When it comes to canning, blueberries were my gateway fruit (although they didn’t usher me through the doorway into the realm of canning preoccupation until I reached adulthood). Growing up, I’d often pick them with my family, but I always left the jam-making and canning to my mom, participating only when it came time to squish the berries into jammable shape with my fingers (there’s something so deeply satisfying about crushing those juicy little blue orbs into pulpy bits).
However, one fateful July day during the summer of 2007, my friend Seth and I decided to go blueberry picking and everything changed. That summer, I was in grad school and he was unemployed, so we both had free time on our hands. It was the first time I had gone berry picking without parents, a sibling or babysitting charges that needed to be entertained. We spent at least two hours out in the blueberry field, filling up our buckets and eating until our fingers were stained blue and our stomachs were ready to burst with fruit.
Later that day, when I was home alone with my berries, I did the thing that was innate. I called my mom for canning advice, ran across the street to the hardware store for some jars and pectin and made my first solo batch of jam. Thinking back on it now, it’s hard to imagine a time when I had so little canning experience, when I hovered anxiously over my filled jars, praying for them to seal (admittedly, there are times when I still check and recheck freshly processed jars, only able to relax when they ring out a ping of sealed success).
Since then, I have made at least 100 batches of jams, marmalades, fruit butters, chutneys and pickles. However, blueberry jam will always feel familiar, foundational and necessary in a way that no other fruit can match. Summer doesn’t feel complete without at least one blueberry picking trip and a batch of homemade blueberry jam cooling on the kitchen counter.
We’re heading into the end of blueberry picking season here in the mid-Atlantic region, but there are still to be found if you look (as a side note, if you’re interested in the history of cultivated blueberries, check out this interesting little article). You can also get them at the grocery store for relatively cheap prices, if you don’t have any u-pick farms in your area.
And on to the recipe…
Blueberry Jam
Ingredients
- 6 cups of smashed blueberries you’ll need 8-10 cups of unsquashed berries to equal this amount
- 4 cups sugar
- 3 tablespoons classic pectin powder
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
Instructions
- Prepare a canning pot and 3 pint jars. Place 3 lids in a small saucepan and bring to a bare simmer.
- Pour the smashed berries into a low, wide, non-reactive pot. Measure out the sugar and whisk in the powdered pectin. Add the sugar and pectin mixture to the fruit and stir to combine.
- Once the sugar is mostly dissolved, place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Cook at a controlled boil for 10 to 15 minutes, until the fruit begins to look thick and any foaming has begun to subside.
- Add cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest and juice and let jam continue to cook until it passes the plate test, or until the drips hang off the spatula in thick, sticky rivulets.
- Remove jam from heat and funnel into prepared jars. Wipe rims, apply lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes.
- When time is up, remove jars from canner and place them on a folded kitchen towel to cool.
- Once jars are cool enough to handle, remove rings and test seals.
- Sealed jars can be stored on the pantry shelf for up to one year. Any unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used promptly.
Eat atop fresh scones or biscuits for maximum enjoyment.
mmmmmmm….blueberrie jam sounds great!! its my step-dads favorite!!!! and the last time we made bluberrie jam i lost my purity ring…..and we thought it was in the JAM!! oh no!!!
but luckly we found it in some towls i wiped my hands on..well hope you enjoyed my story?? good luck to everyone!
About how many jars does one batch of jam make? I want to make a few different kinds to give away at Christmas time, and this blueberry looks delicious!
I’m thinking of making some blueberry jam, but I was wondering–is it seedy at all? I made a batch of raspberry last summer, and ended up giving most of it away because I didn’t like the crunchies.
I have never made jam on my own but I have done some with my sister over @ Cannin’ & Jammin’. Blueberry is so good! As a child I went picking with my mom and sister 🙂
looks delicious – such a pretty color!
I just bought a pint of blueberries yesterday! Perfect timing as I’ll be stocking up and making this jam.
Ooh, blueberries are the best. Now I’m jealous. I’ve never had fresh blueberry jam before. Looks so good!
Blueberry jam is the best. Thanks for the great site.
This looks so yummy! Trying to make this will tide me over until your canning tomatoes class at Fosters – really looking forward to that!
Mmmm…. it looks delish!
I tagged you on my 100 mile blog. Check it out, if you want to see what it’s about.
whoa, no wonder you don’t want to come to work tomorrow! I wouldn’t either.
I don’t know why I can’t get over my fear of canning… I love jam.
Blueberry was the first jam I ever made too!
Crazy. I was just searching your site last night for a blueberry jam recipe. I’ve been reading for a while, but this is the first time I ever attempted food in jars myself, and last night, I’m happy to report that I successfully canned my first canned produce ever, blueberry jam.
I bet my husband and I went through a bushel of fresh blueberries when they were cheap here in NE Ohio, in cereal, pancakes and our favorite, blueberry-peach crumble. They are one of nature’s perfect fruits.
I just planted my first blueberry bushes, so I’m a little way from making my own. But I’d love some of yours!
My mom and I are making jam as wedding shower favors tonight, and we struggled to find a recipe using liquid pectin that wasn’t overloaded with sugar…we’re so happy to find your recipe. Many thanks from the Motor City!
I love blueberries . . . I’ve never tried canning, but I make a wicked plum/blueberry crumble that is one of thee best things I’ve ever eaten. This recipe looks so easy that I may have to cross the divide and start making it myself! 🙂
We barely got a handful off of blueberry bushes this year. Though, the birds are smiling!
Just in time to squish up the last of the blueberries on our bushes this year! Yes! This looks delicious!!!
I don’t think I have ever tried Blueberry Jam. Hint Hint. 🙂
Yes, please add me to the list of wanting to win the jar of jam.
Yum! I would love some jam!
I love blueberries. Sadly, the only farm within 35 miles where you could pick them was sold to a developer for houses. However, the supermarket has had some good ones at pretty reasonable prices, maybe not for jam making but at least for munching. I like to add them to cereal, to biscuits, to yoghurt, to my hand for fresh munching.
I’m inspired by your blog – prior to this I had only every canned watermelon pickles, but have now started in on canned peaches and peach syrup.
This looks so tasty and wonderful! Perhaps when I get around to making my cherry jam (8 cups of pitted fruit in the freezer…) I can make blueberry too. Thanks for the inspiration!
Ah, if only you’d had this recipe up two weeks ago, I might have made blueberry jam. They were incredibly cheap for a week there, but no longer. 🙁
That. That is what I want for lunch today.
My boyfriend and I are just getting into canning. We got the Blue Ball book in the mail yesterday, made salsa & pickles this past weekend, and reeeeeally want to make jam soon! I have some peaches from the Farmer’s Market, but I bet the U-Pick blueberries would be even better! I can’t wait to try out your recipes! 🙂
i love blueberry jam on pancakes! i made a batch last year, but havent managed it this year.
I was inspired before, but you’ve given me the courage to act on my inspiration: last weekend I undertook my first canning ptroject(cherries). It was terribly exciting. Tonight: cucumber pickles!
Wow, looks delicious!! I love your story and your addiction to canning 🙂 It’s funny I used to think my mom and grandma were crazy. Now I right there with them canning everything I can get my paws on. Thanks for your fantastic blog, I check it out every week and I am totally inspired by your love of canning and sharing with all of us.
Oh my, I love blueberries and the thought of homemade blueberry jam sounds deeeeelish! 🙂
I can’t get enough of blueberries right now. I love the addition of lemon. Mmmm.
Ooo, I never would have thought of adding nutmeg! It sounds like a terrific idea.
blueberry jam is one of the favorites around our household too! i can it with lots of lime or lemon, the perfect combo!
Blueberries are such a good first canning experience because you don’t even have to chop them. What size are those squatty jars and where did you get them?
Mama Urchin, it’s true about about blueberries being a good first experience. I love that the prep necessary to make blueberry jam is so little! Those squatty jars are the Ball’s Collection Elite and the ones pictured are pints. They also make some very cute half pints that I like. The one problem with these jars is that they’re a bit more expensive than the standard jars, so I’m careful to only use them when I’m making a small batch of something that I’m going to give away. -Marisa
I am becoming highly addicted to home made jams and jellies 🙂
I have a question. I noticed you have used liquid pectin in several of your jams. Any reason why? Does it make better setting? Let me know! 🙂
Amelia, I use liquid pectin because it gives the jam a more natural, soft set than the powdered stuff. I don’t like the rigid set that jam takes on when you use powdered pectin. However, I’ve been told that the liquid pectin is harder to find, so if you can’t find it, feel free to substitute in the powdered pectin. -Marisa
I have never had a batch of blueberry jam set up for me (even using powdered pectin). What do you think I could be doing wrong? Every other type of jam and jelly I’ve tried works fine, so I’m not sure what the issue is. Also, do you think the recipe would be fine without the cinnamon and nutmeg? I’m more of a straightforward blueberry person 🙂
My guess would be that you’re not cooking it long enough. The more you cook the water out, the better chances you have of a good set.
I love blueberries. Last year I made my weight in blueberry butter and syrup. It was my first year canning, so I didn’t know how much to can. Well come February or March, no canning food left. This year doubling or tripling things. On all my days off canning is commenced in my household. I’m enjoying every minute of it. I’m going to make blueberry jam this coming weekend. I made sweet cherry jam yesterday. Wonderful is not the word. First time in Jam Land for myself. I made alot of freezer jam last year and some this year. I want to make more regular jam. Everyone enjoy the blueberries while they are still here. Luckly I found a 10 lb. box at the farmers market for $25.00. Great deal!
For me, it’s strawberry jam and raspberry jam. I prefer the freezer jam for them though, because I find it just has a fresher, truer flavour. Blueberry picking is starting very soon up here in northern Canada, and I love canning blueberry syrup for pancakes (my recipe says to strain the berries out before canning, but I like to leave them in.)
Wow that looks so nice! I have not had time to do any canning this year yet, but I hope by the time I get back home the Saskatoons (Similar to blueberries) will still be out in force 🙂
Sigh. Blueberries are food of the gods and goddesses. That’s all I have to say! 🙂
Ooh, I want to make some! I’m making so many jars of fruit jam, though! I guess I need to just keep my batches small so I can have all this great variety. YUM!
Yumsies. Please let it be me this week! 🙂
Homemade blueberry jam! Sounds delish.
I love blueberry jam! Have you tried blueberry-rhubarb jam? It’s our absolute favorite of all the jams.
Mmm, that looks so good. 🙂 Too bad we don’t have blueberry pick-your-own farms here. 🙁
My first jam was strawberry-blueberry! I still have never canned anything, it went into the freezer. Your blog makes me wish I had more free time to get into the hobby!
Looks yummy! Colin and I want to start canning too!