100 year old jam recipe, Spiced blackberry apricot jam, spiced plum jam, commercial pectin, brave hearts and kitchen courage, time machine cooking, raw cane sugar, turbinado

Its Jam and Jelly making time. Fruit is everywhere!

This is an ANY FRUIT YOU HAVE  recipe
Its over  one hundred years old.
I also use it for plum jam because my neighbors have a tree and they give me bushels of them.  Most of them are turned into wine but I like to save out  a couple of pounds for jam.

I know some of you jam and jelly makers out there are hooked  on commercial pectin. For You folks... use the ingredients here and follow the instructions on the pectin packet.

For braver souls who are willing to get into the way back time machine and do it like granny did it, here is my favorite jam recipe and directions.

Spiced Blackberry -Apricot Jam

2 cups strained blackberry juice (you can use whole berries but I hate the seeds)
2 cups pitted  quartered apricots
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon butter ( optional to stop foaming)
5 cups sugar  (if you want a truly amazing jam, use turbinado or raw cane suger)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Put all ingredients together in large pot, stir gently and let stand for 1 hour.
2. Bring all ingredients to  a rolling boil, stirring constantly
3. Simmer until the mixture is thick when dropped on a plate

When done,  pour into sterilizeded jars, cap with sterilizeded lids and water bath for 10 minutes.

If you need a little extra courage for this process, keep remembering that people were making jams and jellies for hundreds of years before commercial pectin   showed up in the 1920's and became the 'only' way to make jams and jellies.  Most fruits want to be jam, especially strawberries and apples. All you really need  is the ingredients, some patience and some kitchen courage.