Blackberry and apple jam recipe
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Jam Jelly and Preserves | 237 comments
It was Anne Mary that pointed out that apple and blackberry jam would be full of blackberry pips.
“They’d get stuck in your teeth and drive you mad. Stick to bramble jelly.”
I love jelly. We make loads of jelly every year. More often than not it is used as a base for a sauce rather than dolloped on a plate of roast lamb or pork.
Imagine my delight when I found this recipe for Blackberry and Apple Jam in my aunt’s ancient handwritten cookbook. As it is sieved there are no seeds and the jam is delicious, spread on hot buttered toast in the morning.
Blackberry and Apple Jam recipe
Ingredients:
- 1k (roughly 2lb) of blackberries
- 350g (12ozs) of apples (eating apples, windfalls are fine)
- Water
- White granulated sugar
Method:
- Core and roughly chop the apples (skin on).
- Put the apples, cores and blackberries in a large preservaing pan or large heavy bottomed saucepan. Add just enough water to cover and simmer until soft.
- Sieve the softened fruit and weigh the sieved pulp (discard the skins and seeds left in the sieve). Add 450g (1lb) of sugar for each 450g (1lb) of sieved pulp.
- Put sieved pulp and sugar into a large heavy bottomed saucepan (or preserving pan) and heat very gently until the sugar has dissolved.
- Bring the jam to the boil and continue to boil very rapidly for about 8-10 minutes until the jam reaches setting point. (What is setting point? See tricks and tips below).
- When the jam has set, carefully pour into warm, sterilised jars, using a ladle or small jug (How to sterilise jars? See tricks and tips below)
- Cover the jars with tight fitting screw-top lids, or waxed disks and cellophane pot covers (waxed disks, wax facing downwards and plastic covers secured with plastic bands).
- Label when cold and store in a cool, dark place, away from damp.
Tricks and Tips:
- Jam “set” or “setting point”:
Getting the right set can be tricky. I have tried using a jam thermometer but find it easier to use the following method. Before you start to make the jam, put a couple of plates in the fridge so that the warm jam can be drizzled onto a cold plate (when we make jam we often forget to return the plate to the fridge between tests, using two plates means that you have a spare cold plate). Return the plate to the fridge to cool for approx two minutes. It has set when you run your finger through it and leave a crinkly track mark. If after two minutes the cooled jam is too liquid, continue to boil the jam, testing it every few minutes until you have the right set. The jam is far more delicious if it is slightly runny. - Sterilising the jars:
We collect jars all year round for our jelly, chutney and jam making sessions. I try to soak off labels and store the clean jars and metal plastic coated screw-top lids in an accessible place. The sterilising method that we used is simple. Just before making the jam, I quickly wash and rinse the jars and place them upside down in a cold oven. Set the temperature to 160c/140c for fan assisted. When the oven has reached the right temperature I turn off the heat. The jars will stay warm for quite a while. I only use plastic lined lids for preserves as the all-metal lids can go rusty. I boil these for five minutes in water to sterilise them. If I use Le Parfait jars, I do the same with the rubber rings.
Leave a reply
Hi Mary,
You have the pulp but no liquid. Blackberry and apple cheese might be a better route to take – use the fruit and sugar ratio from our blackberry and apple jam recipe and the method of our quince cheese recipe.
I’d love to hear how it turns out, which ever you do!
HI
I have just made a huge batch of apple and blackberry jelly and have loads of pulp left, do you think i could use it to make this lovely sounding jam, i think it would be a shame to waste it
Hi Donna,
Hope that is works well for you.
I’m going to give the jam a go tonight! Wish me luck! 😉
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for leaving your impressions of this jam. Much appreciated. I am so pleased that it turned out well for you.
Picking blackberries is really time consuming but I think that this recipe makes it worth the sweat.
This is lovely! Two small jam converts agree this is the best jam they’ve tasted.
A lot of picking needed, but so worth it in the end. Great too to have a use for the slightly unattractive looking apples that have managed to hit the ground from our tiny tree, without being snaffled up by the children!
Thank you.
Lisa
Hi Veritee,
Thanks for taking the trouble to make a comment. Your™s is a hot taste. Glad it worked out well for you.
I used your recipe to make chilli jam which I love but can rarely buy where I live ( substituting the blackberries for chillies)
The apples make a great base for this and it turned out so nice I even have the chilli jam on toast
Thank you
Hi Linda,
I rarely see other foragers around here (in the country). Quite a few walkers stop and point me in the direction of new places to forage, wich is handy.
Once opened, it will be at its best for about a month, kept in the fridge
Hi,
Just made blackberry and apple jam from your recipe today. Looks beautiful. I am always so amazed that no one else here where I live (suburb of London) ever seems to blackberry pick so I get huge amounts from the local park near me – and hazlenuts, sloes, damsons, apples and rosehips! People ask me what I am doing and seem amazed when I say I am picking blackberries for jam and pies. Can you tell me, once opened, how long will this jam last kept in the fridge?
Many thanks
Linda