Raspberry & apple jam

Hot on the heels of my SHF contribution of apricot & roast pistachio jam, here’s what I claim to be this summer’s jam surprise. Now, I always say I find raspberries to be among the most perfect of fruits and simply love their cute looks but also their juiciness and fresh taste, which for me has just the right balance of sweetness and acidity. I didn’t want to make plain raspberry jam, however, as I had just brought home two jars of my Mum’s, and the only other fruit I had at home in abundance was apple – so apple it was.
Adding apples to your jam has one obvious advantage: they contain loads of pectin (in fact, the pectin you can buy in store, be it in its powdered or liquid form, is usually gained from apples) so you’re adding a natural jelling agent to your jam. Of course, it is possible to make perfectly good jam without adding any jelling agents whatsoever, but I like my jam thick and onctuous so I’d always end up cooking the jam for quite a long time until all the liquid of the fruit has evaporated. This does bring out the flavours even more, I find, but what you gain in taste, you lose out on colour. With the addition of the apple, I found that my jam thickened more quickly than usual and the jam turned out to be the brightest, liveliest pink and wonderfully glossy… a beauty to behold, just as the main ingredient!
The apples and a pinch of cinnamon also evoke childhood memories – there’s no specific experience attached to it, but this combination of flavours is a real heartwarmer for me: apple strudel, apple purée, apple compote, apple pie – all these dishes I used to love as a child but don’t make nearly often enough anymore… I’ve never tried a cinnamon and apple jam, but maybe that’s what I should make next!

How to sterilise jam jars:
If you, like me, like to use and re-use your jam jars, wash them thoroughly once empty. While you make a new load of jam, put a massive pot of (filtered) water with a generous splash of (white) malt vinegar to the boil in which you "cook" the jars and lids for ca. 10 minutes. Carefully remove them from the water, turning them upside down to make sure all the water's gone.
Place glasses and lids on a baking tray (opening facing up) and dry in the oven (fan @ 100C) for at least 15 minutes until fully dried. Avoid drying them with a towel as this might transfer new germs and other impurities into your neatly sterilised jars.
Pour in the jam while the glasses and lids are still hot, leave them to cool by placing them on your worktop with the lids down, this will help seal them properly.

Raspberry & apple jam
(yields 6 medium jars)

600 g raspberries
300 g apples (peeled and cored)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
450 g jam sugar (with added pectin and citric acid)

Cut the apples in eigths, then slice thinly (ca. 2-3 mm).
Fill a heavy-based, non-stick pot with the raspberries, top with the apples, then add the sugar and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, but do not stir until the raspberries start giving off some of their juice. As soon as the mixture is boiling, take down the heat to continue cooking the fruit with a gentle simmer.
Cook for 40 - 50 minutes, depending on how thick you like your jam, stirring constantly.
While still hot, fill into seterilised jars, close the lid tightly and leave to cool standing upside down.

Comments

[angelika]

Well, after having filled 41 jars with my sugo di pomodori e basilico right today I need a little break regarding canning, but the marriage of raspberries and apples is so stunning that I will have to try this. D'arbo sells a raspberry rhubarb jam which is among my favorites. Hope everything is fine with You and yours....

[Andrew]

Wow great photo - cant be arsed myself to make jam far too girly (I'll just have to nick a jar or two of yours!) :-0

[jenjen]

raspberry jam has to be one of my favourites and this addition of apples makes it even more appealing. And that photo is food porn at its best!

[Dianka]

Your jam looks delicious! Great picture!

[Niki]

Hi! I keep meaning to tell you that I'm going to be in London in just over a month! My choir's touring Europe again (Italy, Switzerland & UK) and we're doing some performances in London - a service at Westminster Abbey and a concert at King's College Chapel (London) as well as Cambridge and Ely Cathedral. We're very excited, and looking forward to some good food everywhere we go!

[Scott]

The jam picture grabbed me straight away - I just love home made jam with crusty bread - so very English!
I just wanted to mention my alternative method of steralization (which I quote on my site as being the most easy) - see what you think to it.
Simply fill a jar with water. Put it in the microwave for 10 minutes (longer wont hurt anything - I often leave them till the water has evaporated), remove and drain the water.
In the mean time pour some kettle boiled water over the lid to steralise.
Put the jam / chutney / pickle in the jar when still hot, and it should keep for up to a year in tip top condition.

Hope this is of some use to somebody!

[johanna]

thanks for sharing this, scott, it is defininitely a timesaver!
I've only acquired a microwave 3 years ago and there are definitely lots of people out there who still need to rely on the old jars-in-a-pot-on-the-stove method, fiddly as it may be ;-)

[Gizella]

your raspberry-apple jam looks definitely attractive! The jars you've seen on my site are filled with plum-jams - one is with caramelized sugar and the other is a nature one, with a little sugar.

[peabody]

That looks amazing.

[A.]

Looks yummy. I plan to make it for an online "jam swap" at www.underthehighchair.com. I fell in love with an cran-apple jelly this past year, but my husband love raspberries so I'm hoping this will be our new fav!

[ali]

Hey..would like to make that jam. Does it have to be jam sugar? How long will it keep...looks fabulous!

[johanna]

Hi Ali,

it does not have to be jam sugar, you can use regular granulated sugar. the difference being that theres no added pectin in granulated sugar, but then raspberries (seeds) and apple have very high amounts of pectin themselves, so you will be absolutely fine. when i made it, jam sugar was the only thing at hand.

how long it will keep depends mostly on your jars - if you sterlise them properly and their lids are tight-fitting, they might keep for years... i have had some that were three years old. as soon as you open them, keep in the fridge to prolong shelf-life... again, depending on how tight your lids are, they might keep for months.

i hope this helps

johanna

[Petra Hinds]

Thank you. I just made this and it is delish. I can't see it lasting more than a couple of weeks.