Blueberry-Maple Preserves
Blueberry-Maple Preserves are a low-sweetener cooked preserve made with Pomona’s Universal Pectin. Pomona’s Pectin contains no sugar or preservatives and jells reliably with low amounts of any sweetener. This recipe was created by Allison Carroll Duffy for Pomona’s Pectin. She says: Blueberries are a favorite fruit and I make a lot preserves with them. So I was especially interested in coming up with a version sweetened with something other than sugar. I thought maple syrup would be a good option and indeed, the maple-blueberry flavor combination is quite delightful. The maple flavor in this recipe does not overpower the blueberry flavor, but rather complements it in a lovely, understated way.
Servings 5 cups
Ingredients
- 2¼ pounds blueberries
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup lemon juice bottled
- 1½ teaspoons calcium water see step #1
- ¾ cup pure maple syrup
- 1½ 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.
- Rinse blueberries, then remove and discard stems.
- Place blueberries in a sauce pan along with the ¼ cup of water. Bring the berries up to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, and very gently, to avoid crushing the berries as much as possible. Continue to cook the berries, stirring occasionally, just until the berries have softened and have begun to release their juices — about another 1 to 2 minutes. Then remove pan from heat.
- Measure out 4 cups of the cooked blueberry mixture. (If you have any left over, you can use it for something else.) Pour the measured blueberry mixture into a large sauce pan. Add lemon juice and calcium water and stir to combine.
- In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup and pectin powder. Mix well and set aside.
- Bring blueberry mixture to a full boil over high heat. Add maple syrup-pectin mixture, then stir vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes, still over highest heat, to dissolve pectin. Return preserves to a boil, then remove from 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.