Make Your Own Plum Jam

Pop quiz!

What’s the difference between jam and jelly?

Don’t know?

Jam starts with fresh fruit and jellies start with fruit juice!

Now you know!

During the summer, my local grocer had plums on sale and I bought more than we could have ever eaten! So I made red plum jam for the first time and it was delicious. And red plum jam is a favorite in our house. We prefer it over grape and strawberry so it just made sense to make our own.

The recipe is easy, and you don’t need pectin (a substance that helps fruit gel) because there’s lots of pectin found in the skin of a plum.

What you’ll need:

• 3 pounds of fresh plums – pitted and quartered
• 3 cups of sugar (no, that is not a typo! You can try using stevia or another sweetener if you prefer)
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1/2 cup of lemon juice

Instructions

Wash and cut the plums. Rough cuts are fine and remove the pits.

Combine the plums, sugar, water, and lemon juice into a large saucepan or castiron skillet. Bring to a rapid boil to dissolve sugar. Stir continuously.

Continue to stir the mixture for 15-20 minutes or until the gelling point has been reached.

Remove from heat and ladle into mason jars. You can continue with the traditional canning method for long-term storage. For jam that will be consumed immediately, store in the refrigerator.