For me, cranberries belong to the Christmas season! Maybe because of their colour? Therefore, this Cranberry Christmas Jam can't fail on our breakfast table during this season. The spices and red wine definitely add an extra bit of holiday spirit to it.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time20 minutesmins
Resting Time1 dayd
Total Time1 dayd40 minutesmins
Course: Breakfast, Lunch, Sweets, Tea Time
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Keyword: Christmas, Jam
Servings: 7jars of 370g each
Equipment
Clean and sterilised jars for filling
Ingredients
700gfresh cranberries
500gapplespeeled and chopped
3clementinesboth the zest and the juice
500mlred wine
300mlapple juicewithout added sugar
3cinnamon sticks
8juniper berries
8cloves
500gjam sugarsee notes
Instructions
Rinse the cranberries and add to a large pan together with the peeled and chopped apples, the clementine zest and juice
Using a pestle and mortar, crush the spices and put them in a tea bag. Add to the pan
Add the wine and apple juice and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let simmer until the cranberries start to open up and release their juices
Leave to cool. Once cooled down, add the jam sugar, put a lid on and store in a cool place for 24-48 hours
Prepare your jars and lids by cleaning and sterilising them
Cook your jam according to the instructions on the package and carefully fill your jars. Close them immediately and put them upside down for at least five minutes
Notes
Basically, jam sugar is regular sugar with added pectin. It's the pectin that thickens the jam. Pectin is naturally present in most fruits (especially apples). When making jam, I like to use jam sugar that is less sweet. Regular jam sugar uses a ratio of 1:1 meaning that the amounts of fruit and sugar are equal. The sugar that I like to use requires a 2:1 ratio: the amount of fruit you use is twice the amount of sugar that you use. Cooking times vary as well. Therefore check the instructions on your jam sugar before you start!
By nature, both cranberries and apples have a large amount of pectin. Therefore, I have added extra liquids (wine and apple juice) to make sure that the jam won't be too thick.
If you prefer your jam to be a little more smooth than use a stick blender to mix the fruits. Make sure you take out the tea bag with spices before!
When using sterilised jars, you can keep your jam for about six months in a dry and cool place.