Yesterday I had to do something with the blueberries that were just about to go bad in my refrigerator.  I found them earlier on in the week at Jumbo and after asking the advice of my new friend Zoe, I decided to follow her directions and make a blueberry / strawberry jam.

One of the main problems living in BA is that sometimes it’s hard to find ingredients.  Since fresh berries in general are hard to find, I scooped up four boxes worth and decided to preserve them as best as I could.  Of course, when making jam or preserves, a lot of people use pectin, an ingredient used to gelify the liquids around the fruit.  Since that was unavailable, Zoe suggested the following recipe but instead of using all the blueberries, to add 1/3 part blueberries and 2/3 part strawberries to try to draw out the natural pectin from the strawberry seeds. Here we go:

Start with a really heavy, large stock pot. The heavier the pot is, the less likely you are to burn the jam. Remember that jam is mostly sugar and sugar burns easily. Crush your blueberries and add equal parts berries and sugar. I chose to cook up six cups of blueberries and six cups of sugar.

I brought it to a boil and then stirred it frequently, although not constantly. It takes too long to cook to be able to stir it constantly! I tried to keep the hot bubbly mixture cooking at a temperature that kept it boiling but not burning. It cooked the berries and sugar for at least 45 minutes, maybe a little more.
As the mixture cooks, you can see it starting to thicken, especially around the edges. There are a number of ways to tell how long to cook it.

To know when it is ready, put a plate in the freezer and once it looks like it is starting the thicken up put a little bit on the cold plate every 10 mins or so and see how it sets. If it wrinkles slightly when you slide your finger across it then it is ready. Always err on the side of caution and make it thicker rather than thinner. Make sure you sterilise your jars and be careful not to get jam around the sides when you pour it in. then leave it in the fridge to cool.

Good luck. Beautiful days like today inspire you to try new things don’t they!

I’m not too crazy about sugars, however, and instead of 3 cups of sugar, I used 1.5 cups of sugar and 1/2 cup of pure honey that I found at my local pastry store.

I mixed the concoction for a litter over an hour, and could definitely see that its thickness was changing.  I tested it out just like Zoe wrote above and… voila!  Spreadable strawberry-blueberry goodness!

One of my favorite things to do with the jam has been to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches – the flavor was out of this world!  Even Javier had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner last night.  It’s irresistable!

On another note, the reason why I asked Zoe for her input on making jams and spreads is because she’s becoming quite the breakfast chef as of late!  She and her fiancé David have converted an old mansion in the heart of Palermo Soho into their very own dream – a Bed and Breakfast called Abode Buenos Aires.  They’ve just opened after renovating the turn of the 20th century styled home into a comfy cozy B & B with all the comforts of home – plus Zoe’s fabulous breakfasts!

I wouldn’t be surprised if people start making breakfast reservations based on her morning goodies alone! For more information, check out their website: http://www.abodebuenosaires.com

Love n cuppycakes!

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