Ingredients
2 cups (280g) strawberries, fresh or frozen (or other fruit with soft flesh)
1 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
granulated sugar ( 0 | 1 tbsp | 1/4 cup | 1/2 cup | 1 1/4 cups )
2 tbsp chia seeds
Instructions
- Prepare fruit: For strawberries, remove leafy tops and optionally, the hulls. For other fruit, remove pits or core, and if peels are not soft, remove those as well.
- Thaw, if frozen: If fruit is frozen, microwave to thaw, typically 3 minutes at 50% power.
- Cook: To thicken up the flesh or if using ½ cup or more of sugar, add the fruit and lemon juice to a medium-sized pan and cook on medium-high heat. Mash the fruit to the desired level. Add in the sugar. You can start with a small amount if you wish and add more as needed to sweetening to taste. Mix occasionally.
- Add chia seeds: Once all the sugar has dissolved and mixture starts to bubble, remove it from the heat. Mix in the chia seeds and let cool.
- Allow the jam to gel: Add to a clean jar with a lid. You should have between 1 ½ to 2 cups of jam. Let it sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours before consuming. This allows the chia seeds to fully gel.
- Store: Store for up to 3 weeks in the fridge; be sure to return the jam to the fridge after use rather than keeping it at room temperature for more than an hour; alternatively, take out just as much as needed.
Notes
- If it’s a strawberry jam you’re making, we highly recommend using organic strawberries. That’s because the Environmental Working Group has found conventional strawberries to be the fruit with the highest amount of pesticide added per weight (2).
- If you’re testing for desired sweetness, be careful not to double dip. This is not a jam that will be preserved in sterile jars with a high level of sugar, etc. Rather, it’s one that will need to be kept in the fridge and probably not longer than 3 weeks.
- The alternative fruits we have tried so far for this jam that have worked well include raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, fresh pineapple and fresh mango.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Breakfast, Side Dish, Snack
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Low-Carb, Vegan, Vegetarian