Over Labor Day weekend, our younger daughter made blueberry jam and our older daughter decided to make her own peanut butter. These easy recipes are great for a quick project, unlike the long pectin required jelly making weekends of my youth. Both are small batch, meaning they make about 1 cup – so if you use 4 oz jars you can make a jar for yourself and a jar to give – or store them both in the fridge. We like the good old Ball Brand Jars – but we usually swap out the lids for one piece style –
Jelly/ Jam
- 2 cups fresh or frozen fruit – grapes and berries work best – we make blueberry
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1–2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup (only if needed)
- Heat fruit in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the fruit is heated through and begins to break down and bubble. Use a spoon or potato masher to mash the fruit to your desired consistency. Stir in Chia seeds and lemon juice until combined – then taste and stir in 1-2 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup , if needed, Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Jam thickens as it cools. Makes about 1 cup. store in the fridge or freezer.
Peanut Butter
Use 2 cups of peanuts – dry roasted, honey roasted, salted or plain, your choice
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Place the peanuts in a food processor.Process until very smooth, stopping every 30 seconds to 1 minute to give the food processor’s motor a break. The mixture will be chunky at first. Then, it’ll thicken into a ball, and finally, with patience -it will become creamy and smooth. The whole process should take about 10 minutes.
Makes about 1 cup.
