Christmas Jam

This is my absolute favorite jam!!

Here's what you need:
1-12oz. pkg. cranberries 2-10oz.frozen strawberries 4 cups sugar 1-3oz. pkg. liquid pectin

Now, I think you are supposed to make this jam around Thanksgiving when you can actually find cranberries in the grocery stores. Well, I NEVER think about making this then, so here's what I do: I buy the dried cranberries and toss them in some boiling water. It plumps them up and works perfectly! I used about half of the package shown.

Also, make sure to check your strawberry package size. Mine were 14 oz, so I used 1 whole package and 6 oz of the second package. After thawing your strawberries in the refrigerator, cut them up coarsely.

Next, put cranberries and strawberries in a food processor and pulse until you get the desired consistency.

It's always nice to have a helper!

Combine cranberries, strawberries and sugar in a large pan or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil and cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat . Add pectin to mixture. Return to full rolling boil. Boil 1minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off foam with a metal spoon. ( You can play with the cooking time to get the consistency you want. Sometimes, I don't get it quite right and it is a little runny.... but it still tastes awesome on biscuits and would be yummy on pancakes or cheesecake!!

Quickly pour jam into hot sterilized jars, leaving ¼” head space. Wipe jar rims off. Cover at once with lids and screw on bands. The recipe I have says to process them in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes, but I don't usually do this. I just turn them upside down on the counter and usually they will seal just fine.

Add a tag and some ribbon and you have a nice gift! Or.... you could just eat it all yourself!!

Now, the only bad thing about making this jam, is cleaning up this mess!