The Median Sib

Last summer I picked blueberries with some other members of my family and froze about 14 pints of them.  Throughout the year I’ve used a pint here and there to make blueberry cobbler.  But now May has arrived - with blueberry picking season just a few weeks away - and I still have 7 or 8 pints  in the freezer.  What to do with them?  Sunday afternoon I decided to continue with my current canning craze and make jam out of them.  Blueberry-orange jam, to be exact.  It’s worth the trouble.  Here’s the recipe:

4 cups mashed blueberries

1 1/2  Tablespoons finely grated orange peel

1/4 cup orange juice

1 package powdered pectin (1.75 oz.)

4 cups sugar

I used a potato masher to mash the blueberries but soon decided that was too slow.  I got an electic hand blender (one of those wand-looking things), and that worked real well.   I measured 4 cups of coarsely blended blueberries into a large pot.  I added the orange peel, orange juice and pectin and brought it to a boil.  I then added the sugar, stirred it, brought it back to a rolling boil and boiled it for another three or four minutes.  Meanwhile in another very large pot I had boiled the jars and lids.  I used 8-ounce and 4-ounce decorative jars.  I ladled the jam into the jars, wiped the rims of the jars and put on the lids.  It made a LOT - next year I’ll do half that.  I then put the jars back into the boiling water and boiled them.  The directions call for 10 minutes of boiling.  I went overboard so I know for certain that everything is sterilized and well sealed and safe to eat.  So I boiled the sealed jars for about 30 minutes.  Folks, that jam is delicious.  The orange kick added to the blueberries is phenomenal. 

P.S. Don’t want to deal with sterilizing jars?  Just wash the jars well, fill with the jam mixture, leaving a half inch at the top, seal, and let stand at room temperature for 24 hours to set.  Them place in freezer until ready to use.

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