Berry Crush Jam
Do you also have an assortment of berries in your fridge that are 15 minutes away from turning?? Perfect! This berry crush jam comes together in a half hour and makes magic on everything from toast to crackers.
We have my 7 year old to thank for the name. She was the excellent sous chef that used a real, big girl paring knife to slice the strawberries and blackberries! After a good 20 minute lesson on how to cut, where to cut, and many many reminders to move slowly, she was off and running. And as they began to cook down with the sugar, she wielded that potato masher like a pro. “Mama, it’s a berry crush jam! Cuz the berries get CRUSHED!”
Indeed.
She took over not long after I started the slicing and I just coached her from there. Now that I think about it, she only cut out when the jam really started to splatter towards the end, as most jams do. I don’t blame her. I didn’t enjoy getting splatted with boiling jam.
In the end, my picky eater didn’t try any of her appropriately named berry crush jam, but she almost did. We had a long conversation about what heat does to food, since she just couldn’t figure out how all those differently shaped berries turned into a purple slop.
Her words, not mine. “Mama, the strawberries are hot pink, the blueberries are blue, and the blackberries are black. What the heck??” So then we discussed the color wheel. All in all, a very good learning experience for the girl and an even better, more rewarding experience for me.
But seriously, this jam is so easy, my 7 year old made it. If you’re a beginner with making jam, this is a good place to start. No added pectin, and the only thing needed to prep the fruit is to halve the bigger strawberries and blackberries. Add the sugar and lemon juice/zest, and just cook over medium heat until everything sets.
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Berry Crush Jam
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 2 pints 1x
- Category: Condiments
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Description
This quick jam is bursting with fresh berry flavor!
Ingredients
- 8 oz strawberries, washed
- 6 oz raspberries, washed
- 6 oz blackberries, washed
- 1/2 pint blueberries, washed
- 3/4 cup sugar
- zest from 1/2 lemon
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Combine the berries and sugar in a medium/large saucepan and allow to set for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to macerate the berries and sugar together. After 10 minutes, place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Add the lemon zest and juice, and reduce heat to medium low.
- Cook the berries down for about 20-25 minutes, using a wooden spoon or a potato masher to break the fruit down further as it cooks.
- After about 20 minutes, the jam should be close to set. Take one of the small plates from the freezer and set a teaspoon of hot jam on top. Refrigerate the plate for a minute, and then check to see if the teaspoon of jam wrinkles when pushed with your finger. It should also stay in one place when you tilt the plate. If not, continue cooking for another couple minutes and retest with another cold plate.
- Once the jam has set, add to clean half pint (makes 4) or pint jars (makes 2) and seal the lids. If using a water bath to preserve, process in a rolling boil for 20 minutes (pints) or 15 minutes (half pints.) See notes about cook time.
Equipment
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The time needed for water bath processing is not included in the cook time displayed on the recipe card. You need to add an additional 15-20 minutes if canning.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 TB
- Calories: 26
- Sugar: 5.7 g
- Sodium: 0.2 mg
- Fat: 0.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 6.5 g
- Fiber: 0.7 g
- Protein: 0.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
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