Here we are, another variation on Strawberry Jam. It seems that every year, I try something new. Sometimes with lemon and thyme, sometimes with port, sometimes mized with other fruit, always yummy. This year, I decided to add blood orange juice (a little bit of a clean, citrus-y note) and freshly grated ginger. The ginger isn’t overwhelming, just a nice warm after taste. Seriously delicious this time. Perfect for gift giving too.
Ingredients
4 pounds strawberries, thoroughly washed and hulled
1 cup blood orange juice (from 4 blood oranges)
2 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 (1.75-ounce) box low sugar powdered pectin
5 cups sugar
4 teaspoons vodka
You will also need 8 1-cup canning jars
Directions
In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, crush the strawberries with a potato masher, then mix in the blood orange juice. Heat the mixture to a full, rapid boil and cook for about 10 minutes. Add sugar, stirring constantly until incorporated. Return mixture to a full boil and boil for another 15 minutes and then add the ginger. Finally, add the pectin and cook for exactly one minute more. Remove from heat, skim off the foam.
Fill into your prepared jam jars and let cool completely, open. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon of vodka into each jar and swirl to cover the surface layer of jam (this is the final defense against mold starting in your jam jars). Seal tightly and make pretty with a bow or jam cover cloth.
Note: if you want your jam to last longer, please follow standard canning directions, by submerging the jars in boiling water, etc. Frankly, the jam is always gone within a month in my world, and if you keep it in the refrigerator, you don’t need to go through all of that.
