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Saturday, September 29, 2012

Autumn Olive Ginger Orange Jam

Our Elaeagnus [autumn olive] trees held on to their fruit for a while this year.  Or maybe we just have more trees now, but at any rate, I had a lot of berries for several weeks this year.    The ducks finally found them and spent days vacuuming up the windfalls.   Hilarious!

Here's the thing about autumn olive berries - they're sour.    Unless you wait for them to get soft.  When they're soft, they're much sweeter inside, but that spotty outside skin is still pretty astringent.

OK - it's very astringent. 

And the new red berries are pretty sour.

It doesn't matter.   You get a delicious product no matter when you pick them.    I made this jam with these early sour ones and people loved it.

Loved. It. 

My point is this - pick the red berries when you can.   Cook them up and run them through a sieve or chinois to separate the seeds and skins.   Then make something delicious with them.   Like this jam.

This jam can be a no pectin jam.   The early red berries have loads of pectin in them and make sure you include some orange or greenish berries.   But remember!  they also require quite a bit of sugar to tame the sour.    Use the full amount.  This is not an overly sweet jam.  

I've also included a recipe for jam with pectin for when your berries are really good and ripe [and less pectin]

Elaeagnus [Autumn Olive] Ginger Orange Jam without pectin

from www.rurification.com
  • 4 cups elaeagnus sauce [from about 8 cups of berries]
  • zest and juice of 2 oranges
  • 1/4 cup fresh grated ginger
  • 4 cups sugar
Combine ingredients and bring to hard boil.   Boil a minute or so.   Turn off heat, ladle into jars.  Process for canning. 


Elaeagnus [Autumn Olive] Ginger Orange Jam with pectin

from www.rurification.com
  • 4 cups elaeagnus sauce [from about 8 cups of berries]
  • zest and juice of 2 oranges
  • 1/4 cup fresh grated ginger
  • 3 Tablespoons low sugar pectin
  • 4 cups sugar
Combine elaeagnus, orange zest and juice, ginger and pectin in a large pot. Bring to a hard boil [one that you can't stir down.] Boil one minute, stirring constantly.   Add sugar and stir well.  Bring to hard boil again stirring constantly.  Boil one minute.   Ladle into jars and cover with clean lids and rings.  Process for canning. 


Want the recipe for this jam and a whole lot of other terrific jam recipes?   Check out my ebook:  A Simple Jar of Jam  at www.rurification.etsy.com.   You can preview the book by clicking the link on the sidebar.  Every purchase helps support this site.  Thank you!