Thursday 29 December 2011

Homemade Cranberry Jam

This is my first attempt at making jam of any kind. I bought a bag of cranberries 2 weeks ago and they are positively unfit to eat- sour, bitter and unripe. I don't want to waste them, so off I went to see a good friend of mine- Mr Google. He introduced me to recipes of cranberry sauces, cranberry jelly and cranberry jam, after weighing my options, and also weighing the contents I have in my refrigerator, I've settled for the simplest of cranberry jam from Food in Jars. All I need is cranberries, apple cider vinegar, sugar and lemon (I don't have lemons but I have some limes, turns out I don't need them after all)

I didn't follow the recipe exactly since I didn't have a whole pound of cranberries, just a bag. I experimented with half a bag of berries, guestimate the cider and sugar (half a cup cider and half a cup of sugar), some water and put it on the stove to cook on low heat. They made a nice popping sound when they burst, other than stirring occasionally, I just let the whole mixture cook till thick and the liquid almost evaporated. It shouldn't take more than 10-15 minutes. My family members all turned up their noses at the sharp apple cider scent, I have asked my dad to taste some but he refused, he said he prefer to eat his 'Longan berry'. Unsupportive at all.

I poured it into a mug and let it cool in the fridge, the next day we made some toast, spread it with butter and my homemade cranberry jam. It was rather nice actually, and it taste like jam! Woots! My dad still refuse to try it though. The verdict, all is good except for the too sharp cider scent, maybe I would use less of it next time, or dilute it with more water. Perhaps I could replace it with other milder vinegar ( don't take my word for it, I'm still experimenting) If you want the exact recipe, go to Food in Jars for it. The link is embedded, just click.

Brightly colored cranberries

Before boiling

Toast with butter and jam

Its yummy!

3 comments:

  1. om nom nom, homemade jams are the best ones :) It looks like you did a good job with yours, the pictures are tempting me to go check what's in my fridge :D

    Hehe, your dad not wanting to taste is funny :D Take it as you have all the yumminess for yourself ;)) My dad always tastes everything I make but rarely says anything good (nor bad) about it. That might be worse than not tasting at all. He never praises my mom either even though she's excellent cook so I don't take it personally. :D

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  2. aiyak...should have done that with my pack of blue berries the other day..it was sour too

    Happy New Year to you and your family. Keep blogging!

    kathy
    http://www.smallkucing.com
    http://mamakucingbooks.blogspot.com

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  3. Molly: I think this is rather successful especially on my first attempt. I might try some other fruits to make jam. It'll be lovely if I have an oven too so I can make jam buns or tarts with the jam as filling.

    My dad would try a little of what I made but somehow he feels put off by the sharp apple cider scent while it was simmering. I think it turned out pretty well after its cooled down. Maybe I would try to persuade him to try some... LOL.

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