Small Batch Strawberry Jam

Last weekend at the farmers market I scored a half flat of beautiful organic strawberries for $10, half price. Yes please! If I wasn't completely crazy I would have bought two! But we struggle to finish our usual three pints per week. I know, I have become incredibly spoiled in regards to strawberries since moving to California.

Strawberries ready to macerate!

So, since my freezer is full (and unless you make tons of smoothies, which I don't, what does one do with pounds of frozen strawberries?) I decided to make jam! It's something I've been considering for a while. I hadn't made jam since before I moved to California, and never on my own. But I don't eat a lot of jam (and neither does my husband or daughter) and I have few friends and no family here to pawn it off to. So after I talked myself out of the idea all together two things happened: 1) I got extra berries and 2) I found Food In Jar's small batch strawberry vanilla jam. Yes! I don't need dozens of jars, just a few. Perfect. So I got to work.

So steamy!

Water baths make me nervous

I didn't make too many changes to the recipe, though I started to get nervous after 20 or so minutes at 212 degrees. I thought I was smelling burning but it was either my imagination or splatters hitting the hot stove. I didn't get quite 3 pints either. One was a tad short, but that's okay. I'll eat it first!

Oh, and then this happened.

I can blame the loads of strawberries I still have, or maybe it was an excuse to finish off the last of the hot fudge my brother made when he was visiting (someday I might share some with you!). It was delicious, of course.