It’s the taste of summer in spreadable form.
Most days of the week I am a healthy breakfast eater: egg whites with spinach, whole grain cereal and almond milk, or some sort of homemade smoothie. However, when I go out to breakfast and splurge two things are key: do they have good bread for toast and do they have jam? For those of you that like grape jelly, that’s fine. For me, I want jam with chunks of fruit and lots of flavor. So, when I can make my own at home (and quickly), I can’t wait for the weekend and a breakfast worthy of indulgence.
To learn more about this recipe, originally published in August 2016, keep reading.
I have made many batches of jams- blueberry and strawberry among my favorites. There’s nothing quite like picking the fruit at a local farm and coming home for a day of cooking and canning. My husband and I have spent several summer afternoons partaking in this culinary fun. Of course, as anyone who’s done it knows, it also can be a long day with prepping the jars and cleaning the mess.
Over the past couple summers my husband and I haven’t been canning. Our weekends have been filled with different activities, and with only one little chick in the nest, there wasn’t as big of a need for a store of canned goods in our basement. However, I do miss the product of our work fairly often.
I wondered recently if it would be possible to make a small batch of jam that wouldn’t require the canning process. Since it would be a smaller batch, could I make it without needing to use pectin? With a little help from an internet search, I discovered some tips and tricks that helped create today’s recipe.
This jam was so simple to make and was utterly delicious. I personally am a huge fan of apricot jam and found it to be irresistible on a piece of toast. I was able to make a batch in less than 30 minutes, if you don’t count waiting and cooling times. To me that’s a no-brainer. For jam this delicious, it’s worth the effort.
- 1 lb. apricots, diced
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 green apple
- 1/2 Tb. lemon juice
- Combine apricots and sugar in a medium saucepot; let stand for 1 hour.
- Grate apple.
- Add apple and lemon juice to apricots, and stir.
- Turn heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
- Once boiling reduce heat to a simmer.
- Stir occasionally for 15-20 minutes or until jam has thickened.
- Remove from heat, and cool completely.
- Transfer to storage container, and refrigerate for up to 30 days.
