Strawberry Freezer Jam

Sorry I was absent this past weekend.  My family came in to town to surprise me on my Birthday.  It was a ton of fun.  My Mom even restocked my freezer with Strawberry Jam.  I know what you are thinking, Strawberries are not in season.  Well thanks to the global marketplace, Strawberries are always in season.  Granted they are not in season, but they were so perfect looking I had to pick up a couple of pounds.  Plus, my Mom was in town and I love her Strawberry Jam.  So March strawberries had to do.

Once container of the jam lasts about 3 weeks in the refrigerator, but in reality it is eaten in a couple of days.

Strawberry Freezer Jam – (from Sure Jell)

• 1lb Strawberries (2 quarts)
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 box pectin (1.75 oz box)
  
• 6 – 1 cup plastic containers with tight fitting lids – (Ball makes perfect 1 cup freezer jars with screw on lids.)
  

The first step is to wash the plastic containers to make sure that they are clean.

Wash the strawberries and remove the stems.

Place the strawberries in a blender or food processor and crush the fruit.  My family enjoys smooth jam so we puree the strawberries.  If you like the jam chunky, lightly crush the strawberries in the food processor.

After crushing the strawberries, measure them to get exactly 2 cups of crushed strawberries.  1 lb should be perfect, but each batch of strawberries is slightly different.  Place the crushed strawberries into a bowl.

Add the 4 cups of sugar to the 2 cups of strawberries and stir.  Let the strawberries sit for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the strawberries are sitting, in a sauce pan add 1 box of pectin to 3/4 cup of water.  Constantly stirring, bring the pectin mixture to a boil.  When it reaches a boil, start the timer for one minute.  Make sure to constantly stir the mixture.  When the minute is up, remove the mixture from the heat.

Add the pectin mixture to the bowl of strawberries.  Stir the mixture for 3-4 minutes or until all of the sugar is dissolved.  If you see grains of sugar, continue to stir.

When all of the sugar is dissolved, pour the mixture into the six containers.  Make sure to leave a half inch gap at the top to allow for expansion.  I find that using a funnel helps to fill the jars without getting the Jam all over the place.  Once the jam is evenly distributed, add the lids to the containers.  Let the jam sit at room temperature for 24 hours so that it sets.  Then place the jam in the refrigerator for 3 weeks or in the freezer for up to a year.

You can refrigerate opened jars of jam for up to three weeks.

I would like to thank my parents for helping me out with this one.  Thanks Mom and Dad.