Strawberry Orange Freezer Jam

Strawberry Orange Freezer jam is a citrusy twist on everyone's favorite homemade jam.

Bulk Items Used: Sugar

I recently came into a lot of strawberries. One might even say "a bulk amount" of strawberries. And what does one do with a bulk amount of strawberries? Uh duh, make jam!

I somehow survived 24 years of my life without tasting homemade strawberry jam. Then one day my husband's grandma brought over a jar of jam she had just finished making. My husband was at work and I tried a little bit on a piece of toast...

I'm pretty sure my husband never new that jar of jam existed. In my defense, pint jars are really small.

After that I went on a jam making kick, trying all sorts of different flavors. But it's hard to top good ole strawberry. Until.....

I give you Homemade Strawberry Orange Jam!

It's just that little extra flavor of orange that takes this jam over the top and makes it the best in the world.

Tips for Making Homemade Strawberry Orange Jam

• After making both cooked jam recipes and freezer jam recipes, I've decided I'm a bigger fan of how the freezer jam turns out. The flavor is closer to biting into a freshly picked, juicy strawberry.

• To make this recipe I closely follow the instructions on the pectin box that I use. I've tried to make this jam "healthier" before by adding less sugar, but trust me, it just doesn't work out. If you don't want to use quite as much sugar, be sure to get the boxes of pectin that are labeled "less sugar." It still seems like a lot of sugar, but just come to terms with it. If you don't want a runny mess, you've got to follow the recipe.
  
  Another important thing to note is that you need to follow the instructions of the pectin that you have. There are different brands of pectin, and their instructions may be a little different from each other. Make sure to follow the instructions on the pectin that you have if it is different from SureJell, which is the brand I am using. If you are a food science nerd and want to take a deeper dive into understanding the world of pectin, I highly recommend this article, "Canning: Pecking about Pectin."

• Make sure to thoroughly wash both your strawberries and your orange peel before using in the jam. You don't want organism or dirt hanging out in your jam. The best way it to rinse them under cold running water. Don't soak the berries in water, because it will cause them to loose color, flavor and vitamin C.

• It's always a good idea to wash the jars you are storing the jam in before using them. Hot, soapy water does the trick! You'll also want to use fresh jar lids.

I cannot recommend this ☝️ situation enough. If you're looking for some amazing homemade bread to slather this tasty jam on, check out "The Best Whole Wheat Bread."