The first summer that we lived in our house I was delighted to discover that we had an abundance of wild raspberries growing in our woods. I soon noticed that that they grew profusely along many of our local country roads. As soon as our son was capable of trekking through the underbrush, around the age of three, he became my picking buddy. Most of the berries went straight in his mouth, and oftentimes he had to be carried home. My mother would plan her visits around mid-July so that we could pick together, and now my husband has become a very diligent berry picker.
Making jam is a perfect solution for preserving that taste of summer. For my first foray I relied on my 1970s version of Joy of Cooking which provides excellent information about the proper techniques for sterilizing jars and other cooking paraphernalia so that your jam does not spoil. I followed the canning route for several years, but now I make smaller quantities of jam that will stay fresh in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 weeks until it is devoured. You do not need special jars, although the Ball jars are fun to draw. I generally use empty Grey Poupon jars. The sugar in the jam is not only a thickener, but will keep the jam from spoiling, as long as you do keep it in the fridge.
Raspberry jam, unlike strawberry, does not require pectin as a thickener. I reduce the sugar drastically from that older Joy of Cooking version.
Ingredients
4 cups Raspberries
3/4 cup can sugar
Directions
Place the berries and sugar in a pot with a heavy bottom. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 45 minutes, stirring from time to time. The tricky part is being able to tell when the berries have cooked long enough. The jam will thicken as it cools and still further once it is refrigerated. I find that once it is apparent that water has evaporated and there is a coating of jam around the inside of the pan, your jam is ready. Pour it into your jar or jars. The yield should be about 12 oz. of jam.
Raspberry sauce, to pour over vanilla ice cream, can be made by cutting back further on the sugar and cooking the berries for just 15 minutes.
