Jam today!
Posted by Peter
August 19, 2009
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Last year, my partner and I discovered a load of paths in the north east of Edinburgh, close to where we live, on the path of old railway lines that ran into Leith Central station. This was about late July and we noticed lots of blackberries (brambles in Scotland and the north of England) ready to ripen.
A couple of weeks later we went back and picked a load and I made blackberry jam. I found the recipe by good ol’ google and followed the low sugar recipe from parkgateshrimp on this Good Housekeeping forum. The jam was lovely, but a bit runny as there wasn’t enough pectin in the sugar and fruit.
This year I thought I’d have another go. I picked 9lbs of brambles on Saturday (ended up covered in nettle stings and pricked everywhere). And on Sunday I invested in a jam thermometer, jam funnel and some preserving sugar set to work. I made 4 and-a-half kilos of jam and this time added cooking apples – including keeping the core and skins and chopping them up and putting them in a muslin which I left in the cooking jam to add yet more pectin. I was even hanging over the saucepans to make sure the jam reached 105 degrees Celsius. And it’s still runny!
Looks like I’ll be back on them paths next August to see if I can get the flippin’ jam to set…
3 comments Categories: about us
August 20th, 2009 at 8:16 pm
I haven’t made jam since school, when I made a ludicrous amount of really yummy plum jam in class. I have no tips for unrunniness, though.
August 23rd, 2009 at 3:58 pm
lemon juice in the jam increases the pectin, and simmer it for longer – you could still do this. Keep a plate in the freezer and drop a small amount of jam on it to see if it sets.
September 17th, 2009 at 11:39 am
Use jam sugar, not preserving sugar. Jam sugar has added pectin, but preserving sugar doesn’t (I speak from bitter experience…)