Strawberry Fields Don’t Last Forever

I guess even the Beatles can be wrong. Strawberries have a very short season only lasting about 2 weeks as far as good pickin' goes.  This year with the cooler weather it was drawn out quite a bit longer! I have never picked strawberries the way that I did a couple days back, they were all ripe and I would stay in one spot and just pick and pick...so we ended up with 20 pounds of berries.

To deal with the bounty I  snapped up 8 envelops of instant pectin (or sent The Husband to the store for them actually) and started instantly to wash, de-stem, and mash. The recipe is on the back of the pectin, and I don't use anything other than Instant Fruit Pectin (like in this picture) anymore.

Why do I love freezer jam so much better ? because of the lower sugar and MUCH fresher taste. This recipe calls for 4 cups of fruit and 1+1/2 cups of sugar per package, not the 5 cups of fruit to 4 cups of sugar or whatever the atrocity is of canned jam. No comparison on taste either since these berries aren't cooked and boiled- and it is quicker too- so if you have the freezer space you really don't have any reason not to try it, it is as easy as mixing three ingredients together and then putting them in containers.

I love that color, that bright red is beautiful. There is just  something about good strawberries.I just bought an amazing food dehydrator at a second hand store and next year I will certainly pick double the berries next year and dry half of them. Stay posted for some dehydrating adventures.

But for now talk to me! Do you have any memories of jam making? What kind of berries do you like best for jam?

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