canning freezer jam?

September 18, 2009 10:49 AM

Can I can freezer jam?

I have a windfall of pears from a friend's tree. I'd like to make this jam . Rather than making freezer jam, I'm wondering if I can use the recipe as is and jar it and process in a hot water bath like other jams/jellies? If not, is there a way to change it to make it appropriate for canning? I like the pear/vanilla combination. I've done a lot of searching but the information is overwhelming (and sometimes conflicting) and I'm not sure where to start. I am not new to canning, but have always used recipes without modification. Thanks!

posted by jengineer to Food & Drink (11 answers total)

You've inadvertently left out the recipe to which you are referring.
posted by torquemaniac at 10:54 AM on September 18, 2009

Freezing things in glass jars is not recommended. You tend to get a lot of broken glass -- and wasted content -- that way. The problem is, no other kind of container available to a home canner could handle the heat in the boiler.

Metal could do it, of course, but I don't think I've ever seen any kind of metal container intended for that purpose (home canning).
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 11:01 AM on September 18, 2009

Response by poster: oops. . .I swear I read that over 2 times before I posted it!

pear vanilla jelly
posted by jengineer at 11:02 AM on September 18, 2009

Or have I misunderstood? You want to use a freezer-jam recipe for room temperature canning?

What I'd be most worried about is making sure there's enough acid in it to prevent botulism. I'd think you'd want to add lemon juice, just to make sure.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 11:04 AM on September 18, 2009

I can quite frequently, both fruit jams and pickles. I would can that recipe in a hot water bath without much worry - the lemon rind and juice will add a fair amount of acidity, which in addition to sugars is what you need to prevent spoilage. In order to be absolutely certain, you can add some citric acid powder or ascorbic acid powder to the recipe just before you can. The stuff I use I get at the supermarket with the canning supplies and is called "Fresh Fruit". Basically, it just takes the pH down a notch to ensure that the microorganism can't survive.
posted by Kurichina at 11:08 AM on September 18, 2009

Totally. I'd water bath it for 10 minutes in 8 oz jars, 15 minutes in 16 oz jars.
posted by plinth at 11:10 AM on September 18, 2009

If you want a vanilla pear jam with canning directions, I found this one.
posted by cabingirl at 11:11 AM on September 18, 2009

I also found a pear vanilla jam recipe that wasn't for the freezer.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:13 AM on September 18, 2009

Response by poster: Awesome, thanks, that's just the information I was looking for. . .vanilla pear jam here I come (and my family will thank you when they get this as part of a holiday gift basket!). And apparently I fail at searching. I've been looking (on and off) for two days and didn't come across those recipes.
posted by jengineer at 11:20 AM on September 18, 2009

Looks like the freezer jam recipe is a repurposed normal jam recipe. There's quite a lot of lemon juice and sugar in it. Also, the recipe linked by cabingirl doesn't include the quantity of lemon juice, but it looks like 2 tbsp is about right.
posted by electroboy at 12:45 PM on September 18, 2009

Oops, sorry, that should be 1/4 c.
posted by electroboy at 12:48 PM on September 18, 2009