blackberry jam & blackberry syrup

so you just happen to fall into cups and cups and cups of berries - any kind - and wish you could eat them until christmas? yea, me too. i don't like to freeze fresh berries too much. it seems no matter what i do, they stick to each other and end up as frozen blobs. and they just don't taste the same. same for pies. for me, it's jam all the way.

sometimes i wonder if people realize how insanely simple (and cheap) jam is to make. especially when i see it in the store for $4 a half pint.

i decided to end the week with how i started the week. i made the jam and syrup the day after i picked the berries, when they were still fresh and hadn't yet started to get mushy or soft. and except for some straining to make the syrup, they're exactly the same. and the only thing you need to know is that it's fruit and sugar. i used a 2:1 ratio of berries to sugar for the jam and 6:1 berries to sugar for the syrup, but it's totally up to you, depending on how sweet you like your jam and your syrup. and of course they can be scaled up or down, depending on your berry situation.

but the syrup. omg. it's so good i had to stop myself from eating it by the spoonful after it was made. lucky for me, i canned a pint of it, so sometime in mid february when i'would kill for a berry, i can pretend it's summer again while i have blackberry syrup over my pancakes on a lazy, snowed in saturday morning.



if you're sick of jam on your toast/bagel/english muffin/other baked good, try it on top of a cracker with some peanut butter. it makes a great afternoon snack.

and in case you missed it, here's a recap of blackberry week -
kicked it off with my mom's blackberry sangria
then moved on to a moist blackberry crumb cake
i tried my hand at blackberry half moons, but they weren't as berry-ey as i would have liked
and recreated the blackberry pancakes i had on vacation this summer in waffle form
ah, nothing like sweet tart blackberry ice cream on a humid summer night
and last night i made an amazing white layer cake filled with blackberry buttercream that i can't wait to try with other fruits

blackberry jam
makes 3 pints

6 cups blackberries
3 cups granulated sugar

1. in a large saucepan, heat the blackberries and sugar until boiling. use the back of a spoon to crush the berries while heating.
2. if you like your jam thinner (with less chunks of whole berries), use an immersion blender to smooth it to your liking.
3. boil until the jam thickens to your liking, about 15-20 minutes for thinner jam.
4. process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.

blackberry syrup
makes 1 1/2 pints plus just enough extra for a round of pancakes

3 cups blackberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar

1. mash and strain blackberries and discard the pulp. you should have about 1 cup of juice.
   
2. in a small saucepan, heat the juice and sugar over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
3. remove from heat. syrup can be canned in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. or refrigerate if using immediately.