Homemade Mixed Berry Jam

This Homemade Mixed Berry Jam recipe is so delicious you’ll want to put it on everything from pancakes and toast to waffles and ice cream. Or eat it right from the jar!

Homemade Mixed Berry Jam

This time of year is one of our favorites! Sweet fresh fruit is in season! It’s a family tradition to pick fresh berries on Father’s Day from the local farms around the area. We have our favorites for different kinds of fruit. One farm in particular has blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and even marion berries all ripe at the same time! That’s why we had to make Homemade Mixed Berry Jam!

With all the strawberries we picked this year (in 90 degree heat, mind you), I made Strawberry Chia Seed Jam. Without any added refined sugar, this stuff is healthy and amazing!

Traditional jam making is so wonderful because you get to enjoy fresh fruit all winter long!

This jam is actually amazing on everything from pancakes and waffles to toast and ice cream. Not to mention yogurt parfaits!

Please note:  Since this is pectin-free jam, it doesn’t set like a jam that uses pectin. 

Giving Homemade Jam for Gifts

We make a big batch because it’s also great for homemade gifts.

• Christmas gifts.
• Hostess gifts.
• Teacher gifts.
• You name it, this jam make a great gift for it 🙂

To make your gift pretty and functional include a tag with name of your jam and the “made on” date!

How To Make Homemade Berry Jam

This recipe doesn’t use use pectin. We saw so many recipes that didn’t call for it, so we decided to give it a try. We prefer to keep the sugar to a minimum, so I went with a recipe with a high ratio of berries to sugar.

It turned out perfect!

You can totally experiment with different ratios of berries depending on your preference and what’s ripe at the time.

Step 1:  Get Your Canning Jars Ready

Have ready 6 hot, sterilized half-pint jars and their lids.

Here’s how to sterilize jars for preserving.

Step 2: Marinate Your Berries

Place your washed and dried berries and sugar in a large bowl. Gently stir together and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Having the berries marinate in the sugar prior to cooking really brings out the flavorful fruit juices.

Step 3: Cook Your Berries

In a large nonreactive saucepan, gently stir together the berries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently and removing any foam*, until the jam has thickened, about 15 minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools.

*The foam forms because the berries are being filled with a lot of air from the boiling.

Step 4:  Place in Sterile Jars

Ladle the hot jam into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace (space at the top of the jar). Remove any air bubbles. Get the lids warming in hot (but not boiling) water. Wipe the rims clean and seal tightly with the lids.

Step 5:  Seal Your Jars

Put the jars in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. Make sure the jars are covered in water. The sealed jars can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. If a sealed has failed, store the jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Makes 6 delicious half-pint jars.

Cooking Notes:

• The fruit tends to bubble up while cooking. Just remove the foam with a spoon.
• Since this is a low sugar, pectin free recipe, it tends to be a little runnier than traditional versions.
• DO NOT increase or try to double the recipe because the jam won’t “set” (jell, thicken).
• You place jar lids in a pan of hot water for at several minutes to soften up the gummed surface and clean the lids.

If you’ve tried this MIXED BERRY JAM or any other recipe on Suburban Simplicity, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how it went in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food, fun crafts + DIYs and what I’m up to on a daily basis!

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5 from 1 vote

Homemade Mixed Berry Jam

This Homemade Mixed Berry Jam recipe can be made with a variety of berries.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 6 half-pint jars

Author Erin Henry

Ingredients

• 4 cups raspberries
• 4 cups blackberries
• 4 cups blueberries
• 3 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Instructions

• Have ready 6 hot, sterilized half-pint jars and their lids.
• Place the berries and sugar in a large bowl. Gently stir together and let sit for 10-15 minutes.
  
• In a large nonreactive saucepan, gently stir together the berries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently and removing any foam, until the jam has thickened, about 15 minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
  
• Ladle the hot jam into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims clean and seal tightly with the lids.
• Put the jars in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. Make sure the jars are covered in water. The sealed jars can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. If a sealed has failed, store the jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Makes 6 half-pint jars.
• Adapted from The Art of Preserving, by Lisa Atwood, Rebecca Courchesne & Rick Field (Weldon Owen, 2010).

Notes

Cooking Notes:  

• The fruit tends to bubble up while cooking.  Just remove the foam with a spoon.
• Since this is a low sugar, pectin free recipe, it tends to be a little runnier than traditional versions.
• DO NOT increase or try to double the recipe because the jam won't "set" (jell, thicken).
• You place jar lids in a pan of hot water for at several minutes to soften up the gummed surface and clean the lids.

★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!

This article was enhanced with more tips and resources May 2019.

Canning Basics

No worries, If you’ve never canned anything before, don’t be afraid to start. Once you know the basics, you’ll be on your way to canning all your summer fruit and much more!

The benefits of Canning:

• Gain control of the ingredients, including organic fruits and vegetables.
• Preserve foods at their freshest point, which locks in nutrition.
• The final product is chemical and preservative free.
• Store-bought brands just can’t match the wonderful flavor of homemade!

This post contains affiliate links. Disclosure policy here.

Basic Canning Supplies:

• Mason Jars – either 1/2 pint or 8 oz jars work well
• Funnel – for filling regular and wide mouth canning jars
• Jar lifter – easily removes hot jars from canner
• Magnetic lid lifter – removes canning lids from hot water
• Bubble remover – for releasing trapped air bubbles

A great resource to get you started with all the basic of home preserving and step by step instruction is The All New Ball Book Of Canning And Preserving: Over 350 of the Best Canned, Jammed, Pickled, and Preserved Recipes. 

We’re excited, blueberries are just about to come into season, so the canning supplies will be coming out again soon!

Have you canned jam before? What other fruits or vegetables do you preserve?

You Will Love These Easy Homemade Jam Recipes:

Strawberry Chia Seed Jam

Blackberry Chia Seed Jam

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