The taste of summer all year round...
One of my wife's clients recently gave us a case of peaches, and since there was no way were going to eat them all, I decided to can some just as sliced peaches, and to make some jam with the rest. In this post, I will go over the process and recipe I used to accomplish this awesome feat of human ingenuity.
Recipe:
4 Cups peeled and crushed peaches
1/4 Cup lemon juice
7 Cups sugar
1 Pack of fruit pectin powder
Sterilize, by boiling, your jars, rings, and lids, then hold at simmering temperature.
Blanching and peeling...
The first step in making the jam is to blanch and peel the peaches. To do this, fill a large pot and set it to boil. While waiting for the water to boil, get a large bowl and fill it with cold water and ice. Take a knife and make an "X" cut on the bottom of the peaches. This makes it easier to grab a section to peel later. After the water is boiling, take the peaches you want to peel, and place them in the boiling water for about thirty seconds, then remove them with a slotted spoon and place them into the ice water bath to stop them from cooking. Remove them from the ice water, and set them out to dry. After the peaches have had a chance to dry, take a spoon, or knife, and grab a section of the "X" you cut into the peaches earlier, then peel the skin off. It should remove easily at this point. Cut the peaches in half, and remove the pit, then place them into a bowl for crushing.
Mash it up!
Using a potato masher or fork, smash the peaches into a chunky paste that suits the consistency of the jam you want to have, then place four cups in a saucepan.
Add the ingredients, minus the fruit pectin, and bring it a boil...
After bringing to a boil, add the pectin and stir for one minute exactly. Then remove from heat.
Using a funnel and ladle, fill seven, one pint jars to within a half inch of the top of the jar. Using a clean towel, or paper towel, clean the rims of the jars. Remove the lids from the simmering water, and without touching the inside, place them on the jars. Place and hand tighten the rings.
Place the jars into a pot that can cover them with at least two inches of water above the top of the jars. Fill with water to two inches above the jar and bring it to a boil. Boil for at least ten minutes, depending on the altitude you live at, then remove the jars with a pair of canning tongs and place them on a dry towel to avoid cracking the jars. If the canning process is done correctly, after the jars cool, the lids will be concave in appearance. Shelf life is about eighteen months, but can be up to two years or more. As always, when opening something canned at home, inspect the jar for leaks, appearance and smell before eating, but if done right, this peach jam will bring the taste of summer to your home all year round!
As always, thank you for reading!
