Kitchen Jam

The first recipe is Cranberry Orange Jam, which I published in November. It’s an easy four-ingredient jam (no added pectin, lower sugar) which takes only a half-hour of stovetop cooking and is suitable for hot-water-bath canning, freezing or immediate eating. Enjoy!

Cranberry-Orange Jam

3 cups fresh or frozen whole cranberries (about one 12 oz. bag)
1 1/2 cups orange juice (I juiced five large blood oranges; you can also include regular orange juice)
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

• In a saucepan, mix together the orange juice, brown sugar and ginger. Heat the mixture, and when the sugar begins to dissolve, stir in the cranberries.
• Cook the cranberries until they pop open, stirring over medium heat to prevent scorching. Add more orange juice or water if the mixture thickens too quickly. Cook for 15-20 minutes on medium, or until the berries break down.
• Put the berries through a food grinder or food mill to create a puree and separate out the cranberry skins. If you don’t have a food mill, pulse the mixture in a blender and then push the fruit puree through a sieve or colandar to catch (most of) the skins.

Once pureed, this makes about three cups of jam. Either process in a hot water bath according to USDA recommendations, freeze or keep in the refrigerator and use within 3-4 weeks.