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Canning food at home can be an intimidating process, what with that whole fear of death from a spoiled batch.
Luckily, the freezer offers a fast, easy and fear-free form of canning homemade jams that anyone can handle.
Unlike traditional canning (in which jars of food are submerged in boiling water to create a seal and kill off dangerous bacteria), freezer canning does not produce shelf-stable foods. In other words, they must be refrigerated or frozen.
But that's a small price for the pleasure of opening a jar of delicious, inexpensive and fresh-tasting jam in winter.
Here's how it works:
When making jams using traditional canning, fruit, sugar, acid (usually lemon juice) and pectin (a natural gelling agent) are cooked together, ladled into jars, then boiled for set times.
Freezer jam takes a shortcut. In its simplest form, fruit is chopped or crushed, then mixed with sugar and special freezer pectin (widely available at grocers).
Then, the fruit is jarred and frozen. As needed, the jars can be moved to the refrigerator, where they will thaw into a thick jam. In the freezer, the jams keep for a year. Thawed, they last about three weeks in the refrigerator.
Because freezer jams don't rely on a careful balance of sugar and acidity to remain safe (as traditionally canned foods do), there is plenty of room for improvisation in terms of flavorings and blends.
Freezer jams can be cooked or raw. Uncooked freezer jams taste strongly of fresh fruit.
These recipes for peach-mango and blueberry-lemon cooked freezer jams are easy and incredibly flavorful. Strawberries, raspberries and kiwi also would work.
The only special equipment needed are containers to store the jam in. The containers must hold up well in the freezer. Canning supply companies sell special plastic freezer lids that fit traditional glass canning jars.
Peach-Mango Freezer Jam
Makes about 5 (8-ounce) jars.
1 large mango, peeled, pitted and diced
4 medium peaches, pitted and diced (peaches also can be peeled, if desired)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 package (1.59 ounces) freezer pectin
To make jam: In large saucepan, combine mango, peaches, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and ginger. Set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. (Note: At first, it will seem as though there is not enough liquid; this is normal.) Reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, for 8 to 10 minutes or until fruit is very soft and broken down. Remove from heat. Cool until just barely warm.
To freeze jam: Mix in pectin. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Ladle jam into jars. Cover tightly. Leave at room temperature for 30 minutes. Freeze until needed.
Blueberry-Lemon Freezer Jam
Makes about 5 (8-ounce) jars.
6 cups fresh blueberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 package (1.59 ounces) freezer pectin
To make jam: In large saucepan, combine blueberries, sugar and lemon juice. Set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. (Note: At first, it will seem as though there is not enough liquid; this is normal.) Reduce heat to medium. Cook until berries have mostly popped and jam is very liquid and dark blue. Remove from heat. Cool until just barely warm.
To freeze jam: Mix in pectin. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Ladle jam into jars. Cover tightly. Leave at room temperature for 30 minutes. Freeze until needed.
