There’s just something about fresh blueberries that signals the start of summer.
Whether you’ve picked your own, visited a local farmers market or stocked up from the grocery store, blueberry season is the perfect time to turn a fresh harvest into something you can enjoy all year long.
In this step-by-step tutorial, University of Georgia blueberry breeder Juliet Chu and UGA Cooperative Extension food safety specialist Carla Schwan show how to make a spiced blueberry jam using the timeless, trusted recipe from “So Easy to Preserve.”
Together, Chu, an assistant professor in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and Schwan, an assistant professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, connect the journey from farm to pantry, from breeding berries people love to helping families safely preserve them long after harvest season ends.
Follow along with your own fresh blueberries to make a flavorful jam that captures the taste of summer and is the perfect gift to share throughout the year or keep on your pantry shelf until the next harvest arrives.
Blueberry-spice jam
Makes about five half-pint jars
Tools
- Large pot with a lid, deep enough for jars to be covered by at least 1 inch of water
- Glass canning jars with lids and bands
- Removable rack to keep jars from touching the bottom of the pot
- Jar lifter, a specialized tool used to safely remove hot jars from the water bath
- Headspace tool or ruler for measuring the space between the food and the rim of the jar
- Read UGA Extension expert resource “Preserving Food Series: Using Boiling Water Canners” for additional guidance on water bath canning.
Ingredients
- 2½ pints ripe blueberries
- 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg or cinnamon
- 5½ cups sugar
- ¾ cup water
- 1 box powdered pectin
Directions
- Sterilize jars by boiling them for 5 minutes, or extend the processing time later to a full 10 minutes. Either method will ensure the jars are properly sterilized.
- Wash and thoroughly crush blueberries, one layer at a time, in a saucepan.
- Add lemon juice, spice and water.
- Stir in pectin and bring mixture to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring frequently.
- Add sugar and return mixture to a full rolling boil.
- Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Remove from heat and quickly skim off foam.
- Ladle jam immediately into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch of headspace.
- Wipe jar rims clean and adjust lids, tightening only fingertip tight.
- Process in boiling water for 5 minutes if using presterilized jars, or 10 minutes if jars have not been sterilized. Make sure the water level covers your jars by at least 1 inch.
- Carefully remove jars from hot water with jar lifter and place on a flat surface. Leave jars undisturbed for at least 12 hours.
- Remove lid bands and wipe clean, if necessary. Check that each jar has sealed properly. If a jar did not seal, refrigerate it immediately and consume within one week. Properly sealed jars may be stored in a cool, dry place for up to one year.
By University of Georgia Extension
