The farmers are saying that we’re going to have the longest strawberry season in history this year, which means there’s no excuse not to make strawberry rhubarb jam! I hope it’s the same where you are. While I can just eat a gallon of strawberries all by themselves, I love the flavor that rhubarb adds when you combine them. Since they’re both around in the Spring it just makes sense to eat them together and what better way them in jam that you can enjoy all year. If you have some left over, try a rhubarb pound cake or a rhubarb galette.
Where can you find rhubarb
In the Carolinas, it’s very difficult to find local rhubarb. The reason is that rhubarb is a perennial that grows mostly in the North because temperatures need to be below 40º in the winter and around 75º in the summer. Around here it rarely gets below 75º in the summer. If you’re in an area that grows rhubarb, you might find these tips helpful.
Apparently, you can still grow rhubarb in the South if you treat it as an annual. Plant it in the fall and it should come up in the Spring. I may have to give it a try this year. In the meantime, I have to rely on Whole Foods, where I found some great looking rhubarb.
How do you make strawberry rhubarb jam:
How do you CAN strawberry jam
I was a little nervous about the canning process, but I promise this is so easy. You will need a large canning pot, $59.97 on Amazon and it included a utensil kit.
Step 1: When you start cooking your fruit, turn on the heat for your canning pot, it takes forever to bring that much water to a boil.
Step 2: Once it comes to a boil add the jars to sterilize them for about 10 minutes. Also sterilize the lids by pouring some of the the boiling water into a small sauce pan, let them dry on a clean towel while the jam is cooking.
Step 3: Ladle the jam into the jars and wipe off any jam that got on the rim with a wet paper towel. Add the lid and then the rim, tighten slightly and place the jars back in the water bath letting them boil for 10 minutes.
Step 4: Remove and let them cool. Within just a few minutes you will hear the lids pop. Once they are cooled, make sure the lids are sealed by pushing on them. If they indent, then it didn’t seal and you should put that jar in the fridge to eat now. All mine have sealed so far.
If you need more details go to the National Center for Home Food Preservation.
If you love strawberries, here’s some of my favorite strawberry desserts
- Slab pie
- Cobbler
- Scones
- Cake
- Lemon Shortcake
- Spinach salad
- Biscuits
- Fruit pastry braid
- Coconut crisp bars
Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
Ingredients
- 1 lb strawberries diced
- 1 lb rhubarb diced
- 1 ½ cups sugar
Instructions
- Wash fruit. Dice strawberries into quarters. Dice rhubarb into 1/2 inch slices and place both in a large bowl. Add sugar and gently stir to combine. Let sit for 1 hour.
- Fill canning pot with enough water to cover the jars you are using and let it come to a boil while you are cooking the fruit. This will take 15 minutes or so. When it comes to a boil, add empty jars to sterilize for 10 minutes. Remove and place on a clean towel to dry. For the lids, place some of the boiling water in a small pan and place lids in the hot water. Remove to a clean towel to dry.
- Add fruit to a saucepan at least twice as large as the amount of fruit you have. Bring to a rapid boil and cook over high heat for about 10-15 minutes until it thickens. It will make a sizzle sound when you pull the fruit away from the edge of the pan when it is done.
- Remove the jam from the heat and using a funnel, pour it into the clean jars. Wipe the rims and add the lids and then tighten the rings so that it’s finger tight.
- Place the jars in a rack in the water and boil for 10 minutes. Start the timer when the water starts to boil. Carefully remove the jars to a towel to cool. The lids should make a popping sound as they seal. Once cool, check them to make sure they have sealed. If the lid does not make a noise when you push on it, then they have sealed.
Your ingredients are identical to your recipe. Maybe a plug-in error or something? There are no ingredients listed. Thanks. And I really wanted to print this recipe. It looks delicious!
Thanks so much for catching that. I have corrected it!