Plum Special Jam
Plum Special Jam is a low-sugar or low-honey cooked jam made with Pomona’s Universal Pectin. Pomona’s Pectin contains no sugar or preservatives and jells reliably with low amounts of any sweetener.
Servings 5 cups
Ingredients
- 3 cups chopped and mashed Italian prune plums
- 1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- ¼ cup lemon juice bottled
- 4 teaspoons calcium water see step #1
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon grated orange peel optional
- ½ cup honey or 1 cup sugar
- 3 teaspoons Pomona’s 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.
- Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready for use. Wash lids and bands and set aside.
- Wash, chop small, and mash plums. It’s not necessary to peel the plums.
- Measure the fruit into saucepan.
- Add orange juice, lemon juice, calcium water, cinnamon, grated orange peel (if using), and mix well.
- Measure sugar or room temperature honey into a bowl. Thoroughly mix pectin powder into sweetener. Set aside.
- Bring fruit mixture to a full boil. Add pectin-sweetener mixture, stirring vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin while the jam comes back up to a boil. Once the jam returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat.
- Remove hot jars from canner and fill jars with (marmalade/jam/jelly), leaving ¼ inch of headspace. Remove trapped air bubbles, wipe rims and put on lids and screw bands, tightening bands only to “fingertip tight” (until resistance is met, and then just the tiniest bit more).
- Place jars in the hot water, on the rack inside the canner. (Make sure jars are upright, not touching each other or the sides of the canner, and are covered with at least 1-2 inches of water). Place the lid on the canner, bring the canner to a rolling boil, and boil for 10 minutes. (Add 1 minute additional processing time for every 1000 feet above sea level.)
- Turn off heat and allow canner and jars to sit for 5 minutes. Then, remove jars from canner. Allow jars to cool undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Then, confirm that jars have sealed, then store properly. Eat within 1 year. Lasts 3 weeks once opened.
Can you use not from concentrate orange juice or another store bought alternative instead of the fresh squeezed orange juice?
Yes, you can use orange juice with no added sugar.
Would using black plums instead of italian prune plums affect the safety or quality of the recipe?
Hello. Can I first say that Pomona Pectin has been such a game changer. I was having so much trouble with other brands getting the right setting. Someone in a group I’m in said to get Pomona, which I had never heard of. I got a large bag (thank God) and will never go back to the old stuff. I have a question about the Plum Special Jam. I didn’t have enough Plums to make a batch but I did have some pears (approx. 1.5 cups plums and 1.5 cups pears). So I used that. The result is phenomenal. I call it P.O.P. jam. Is it ok that I did that? Certainly don’t want to kill anyone with my Christmas Presents. Thank you for any advice you can give. An additional question is how do I convert old recipes? Is there a section in the book or on your website that I’ve missed?
Oh wonderful Nan! Yes, your P.O.P. jam should be just fine! If you would like to email us your recipes to be converted, we would be happy to help! info@pomonapectin.com