Small-Batch Strawberry Jam – Lower Sugar, Big Taste

I’m just going to be upfront about a ridiculous secret I’ve been harboring. Ok, here goes. My kids are great but…they are jam snobs. There! I said it.

Isn’t that wild? My boys will not eat most store bought jams. They whine. They turn up their noses. Perfectly good toast goes to waste. It’s my own fault, really, because I’ve been making jam at home for a couple years now. It’s just so easy and the taste is soooo much better than a jar that’s been sitting on a grocery shelf for who knows how long. My sister once said the flavor was so intense (in a good way) that it was like eating a Fruit Roll-Up. I guess I can take that as a compliment?

The problem with jams (homemade and store bought) is the sugar content.  Many recipes call for as much as 2 cups of sugar per pint of strawberries. Wooee! Isn’t that just strawberry flavored sugar at that point?

I know there is a reason behind the high sugar content of the old fashioned recipes I’ve seen. My grandma told me that the sugar helps the jam gel up and hold together (and I wouldn’t dare call her a liar) BUT I’ve successfully made jam with way less sugar. Is my recipe as thick as the original 2 cup sugar recipe? Probably not. But it is spreadable and you could seriously eat it straight out of the jar. Not that I’ve done that….much. Ahem. Moving on!

Benefits of Making Your Own Jam

Why make your own jam at home? It’s aaaaamazing, you are in control of your ingredients (which I love), and it can save you money.

How much you can save depends on pricing in your area but for my midwest, suburbanite self, a popular store brand of organic strawberry jam costs $6. I like to buy organic for this because they use sugar instead of High Fructose Corn Syrup. My regular strawberries cost $2.99, the lemon was $0.30, and the sugar was about $0.35 for a grand total of $3.64. My total savings was $2.36 per batch. Not too shabby!

I know it’s not a true cost comparison since I didn’t use organic strawberries but since I made it myself, I know that my ingredients are of higher quality than what the jam company might have used.

Getting Started

Let’s make a jam snob out of you too!

Place small plate in freezer. You will use this to test if the jam is gelled enough.

Optional: Zest half a medium lemon into a pot on Medium heat (some people zest the whole lemon but I find it to be too strong).

Dissolve 3/4 cup sugar with the juice of whole lemon.

Add hulled and halved strawberries.

Cook for about 20 minutes. The berries will soften and break down as they cook, releasing juice into the pot.

Once the berries are really soft, smash with a potato masher. Cook 5 more minutes.

Test if jam is done by placing small dollop on cold plate from freezer. I usually test by tipping the fully cooled bit of jam and seeing if it is still really runny. If jam is still very thin, cook for 5 more minutes and retest. Repeat as needed.

Once thick enough, let cool about 15 minutes before adding jam to your jar of choice. It will thicken a bit more after cooling completely. Can be stored about a month in the fridge but ours doesn’t usually last that long!