Raspberry Extravaganza
I’ve had so much fun this weekend, I hardly know where to start! So, let’s start at the very beginning. A very good place to start. When you read you begin with A-B-C. When you “can” you begin with … getting the ingredients. In this case, it was raspberry picking in my friend’s backyard!
I spent about 1.5 hours in quiet solitude, with their golden lab, Bailey, running by occasionally, and listening to the quiet sounds of nature and nearby traffic. It was lovely and exactly what I needed after a hectic week of learning-on-the-job. She had some baskets (I didn’t think to bring mine) and recommended I wear a belt to attach them and keep my hands free for picking. I filled two of the three, which worked out to approx 16 cups 🙂 I made one batch of jam and froze the rest on baking sheets, and then transferred them to freezer bags. I’m hoping to go again next weekend with my sister.
I also found a great resource with photos at Pick Your Own »
Raspberry Jam
- 3½ cups raspberries, crushed one layer at a time (it will look like red soup with lots of seeds)
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 4 cups sugar
- 1 pouch liquid CERTO (i.e. pectin)
This recipe yielded 7 cups. Be sure to prepare the sterilized jars, rings and lids in advance (250 mL is ideal for jam or or 125 mL if they are gifts) and don’t forget to include the ladle and funnel (note to self)!
- Add fruit, lemon juice and sugar. Bring to a rolling boil. Boil for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
- Add in CERTO and stir for 5 min. Skim foam, if necessary and for the raspberries it was much more so than the peaches. This steps ensures the fruit (or in this case, seeds) are evenly distributed.
- Fill hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Add lids/rings and process for 10 minutes in a water bath.
It was much runnier than usual and I was worried I had made raspberry sauce instead. I thought it was because I reduced the volume of sugar down from the original recipe but it set once it had cooled. I love the tart flavour of raspberries and didn’t want to make coloured sugar jelly and all the recipes I found online only called for 4 cups. Needless to say, it’s been two days since I made it and I already finished ½ cup … practically eating it by the spoonful!
