Excerpted from Preserving with Pomona’s Pectin by Allison Carroll Duffy (Fair Winds Press, June 2013)Allison says: “If I were to eat any jam by the spoonful (which I admit to doing, on occasion), this would be the one. I also love a big dollop of it on top of vanilla ice cream. It’s great in baked goods, too—as a filling for cookie bars, or even turnovers. The deep intensity of maple and vanilla, combined with the lusciousness of fresh peaches, is just heavenly.”
Notes
Tip: Perfect Peaches!
This recipe requires mashed peaches, so be sure that your peaches are fully ripe and soft enough to mash. If they’re not, however, simply place peeled, pitted, chopped peaches in a saucepan with 1/2 cup water. Simmer for 5 minutes to soften them, and then mash. (There is no need to drain the water after cooking—simply mash the peach mixture as is.)
Tip: How to Skin a Peach
If you are dealing with a small quantity of fruit, slice off peach (or nectarine) skins with a paring knife (pitting and quartering the fruit first). However, if you’re doubling the recipe and are working with a lot of fruit, you may want to blanch them to remove the skins instead. Simply drop peaches or nectarines one at a time into boiling water for about 30 to 60 seconds, then remove and immediately dunk in cold water. You should then be able to slip the skins right off.
Servings 5 cups
Ingredients
- 3¼ pounds fully ripe peaches See “Perfect Peaches!” tip
- 1 vanilla bean
- ¼ cup lemon juice bottled
- 4 teaspoons calcium water see step #1
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup
- 3 teaspoons Pomona’s Universal Pectin mixed with sweetener
Instructions
- Before you begin, prepare calcium water.To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well.Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.
- Wash your jars, lids, and bands. Place jars in canner, fill canner 2/3 full with water, bring canner to a rolling boil, and boil jars for 10 minutes to sterilize them. (Add 1 extra minute of sterilizing time for every 1000 feet above sea level.) Reduce heat and allow jars to remain in hot canner water until ready to use. Place lids in water in a small sauce pan, heat to a low simmer, and hold until ready to use.
- Peel and remove pits from peaches, and then mash the peaches in a large bowl. (See “How to Skin a Peach” tip below.)
- Measure 4 cups of the mashed peaches (saving any extra for another use), and pour the measured amount into a saucepan. Using a paring knife, slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Add the vanilla seeds and the bean pod itself to the fruit, along with the lemon juice and calcium water. Mix well.
- In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup and pectin powder. Mix thoroughly and set aside.
- Bring fruit to a full boil over high heat. Slowly add pectin–maple syrup mixture, stirring constantly. Continue to stir vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve pectin while the jam comes back up to a boil. Once the jam returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat. Using tongs, carefully remove the vanilla bean pod from the jam and discard.
- Can Your Jam: Remove jars from canner and ladle jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove trapped air bubbles, wipe rims with a damp cloth, put on lids and screw bands, and tighten to fingertip tight. Lower filled jars into canner, ensuring jars are not touching each other and are covered with at least 1 to 2 inches of water. Place lid on canner, return to a rolling boil, and process for 10 minutes. (Add 1 extra minute of processing time for every 1000 feet above sea level). Turn off heat and allow canner to sit untouched for 5 minutes, then remove jars and allow to cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours. Confirm that jars have sealed, then store properly.
Jill Brouwer
Instead of bottled lemon juice may I use fresh lemon juice? Thanks
Shelby Collings
Bottled lemon juice is recommend for safe canning. It has a guaranteed pH/acidity, where fresh lemon juice can vary.
Leslie Kawai
If I add a tablespooon of pumpkin pie spice does that alter anything or can I still process as normal? Thank you !
Shelby Collings
Hello Leslie,
You can add a TEASPOON without any issues. Happy jamming!
Leslie
Thank you!
Anji
Can i use Lime instead of Lemon ??
Shelby Collings
You sure can!
Ammery
Sadly, it’s not peach season – but this sounds so yummy! Could I make this jam using thawed, frozen peaches? Thanks!
Shelby Collings
You sure can! Yum 😊
Carole Mapes
Can I process this in pint jar? Or should I use half pints? Thanks!
Shelby Collings
You sure can Carole, but they will still need to be consumed within 3 weeks once they are opened.
Kelly
Hi, could you just sub sugar for the maple syrup?
Shelby Collings
You sure can! The sugar will be half the measurement of maple syrup.
Marianne
I made the mistake of checking the seal after only a few hours, instead of waiting the full 12-24 hours. When I tapped the lids, they made a popping sound, and sucked down, and then stayed down. Does this mean I ruined the cooling process and it is now a false seal? Or can I trust that it is sealed properly, if I wait 12 hours and the lid is still down?
Shelby Collings
Hello Marianne,
Thank you so much for reaching out! Unfortunately, it would be best to reprocess your jars just to be extra sure. We would recommend that you open up all the jars and empty the contents into a pan and bring to a boil. You will then fill clean, hot jars and reprocess in the waterbath canner.
Sue
Why does the jam need to used in 2-3 weeks once opened.
Shelby Collings
Hello Sue,
Because it is low sugar and does not have any additional preservatives.
Bethany
Can I omit the lemon if I’m going to eat the jam right away and not can it?
Shelby Collings
You, you sure can. It will just need to be consumed with in 1-2 weeks.
Kathy King
Can I double this recipe?
Shelby Collings
You sure can!
Corinne
Can nectarines be substituted for any peach jam recipe? This sounds delicious – I’d like to try with both fruits. 🙂
Shelby Collings
It sure can! Yum 😊
WJ
Hi Allison, I made this jam and it turned out very nice. I was too tight to pull the trigger on buying real vanilla bean so I used 2 tsp of extract and will use 3 next time.
The amount of lemon makes this jam very refreshing but competes with the peach flavor from owning the show. Would it be detrimental to the preservation of the jam if I reduced the lemon from 1/4 cup to something less? If not, can you recommend the least amount of lemon I could use in this recipe? Thank you.
Shelby Collings
Hello! Thank you so much for reaching out and for your review. The called for, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, is the smallest amount that can be used in this recipe.
Happy jamming!
Judith Neuman
Can I use regular vanilla instead of a bean???
Shelby Collings
You may use 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract in place of the vanilla bean.