I have become obsessed with jam and jelly making as of late. While I’ve been experimenting with creating so many different recipes combining herbs and fruits and meats and more, this one is my very favorite so far. Something about the combination of earthy basil
and sweet blackberry
creates a refreshing burst of garden-y goodness on toast, with cheese, or just in your spoon. Making jam and so much easier than you think. Let me break it down for you in pictures. Get the Blackberry Basil Jam recipe after the jump.
Blackberry Basil Jam Ingredients
3-4 cups blackberries
3 cups fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup honey
1 cup sugar
Pectin – You have lots of options. I like low-sugar pectin so I can make a lower-sugar jam, I used Pomona’s Universal Pectin which has two steps, calcium water and pectin powder, in these amounts:
2 tsp calcium water
2 tsp pectin
How to Make Blackberry Basil Jam
Start with blackberries. Rinse and place an even layer in the bottom of a wide bowl.
Mash with a potato masher.
Add another layer of blackberries
and mash again; repeat until you’ve mashed all of your blackberries.
Now go pick some fresh basil.
Remove the leaves, rinse, and pat dry.
In your blender or food processor, combine the fresh basil leaves, sugar, and honey into a liquid.
Now we need pectin. I use Pomona’s Universal Pectin (you get a jell with less sugar needed). This pectin is a two step process. First you use the white powder to make calcium water. Add two teaspoons of the calcium water to your blended basil mixture.
I use my Ball® FreshTECH Automatic Jam & Jelly Maker. I love this thing. You can make jam on the stove but it requires so much standing there and stirring. With this thing you can add the ingredients, then leave the kitchen and return to perfect jam and jelly.
Sprinkle the pectin powder on the bottom of your machine (or follow the instructions in the package if you are using a different pectin/your stove):
Combine the blackberries and the basil mixture and pour into the machine.
Turn the machine on to the jam setting. After four minutes it will beep, at that point add the sugar by simply pouring on top.
While that is cooking, get your lids and rings (you don’t have to boil the rings but I always do) sterilizing in a pot of boiling water.
You can sterilize your jars in the washing machine or in a pot of water on the stove. Either way get the big pot of water boiling if you plan to preserve the jams and jellies and give them as gifts.
YUM! Fresh jam! It won’t be jelled yet when the machine is done, FYI. Newbies to jam making sometimes get confused and think it will be perfectly done right off the stove, but it needs to cool first.
Pour into your jars, wipe the rims clean, add lids and rings, and either freeze, throw in the fridge, or preserve by boiling the jars in hot water on the stove for ten minutes. Remove them to cool and sit overnight, then check the seal the next day to make sure it is tight. Done!
