Fresher, lighter jams - recipes

Sunset, July, 1994 by Christine Weber Hale

They're less sweet and less complicated--really goof-proof

HOMEMADE JAM HAS always enticed and intimidated me--simultaneously. For years I wanted to reproduce the just-picked summer fruit flavor of my grandmother's jams. Yet memories of all that canning equipment and the huge amount each recipe yielded quickly drained my enthusiasm. Even more off-putting was the volume of sugar traditional recipes use--equal to, if not more than, the amount of fruit! With a background in nutrition, I automatically balked.

But curiosity and tempting mountains of ripe fruit finally got the better of me. However, I was determined to end up with a jam that suited inexperienced, nutrition-minded cooks like me.

I dug out a recipe for dehydrator-made jam that appeared in the July 1986 issue of Sunset; I remembered it didn't use much sugar. I had heard that its flavor was exceptionally fresh, not cloyingly sweet. The recipe also made a small, manageable amount, and--best of all--required only one pan. It took longer to make than a traditional jam, but you didn't have to pay much attention as it cooked.

I liked those pluses. But lacking a dehydrator, I took another tack, and baked my jam, which is faster. And I ended up with a delicious, softly thickened jam that uses about an eighth of the usual amount of sugar. Encouraged, I tried sweetening the fruit with apple juice concentrate for a no-sugar variation. This, too, has wonderfully fresh flavor. But like commercial no-sugar jams, it isn't as brightly colored as jams with sugar.

As a novice jam maker, I find my new method virtually foolproof and uncomplicated. The only tricky part is deciding when the jam is done. When hot, the mixture is very syrupy, and it's hard to tell how thick the cold jam will be. Cooking time isn't much of a guide because it varies with the ripeness and juiciness of the fruit.

But an old-fashioned method my grandmother used turned out to be just the test I needed. When you spoon a little of the hot syrup onto a very cold plate, the syrup cools quickly, and resembles, more or less, the finished jam. If the cooled syrup retains a clear path as a spoon is drawn through it, the jam is ready. Even if you're wrong, don't worry. If the cooled jam is too runny, just put it back in the oven. If it's too thick, simply rewarm it and stir in a little bit of water.

Low-sugar Baked Berry Jam

8 cups raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries, blueberries, or hulled strawberries

About 1 1/4 cups sugar

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Rinse berries, drain dry, and put in a 10- by 15-inch baking pan. If using strawberries, slice them. Mix fruit, sugar to taste, and lemon juice. Bake, uncovered, in a 375 [degrees] oven until berries release juice, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, put a ceramic saucer in the freezer.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 [degrees]. Every 20 minutes or so, gently stir berries to moisten well with juices. Bake until a little berry liquid, spooned onto the chilled saucer, doesn't immediately flow together when you pull the tip of a spoon or your fingertip through it (as you lift your finger, the liquid holds on, forming a small droplet), about 1 hour for blueberries, 1 to 1 1/2 hours for the other berries. Let jam cool; if necessary, reheat and adjust consistency (see following directions).

Spoon into a bowl or small jars. Serve, or cover airtight and chill up to 2 weeks; freeze to store longer. Makes about 1 1/2 cups raspberry, blackberry, boysenberry, or strawberry jam or about 2 1/2 cups blueberry jam.

Per tablespoon raspberry jam: 61 cal. (3 percent from fat); 0.4 g protein; 0.2 g fat (0 g sat.); 15 g carbo.; 0.5 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

To adjust jam consistency, let jam cool completely in baking pan. If too runny, return to oven; stir and test every 20 minutes until jam reaches desired thickness. If jam is too thick, warm it in the oven, then stir in water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until it is the desired consistency.

Low-sugar Baked Stone Fruit Jam

2 pounds ripe peaches, nectarines, plums, or apricots About 2/3 cup sugar 3 tablespoons lemon juice

If using peaches, immerse in boiling water to cover for 30 seconds. Drain; let stand until cool enough to touch, then peel. Cut fruit from pits and coarsely chop. In a 10- by 15-inch baking pan, mix fruit, sugar to taste, and lemon juice.

Bake, uncovered, in a 375 [degrees] oven until fruit releases juices, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, put a ceramic saucer in the freezer.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 [degrees]. Every 20 minutes or so, gently stir fruit to moisten well with juices. Bake fruit until a little of its liquid, spooned onto the chilled saucer, doesn't immediately flow together when you pull the tip of a spoon or your fingertip through it (as you lift your finger, the liquid holds on, forming a small droplet), 45 to 55 minutes. Let jam cool; if necessary, adjust consistency (see preceding recipe). Spoon into bowl or small jars. Serve, or cover airtight and chill up to 2 weeks; freeze to store longer. Makes about 2 cups.

Per tablespoon: 26 cal. (0 percent from fat); 0.2 g protein; 0 g fat; 6.7 g carbo.; 0.3 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.