A flavorful, small batch pear jam lightly sweetened with brown sugar, giving it caramel flavor. With the addition of flaky sea salt and simmering time, this version resembles caramel decadence in jam form. The brown sugar boils down into absolute deliciousness, and the addition of cardamom brings warmth and depth. This pear jam recipe has no added pectin.
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Although the song “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” was made for the holidays, I find the lyrics playing in my head as I stroll down the aisles of the farmers market these days.
Tomatoes of all colors, crisp cucumbers, zucchini of every size, bags full of sweet corn piled high. And in fall there are winter squash, pears and apples just starting to arrive. It’s the true essence of a beautiful summer meets fall collision. Canning and preserving each season’s harvest is one of my favorite hobbies, ensuring that I can enjoy things all year long.
In Spring, I love to make fresh rhubarb sauce. In summer, several batches of zucchini pickles, tomatillo salsa verde, and fire roasted salsa.
What pears are great for making jam?
Seckel pears are the sweetest and the smallest of the pear family and look like a blushing bosc, which you’ll commonly find in grocery stores. So if you can’t find seckel pears, bosc work well in this recipe too. Both have a delicious spice flavor to them and a fresh crispness even when ripe.
Those qualities make them perfect for simmering and preserving into this Caramel Cardamom Pear Jam. Swoon……
How to Make Pear Jam:
Getting this jam to set couldn’t be easier. It naturally happens as the fruit simmers for an hour and the juice of a lemon at the end gives it the acidity it needs for canning safety, no artificial pectin needed.
I peeled half of the pears, but left the others with the skin on because I like a little bit of texture. (If you like something completely smooth, this Vanilla Chai Pear Butter is delicious too.)
The end result is lush preserves that with the addition of a hint of salt, give off a homemade caramel taste.
Its ideal match is a fresh slice of whole wheat sourdough bread, but let me tell you, it’s amazing on ice cream or with big cluster granola and yogurt.
With the addition of flaky sea salt and double the simmering time, this version resembles caramel decadence in jam form. The brown sugar boils down into a sticky, sweet mess, and the addition of cardamom is what autumn comfort is all about.
Cardamom is one of my favorite warming spices, such a lovely match to the slight spice of the seckel pears. I ground the seeds of the green pods with a mortar and pestle, it’s scent so unique – a hint of eucalyptus and citrus and cloves.
Used this way, the spice is quite potent, which is why you’ll see two measurements – one for if you grind it yourself, the other if you buy it pre-ground, where exposure to air tames it down a bit.
A flavorful, small batch pear jam lightly sweetened with brown sugar, giving it caramel flavor. The cardamom adds warmth and depth, making this a winning jam.
3 ¼poundsof pears,half of them peeled (I used Seckel, but I think any variety would work)
1 1/4cupslightly packed brown sugar
scant 1/2 teaspoon flaky salt
juice of one large lemon
¾teaspoonground cardamom or (1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom if you grind it yourself in a mortar and pestle or spice mill.it’s more intense, so less is needed)
Instructions
Sterilize jars in boiling water canner. and wash lids and tops with soapy water.
Coarsely chop the pears, then combine them with the sugar in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Simmer, stirring frequently and lightly mash with a potato masher the pears soften, until the mixture thickens and is syrupy. This will take about 45 minutes, and you will see larger bubbles forming in the simmer.
Stir in the salt, lemon juice and cardamom, then simmer for 2 more minutes.
Ladle the hot preserves into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims. Center the lids on the jars. Apply bands until the fit is just tight.
Process the jars in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off the heat and let the jars sit for 5 minutes then remove the jars and let cool in a draft-free spot overnight. Check the lids for seal after 24 hours – they should not flex up and down when the center is pressed. Store in a cool, dark place for up to one year.
Alternatively, if you don’t want to mess with the canning, you can skip the whole jar sterilizing and boiling water bath process — just store in clean, air-tight jars in the refrigerator for up to a month.
Sadly, sugar plays a huge role in set. If you cut the amount in the recipe and you don't compensate with a pectin designed for low sugar preserving, your jam may well be runny. Did you check for set while the jam was cooking? Any time a recipe gives you a cooking time, it's simply an approximation.
If properly sealed, pear preserves can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to one year. A simple storage option for pear jam, butter, and chutney. Storing halved or whole preserved pears in the freezer is not recommended due to their fragile texture. Preserves can be stored in the freezer for up to six months.
Pears can be preserved by canning, freezing, or drying. They also star in specialty jams, butters, relishes and chutneys! The natural sweetness of dried pears makes them a tasty high energy snack. Although canning is preferred, full-flavored pears that are crisp and firm can be frozen.
Just wait. You've followed the recipe and even tested the jam for thickness by smearing a bit of the cooked jam on a cold spoon straight from the freezer, but it still looks runny in the canning jars after processing. ...
Once you think that your jam has reached its setting point or has thickened, spoon a bit of the jam on the cold plate and tilt it vertically so the jam runs. You are aiming for a slow descent, not a runny mess. If it runs slow, it's set!
Bottled Lemon Juice (optional) – You can use lemon juice in your bowl of water to help keep pears from turning brown while peeling the rest. This is purely optional and not necessary to safely can them. Sugar – Sugar is optional when canning pears. See syrup ratios above to know how much sugar you'll need.
Many varieties of pears are grown in Oregon. Bartlett, Bosc and Seckel are good varieties to preserve, however Anjou, Comice, Nelis and Forelle may also be preserved, depending on the end product. It is important to harvest pears at the correct time.
Fill the jars and cover the pears with the syrup retaining the ½-inch of headspace at the top of the jars. Wipe the rims clean and fit with lids and rings. Place in a boiling water bath canner, ensuring the jars are covered with water. Bring to a boil and process for 30 minutes.
If you used a water bath canner and processed them according to OSU/USDA recommendations and they are sealed they are safe to eat. Might be an enzymatic reaction that sometime happens in pears. The pears turn a pinkish color and then with time brown.
When purified procyanidins were treated at 95 °C at three different pH values (2.7, 3.3, and 4.0), procyanidin concentrations decreased after treatment, the more so as the pH was lower, and a pinkish color also appeared, attributed to tannin-anthocyanidin pigment. The pink color was bound to cell walls.
A: For best quality, it is recommended that all home-canned foods be used within a year. Most homemade jams and jellies that use a tested recipe, and have been processed in a canner for the recommended time, should retain best quality and flavor for up to that one year recommended time.
Seckel pears are suitable for pickled and spiced products. A bushel weighs 50 pounds and yields 16 to 25 quarts. An average of 17½ pounds makes a 7-quart canner load; an average of 11 pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pints; 2½ pounds make a quart. An average of 1½ pounds of pears makes 1 pint of frozen pears.
Pears should be fully ripe for drying, but not soft or mushy. Typically the best varieties for drying are Bartlett or other summer varieties—but others may be used. Peel and core the pears and slice into desired thickness—remember the thicker the slice, the longer the drying time.
Remove pears from the heat and if the syrup has not thickened as desired, add a 2 - 3 tablespoons of powder pectin, stir and return to heat to thicken a bit.
For every 4 cups of jam that needs to be remade, whisk together 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon powdered pectin. What is this? Pour the jam into a low, wide pan and add the sugar and pectin combo. Stir until the sugar and pectin has dissolved.
If you really want to thicken it to a more spreadable consistency, the easiest way is to heat it up with some thickeners such as cornstarch. Arrowroot flour is more delicate and taste-neutral, but most cooks won't have it. Unflavored gelatin may also be used. Bring the syrupy “jam” to boil in a pot.
To remake cooked jelly or jam using liquid pectin for each 250 mL (1 cup) jelly or jam, measure and combine 45 mL (3 tbsp) sugar, 7 mL (11 /2 tsp) bottled lemon juice and 7 mL ( 11/2 tsp) liquid pectin. Bring jam or jelly to a boil stirring constantly. Add the sugar, lemon juice and pectin combination.
Introduction: My name is Velia Krajcik, I am a handsome, clean, lucky, gleaming, magnificent, proud, glorious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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