Strawberry jam

Strawberry Jam

By Mark Fitzgerald

A special treat of my childhood was some strawberry jam on one of her pancakes, which she used to give us when we ran errands for her.

As the saints entered the rocky mountains in late June and early July wild strawberries would have just been ripening.  They would have likely eaten them as a treat rather than make jam.  In later years strawberries would have been grown in the valley.  I wonder if they had as many problems with the deer eating strawberries as much as I did.

This recipe is from my Grandmother and does not use pectin.  To get the natural pectin in the fruit to jell you need to boil much longer than other recipes.  The biggest problem is that it is easy to burn if you are not constantly stirring.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces strawberries (frozen or fresh, hulled)
• 1 1/4 cups sugar

Directions

Place berries in a pot and turn on to medium high.  Mash fruit as it heats.  Bring the strawberries to a boil and stir often.  Add sugar to the fruit and boil together until thick; no more than 20 minutes).  Do not let scorch. Pack into clean, hot, sterile jars and seal immediately.

Information

Makes 16 1 tablespoon servings
50 calories per serving