Home Grown Blueberry Jam

Guys, God gave me a gift.

Half my backyard is completely littered with blueberries! I have never been so excited!

I knew the lot had a small blueberry patch on it when we bought it - beside a Maple a few feet back, there was a small bush. I was super excited about that bush! I also knew a few sprigs would grow along the side driveway that leads back to my in-laws' house, and quite a few in the front ditch, but those always got picked over by birds and other critters pretty early on, so I never had many hopes of getting to them, but the thought of being able to nab a handful for a snack was pretty exciting.

Last year was what I thought was the "golden year". I was able to pick about two cups' worth, and made blueberry muffins! I was so proud of my little home grown muffins... until this year, the first real year the backyard had been clear cut of all scraggily old trees, and the overgrown weeds cut back. The blueberry growth just exploded! It now ranges from the back of the house, in an L shape about 10 feet wide. It's spectacular! My house, which was always my most prized possession, is now worth it's weight in gold to me.

So. Many. Blueberries! And they are HUGE!

That was my collection after only 20 minutes of picking.

For the past two weeks or so, I've been taking about 20 minutes a day, going out and scooping up some berries. and freezing them. When I have the time, I thaw them and clean out the green, un-ripe berries, leaves and twigs, wash them, and get them prepped for cooking. It works out perfectly, because the berry growth has been really staggered this year. When there's ripe ones, there's about 10 un-ripe ones right behind it, so it makes for perfect, un-rushed picking.

I'm nearing about the end of my supply this year, there are more bare branches than leftover blueberries, and ones waiting to ripen. I never like to take them all, I always leave plenty for the birds and animals, to give back to nature as a thank you for the wonderful gift of blueberries I've been given.

I wanted the lovely taste of summer to go on well into the Winter, and also share my little patch of heaven with friends, since I had so many. So, instead of drowning in muffins, I decided to make Blueberry Jam:

Ingredients:

4 Cups Blueberries
3 1/2 Cups Sugar

Directions: 

1. Put a plate in the freezer to allow to chill. With a potato masher, mash up about 1 cup of berries in a medium heavy saucepan.
2. Add the remaining 3 cups of berries and add in 1/2 cup water; allow to come to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to break up any clumps, until the berries are soft, about 5 minutes or so.
3. Slowly stir sugar into saucepan, adding gradually; once all the sugar is added, let the mixture return to a simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to medium-low; cook at a slow boil until thickened, 45 minutes to 1 hour. To test for doneness, drop a small amount of jam onto the chilled plate; it should wrinkle when pressed around with your finger.
   
   
   
   

   

   
   

After that, you can spoon your fresh jam into mason jars, but be careful, its HOT! I found my batch sealed extremely well, because of the heat of the jam. Sealing jars is a post all on its own, would anyone like me to work on that next?

I hope your summer has been super sweet!

xoxo - Court