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Easy raspberry jam

During the raspberry season you can buy tons of raspberries for almost nothing at the market. The problem is that they go off very quickly -  sometimes by the time I get home they get squashed in my bag or start becoming soggy. My solution is to deal them immediately -  I select the nice, whole ones to eat (and chill these), freeze those that are not too soft and make jam from the squashed ones. However, I’m too lazy to muck around with the proper jam- making techniques so I’ve developed this super- easy method. The result is just as good as a traditional jam and can be eaten instantly! I stored mine in the fridge and a year later it was still ok! Furthermore, I don’t like my jam too sweet so I halved sugar and added vanilla instead for extra flavour. If you have a sweet tooth use the same amount of sugar as raspberries (the cooking time will much be less). This recipe will make 1 small jar of easy raspberry jam.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Resting Time 4 hours
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings: 8 people
Cuisine: British
Calories: 1234
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 250 g raspberries
  • 125 g sugar more, if desired
  • 2 tsp vanilla paste
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon

Method
 

  1. Put a small plate in the fridge.
  2. Put the strawberries in a saucepan and crush them with a potato masher or fork. Add the sugar and heat gently, stirring with a wooden spoon until the sugar has dissolved.
  3. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil, then cook until you get a thick, sticky jam-like mixture. (The time depends on the ripeness of the raspberries and the amount of sugar you’ve added). Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon.
  4. Take the plate out of the fridge. Drop of little jam onto it, then put it in the fridge for 30 seconds. Run your finger through the drop - if it forms a crinkle and is gluey it’s done. If not, cook and retest until it’s ready.
  5. Discard any scum with a spoon, then mix in in the vanilla paste and lemon juice.
  6. Spoon the jam into a small (about 200 ml) sterilised jar and seal with a lid immediately.
  7. Let it cool then store it a cool place (such as larder, cellar etc). After opening keep it in the fridge.