We are smack dab in the middle of harvest time! Most years, I stick with raspberry and strawberry freezer jam. But this year, I got a hankering for peach jam. This is a step-by-step tutorial on how to make it. I have lots of photos...
I bought 8 large peaches for 2 batches of jam. You need 3 cups of prepared fruit for each batch. Wash 14 cups-worth of jars, 8, 12 or 16 ounces each. The recipe says it makes 6 cups of jam, but I got 7 out of each batch. Assemble all the equipment you will need before you start.
For peeling the peaches, put a large pot of water on to boil. I found this "steamer" pot at an estate sale this past month, but any large pot works just fine. Run a sink full of cold water. Immerse 3-4 peaches at a time, into the boiling water for 3 minutes. Working quickly, remove the peaches from the boiling water and drop into the cold water. (They can stay there until you peel them.)
When all your peaches are in the cold water, dump out the how water--you will not longer need it. The peaches in the cold water will peel amazingly well.
I find that the best peaches for canning and jam making are the ones oftentimes referred to as "clings". "Freestone" peaches are much easier to break away from the pit, but not nearly as juicy and sweet. I tried a few pieces of these and they were almost like candy!
To peel a peach, slide the tip of a small knife between the skin and the flesh. You will see that it comes away easily and the skin can be removed, with the help of your knife, without leaving any on the peach.
(BTW: This technique is the same for canning peaches and tomatoes.)
Slice the fruit from the pit and then roughly chop each slice into chunks. I found that 3 1/2 peaches made about 3 cups of fruit.
With a potato or burger masher, smash the chunks of peach as finely as you like (I like a few chunks in my jam).
If you want your peach (and apricot) jam to stay nice and summer-colored, and not brown as it ages, add 1/2 tsp of Fruit Fresh for each cup of mashed fruit (a trick my Mama taught me!). Also, to ensure that the jam jells properly, I find that the juice of a whole lime - not lemon, and not the
prepared juice in a squeeze bottle! - works best to insure a nice thickness and jell to your jams. Peaches and apricots do not have sufficient acid or pectin in them to jell up without this additional help. My Nana made amazing freezer jam, but without this particular bit of knowledge, her peach and apricot jams were always very runny --but so good, we never complained!
Now, under most circumstances, I would tell you to find the recipe for this and other jams and jellies in the Sure Jell box. However, I just discovered yesterday, that the company has decided to go modern and tell people to find the recipe on-line. I am not old fashioned (I don't think), but that really pissed me off! The last thing a cook wants to do is stop everything and pull out their computer just to refer to the
recipe-- at least that is how this cook feels!
I do not know if MCP pectin still puts the reference and recipe sheet in their boxes. But I am fortunate to have kept some from previous years..so we are all benefiting from that today!
Put 4 1/2 cups of sugar into a big bowl. Dump the mashed peaches into the bowl and mix well. I did both batches at the same time, essentially, so do the second batch in another bowl. You will find that the mixture is very sugary and grainy.
The recipe says to let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes to allow the sugar to dissolve. I find it best to let it sit at least an hour. Stir the mixture often. This makes such a difference in your jam!
Of all the things I did not photograph, it was this next step:
In a small sauce pan, mix one package of Sure Jell with 3/4 cup of water. It may start out lumpy, but as you heat it up, it will smooth out. Bring it to a boil and boil exactly 1 minute. Immediately pour into the peaches and stir for EXACTLY 3 minutes....this is very tiring! But worth it.
Using a funnel, pour into clean jars. Leave about 1/2 inch of headspace to allow for expansion during freezing. Top with used lids (I save all mine from the previous year--except the ones on the salsa, as they smell like..well..salsa). You do not
particularly need new lids. I recycle everything I can. You can see here all the different dates and labels. I will use a Magic Eraser and they come clean--then write the new info on the lid! Voila!
Let your jam sit out on the counter for 24 hours and then put in the freezer.
You have successfully made a lovely batch of summer in a jar, to enjoy with your toast on cold winter mornings!
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