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Pear Ginger Jam

Source of Recipe

From "Food in Jars" by Marisa McClellan


Recipe Introduction

"Several years ago, I started seeing the pearginger combination everywhere. Companies were using it to flavor granolas and several different brands made a sweetened sparkling water drink with a pear-ginger flavor base. I liked the idea of those two tastes together and so took a stab at making something that featured them. This jam was the happy result. I've taught a number of early-winter canning classes using this recipe as the starting point and it never fails to make people swoon. It's really good heaped atop a stack of whole grain pancakes or swirled into oatmeal."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 8 cups cored and chopped Bartlett or Anjou pears (about 4 pounds)
â—¦ 4 cups granulated sugar
â—¦ 1 cup ginger juice (see Notes)
â—¦ 2 (3-ounce) packets liquid pectin


Recipe

Prepare a boiling water bath and four regular-mouth 1-pint jars. Place the lids in a small saucepan, cover them with water, and simmer over very low heat.

In a large, nonreactive pot, combine the chopped pears, sugar, and ginger juice. Cook over medium heat until the fruit can easily be smashed with the back of a wooden spoon. Use a potato masher or immersion blender to break the fruit down into a mostly smooth sauce. Add the liquid pectin and bring to a rolling boil. Let boil for a full 5 minutes.

Remove the pot from the heat and ladle the jam into the prepared jars. Wipe the rims, apply the lids, and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Makes 4 (1-pint) jars



Notes:
• To make ginger juice, shred a 4-ounce hunk of peeled fresh ginger in a blender or food processor with ¼ cup of water. Pour the ginger pulp into a cheesecloth-lined sieve and squeeze out the liquid. Discard the remaining ginger pulp.

• As long as you choose a thin-skinned pear like a Bartlett or Anjou, there is no need to peel the pears for this recipe. I find that the skin just melts into the jam. However, with tougher skinned pears like Bosc, I would recommend peeling before cooking the fruit down into jam.