Blackberry Jam - 2025

[HotSun]

It is that magical time of the year, so time to make blackberry jam. We consume an obscene amount of blackberry jam, so it makes sense. I source our blackberries from Milburn Orchards, where we pick our own.

My DD and I picked yesterday and let them rest overnight before processing:

I don't know the dry volume, but it is a bit under 4 kilos (8.8 pounds).

These blackberries are relatively bug-free, for whatever reason, but for good measure I did a vinegar wash and rinse. Then into the food mill:

If you were around last year, I tried (and failed) to use my Kitchen-aid to process this, and ended up shattering the device (no injuries, thankfully). Oops. Food mill is the way to go; 1 mm sieve. I found that one of my pressure cookers worked well to capture the juice.

Next up: cooking and canning.

[HotSun]

Once we had the blackberry juice, it was on to cooking.

• 108 fluid ounces - blackberry juice
• 5 cups blond sugar
• 2.25 Tbsp - Pomona Pectin (different than regular pectic)
• 2 Tbsp + 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2.25 Tbsp calcium water (for the pectin)

Note: The blackberries are not very sweet, thus the higher amount of sugar.

Blended sugar and pectin and set aside. Mixed the lemon juice and calcium water, then mixed into the blackberry juice. Brought liquids to a boil, added sugar, and brought to a boil. Taste-tested and it was good. Here is my DD stirring:



Well, she is not used to cooking anything that takes time and patience, so she walked away waiting for it to return to a boil. Well, it returned to a boil without her. Mistakes were made:



I had to switch burners (the canner was already boiling on the left side). I grumbled something about 'amateur hour', assured DD that I was talking about me, and cleaned the pot so we could continue.

Well, Pomona is a different type of pectin and does not require us to get to a specified temperature before canning, just return to a boil. Well, I forgot that little fact, but after about 10 minutes and stuck at 215F, I checked with Pomona. We are supposed to remove from heat after it starts boiling again. Last year, it came out a little runny (still good). Long story short, we risked overcooking the pectin.

To be concluded....

[HotSun]

Canning the jam involved just a bit of science. Safety is paramount. 1/2 pint jars were washed and put in the oven set at 200 F. This helps prevent thermal shock when adding the hot jam and putting in boiling water. Canning time is 10 minutes, so we don't need to sterilize as we would with shorter times.

We yielded 13.75 jars, so 13 got canned and the remainder in the fridge. I'm guessing we lost almost a full pint on the stovetop, based on experience and the volumes we were using.

Here we are, loaded up and ready to drop in the canner:


I was being called away for other stuff, so I put DD in charge of watching the canner until it boiled, and then setting the timer. She forgot to lower the heat when it got to a boil, but the lid was on and we didn't lose much water.

Here is one of the final results:

This is my family's favorite blackberry jam. I don't think it is anything special, but they love it.

Cost: all ingredients, fuel, and lids, let's say $65 total. That comes to $4.64/jar. I don't know the street value of blackberry jam, but this is probably a little cheaper.

Why do I make it? Well, it's fun to go pick the berries and support a local ag-tourism business. The berries don't get any fresher than this. I get to do something for my family that I enjoy. Also, my DD never canned before, so she learned some of the basics and put some sweat equity in the jam she loves so much.

Now we have to go clean-up the stove before dinner.

[DavidNorcross]

Very nice!

[Jerod Broussard]

Yum yum!

[barelfly]

That jam with the bread SheilaAnn made the other day…..who’s gonna make peanut butter now so we can have a PBJ party!!!

man I bet that jam is outstanding!!!

[HotSun]

barelfly , it's been a while since I've made peanut butter...so...

[SheilaAnn]

I make macadamia nut butter for one of my cookie recipes.

[mrichie1229]

Looks delicious HotSun!

[Texas Larry]

We loaded up on peaches from the Texas hill country last week. We now have several dozen jars of peach preserves in the pantry. Similar process.

[Carolyn]

I am not a fan of eating blackberries, but I think I could jam on that jam. Looks yummy.

[RonB]

That looks like fun times. And I bet your daughter never leaves the pot at the wrong time again.

[HotSun]

Haha, yeah....look at my next post on this thread for the post-script on this.

[HotSun]

Post-script:
This is what I cleaned off the cooktop of the jam that boiled over. Easier than I expected, but it was about a full half-pint jar worth.

Still, happy times.

[Huskee]

I bet the birds will love that!