose from, including cranberry jam with orange. Try juice from cranberries or making muffins if you have extra.
Can You Use Frozen Cranberries?
You can start by using frozen fruit to make this recipe, but it needs to be thawed when you process. Fresh fruit is preferred for the cranberries.
What Is Christmas Jam ?
Typically when you make jam and jelly it is made with fruit, sugar and pectin. This Christmas jam recipe is made with additional spices of cinnamon, ginger, allspice and cloves. All the holiday spices you will find in this spiced Christmas jam recipe. The jam is a strawberry cranberry jam, sometimes called Amish Christmas Jam, that is full of many holiday season flavors and scents.
How Do You Process the Fruit?
Use a food processor to chop the fruits. You could use a blender, but it could add air into the jam and make it foamy (and you don’t want foam). Fresh or frozen berries? They need to be thawed to be at the proper temperature for canning.
Can You Use Frozen Fruit?
I highly recommend using frozen strawberries. You can buy fresh strawberries and then freeze and thaw them. Having thawed fruits helps with the fruit mixture reaching the proper temperature for the jam to set properly.
Do You Need Fresh Cranberries for Jam?
You will want to use fresh cranberries that are coarsely chopped to make your spiced Christmas jam. If you only have frozen cranberries, let them thaw and come to room temperature before using them in this recipe.
Can Orange Zest Be Added?
Absolutely! Take 1 large or 2 medium sized oranges and zest them. Add the orange zest in when you add the berries..
How Do You Keep from Getting Scum in the Jam?
When you had 1/2 teaspoon of butter to the berries, it reduced the likelihood of the jam foaming, or creating ‘scum’ on top. It also reduced the changes of the jam boiling over the pan.
Do You Need to Water Bath Can Jam?
It is recommended to hot water bath jam for 10 minutes to allow the hot jam to seal the jars. Once the jars are water bathed, place them on a towel and cover with a towel to allow them to cool slowly. It also keeps cold drafts from the jars so they don’t crack.
Homemade Spiced Christmas Jam
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 cups cranberries chopped cranberries
- 32 ounces frozen strawberries measure when frozen, but then thaw to use
- 6 cups sugar
- 6 tablespoons pectin
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoon ground all spice
- 2 teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon butter
Instructions
- Chop cranberries and place into Dutch oven with thawed strawberries, spices and pectin.
- Start the water bath canner to get the water up to temperature.
- Prepare the jars, seals, bands and towel to process jars.
- Over medium heat, bring the cranberry mixture to a rolling boil, that you cannot stir down.
- Add the sugar and stir inwell and over medium heat, stir to keep from burning.
- Bringt he cranberry mixture up to a rolling boil that you cannot stir down and let it boil for 1 minute.
- Remove from heat and start to fill the jars with your jam.
- With a plastic ladle and funnel, fill the jars, leaving 1/4" headspace.
- Take a clean wet towel and clean the rim of the jars.
- Place the seal on the jar and hand tighten the band.
- Place the jar into a water bath and process the jars for 10 minutes. Let the jars sit for 5 minutes in the water before removing.
- Put the jars on a towel and cover with another towel and allow the jars to cool slowly.
- Be sure to date and label the jars.
Video
Turned out perfect.
I’m so happy for you! Thanks for letting me know.
Made this for Christmas gifts! It’s full of flavor
That is a wonderful idea. You have lucky friends/family!