Blueberry Jam

Who makes homemade jam these days? Isn’t it easier to go buy it? Well yeah, it is easier to go buy it. But making homemade anything is something everyone should experience at some point in their lives.

I was at Julie’s for the week (you know, Lucy…). We had gotten 3 cases of fresh blueberries on sale. I have a sliver of a memory of making jelly. Julie had tried a few batches and was not happy with the results. But this time we had sequestered an expert. My Mom.

Now Mom wouldn’t call herself an expert, but she really came through. As we were discussing the game plan and various recipes, she remembered her Grandma Elsie and Aunt Gayle making jelly, preserves and jams. She remembered details of how to tell when it’s got enough pectin and how to put the paraffin on etc. Then we looked them up in an old book and she was right on.

So in the middle of 5 kids, the 3 of us proceeded to make blueberry jam. Small batches was another of Mom’s suggestions. A good one. We talked about how farm wives used to get together to “put up” or “put by” whatever the harvest of the day was. It felt wholesome and like we were not only preserving blueberries, but memories. We ended up with 44 pints, I think. We had one case of blueberries left that Julie is going to make into blueberry banana leather. We also talked about making blueberry/rhubarb jam or “bluebarb” jam. Yummy.

While we were making jam, Mom taught the girls, Maddy and Piper, ages 10 and 8, the basics of embroidery. They learned outline stitch, lazy daisies, and french knots. What fun. They did great! I am proud to be part of a family that passes down these tidbits of knowledge. They are important. Maddy and Piper will always remember the time we got together to make jam and embroider.

I love to go to Julie’s. She is always doing something like this. She makes her own bread from grain she grinds herself. She is working on making all of their food for the winter. Lucy and Ethel’s garden looks awesome by the way! Julie also knits, spins, quilts, raises chickens, home-schools her 4 kids and rolls up her sleeves for most any construction project that comes along. Our great grandmothers would be very proud of her. I am.

What do you do with 44 pints of blueberry jam? It was awesome on the cheesecake. Try it on pancakes and waffles, toast, rolled up in a crepe with mascarpone cheese and cinnamon, thin it with a little lemon juice, add a little evoo and it’s a great dressing on a salad with toasted/sugared almonds and grilled chicken. Stir it into homemade yogurt! I could go on and on. Delicious!