I make all of my jams following the same simple ratio of 800g sugar to 1kg of fruit. This is a little less sugar than a traditional jam recipe, but I don’t like my jam too sweet. And neither does Alain, which is important, because jars of homemade jam are a good way to keep helpful French farmers sweet. The only time I’ve fallen foul of this recipe was with last year’s wild cherry plums – they were so unbelievably tart that the jam can really only be used in a Victoria sponge with a hefty layer of butter cream. So, use your judgement and up the sugar a little if you’re using sharp fruit. Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and cherries though are all perfect with less sugar. And the rice pudding – a sort-of sweet and creamy risotto because it’s made on the stove – perfect if you don’t like that glorious caramelized top on an oven baked rice pudding.
For the jam
Makes four jars
Ingredients
1kg strawberries, hulled and cut into halves or quarters depending on size (weigh them after hulling so you have an accurate weight)
800g jam sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
Method
Put the fruit into your largest mixing bowl and pour over the sugar. Squeeze over the juice of the lemon and give it all a good stir. Scrunch up a piece of parchment paper, flatten it out again and tuck the paper over the top of your fruit. Put the bowl into the fridge and leave to macerate for a few hours, or even better overnight.
Put two small plates into the fridge. Pour the fruit and sugar mixture into a preserving pan and heat gently, stirring often until all the sugar crystals have dissolved. Increase the heat and bring the fruit and syrup to a boil, stirring gently to stop it catching but being careful not to break up the fruit too much.
The jam will roll and foam initially, it will boil rapidly as the water in the fruit steams away. As it nears setting point it will thicken and become more syrupy, the bubbles will slow, everything will be more relaxed and the surface of the jam will look glossy. Setting point is about 104.5c/220f – you can use a jam thermometer to check this if you have one.
You can also check the set by putting a tablespoon of jam onto one of the cold plates and popping it back into the fridge for a minute or two. When you run your finger through the now cold jam it should wrinkle on the surface.
Once your jam is set turn off the heat and allow the jam to rest and stop bubbling for a few minutes. Give it a gentle stir before skimming off any remaining scum from the surface (see note below).
Ladle your still hot jam into hot, fresh steralised jars (see notes), screw lids on tightly and leave to cool.
Notes on jam making
- Macerating might seem like a faff, but for fruit such as strawberries, cherries and blackcurrants or stone fruits such as apricots, plums and peaches it really helps to draw the juice and flavour from the fruit. The syrup created then becomes the body of your jam and the pieces of fruit remain more intact. For raspberries and blackberries which break down anyway you can just go straight to the preserving pan.
- Scum – skimming the scum from jam is a bit of a myth. It’s not impurities, it’s air bubbles from the boiling process. Some recipes suggest that you skim your jam as it boils. If you do this you’ll end up wasting a whole lot of perfectly good jam. I don’t agree with adding butter to jam to remove scum either because there is a chance it will affect the shelf life of your jam. Let your jam settle for a few minutes after it reaches setting point. Then stir it gently to disperse any bubbles. If you do this a few times and there is still a little foam then use a metal spoon to gentle run over the surface of the jam to collect it up. Spread on a piece of bread – jam makers perks.
- I steralise my jars and lids in the oven. I wash them first and remove any old labels in hot soapy water, then rinse, pop them on an oven tray and heat them at 160c/320f while I make my jam. You can use jam jars over and over again, but it’s worth investing in some additional lids (you can usually find them online) to ensure and good and safe seal. Old lids can degrade after a few uses.
- I invert my jars after tightening the lids. Some folks say this helps them to seal better and this may be true, but I do it just to check the lid is on properly. You’ll soon know if it isn’t because hot jam will come squirting out the sides.
Creamy stove top rice pudding
This rice pudding is perfect for these not-quite-summer-days when the weather is a bit grim and you need something comforting – but with a hint of warmer days from the strawberry jam.
Ingredients
50g butter
150g pudding rice (or Arborio risotto rice if that’s what you have in the cupboard)
50g caster sugar
500ml whole milk
500ml cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
Lemon zest (optional)
Method
Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan, stir through the rice to coat it in the butter, then stir in the sugar. Add the milk, cream and vanilla. You can also pare a thin piece of lemon zest and add it to the pan if liked.
Bring to a simmer over a medium heat, stirring frequently to stop the milk and cream from catching. Turn down the heat to low and allow to cook slowly until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender – 25-30 minutes. It needs stirring regularly so I usually have it bubbling away at the back of the hob while I’m cooking something else.
Serve still warm with a spoonful of fresh strawberry jam.
This keeps fine for a few days in a sealed container in the fridge. Heat it through thoroughly before serving again.
