Blueberry Jam
Edible landscaping.
Growing plants and trees that are beautiful and produce food for our table is brilliant, and I have fully embraced it in my yard.
One of my favorite edibles is the blueberry. The bushes are lovely in the spring and summer and I love the fall color and red twigs in winter. We have them all over our 2 1/2 acres now. They are lining paths and filling in corners and borders.
My favorite blueberry spot is in our front yard by our hammock. I mean, what a small piece of heaven to swing in the hammock and pick a fresh, sun-warmed blueberry. Swing, pick. Swing, pick. Ahhhh.
This was a bountiful year for our blueberries. I ate a lot, froze a lot, made some blueberry muffins and an excellent Port Wine Blueberry Cake.
Recently, after picking my last round of blueberries and after reading a recipe in Real Simple magazine, I was inspired to make blueberry freezer jam. It’s ridiculously good. And, my little addition of some Quailhurst Pinot Port dessert wine put it over the top.
We’re enjoying the jam simply on our sourdough toast, but I’m thinking it would be amazing warmed up and drizzled over waffles or even over a pork roast. Luckily, this recipe will work with fresh or frozen blueberries, so I can try more ideas out with my next batch.
Ingredients List
- 5 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen*)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 Tbsp Port Wine
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
Method
Place 5 cups of blueberries in a food processor and quickly pulse/chop to release juices.
In a medium sauce pan, combine processed blueberries, sugar, port, lemon juice and salt.
Cook mixture over medium-high heat to thicken. Stir occasionally for about 25 minutes.
Remove pan from heat and allow to cool. Pour jam into airtight containers leaving 1/2 inch of space.
The jam can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a month and in the freezer for up to one year.
*If using frozen blueberries, skip the food processor. Instead, cook the frozen berries in the sauce pan for a few minutes. Then mash the berries in the pan before adding remaining ingredients. Cooking time for the jam mixture can be be reduced to 17-19 minutes.
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