Yes, I know what you may be thinking…”Strawberry season? I thought that was in the summer…?” You are right, strawberry season is in the summer around here. However, when a friend of mine got an ad in the mail for our local grocery store, strawberries were listed at $0.97 a pound!! She discovered that this year Florida’s strawberry season has been very late, and is coinciding with California’s strawberry season…good news for us canners!!
Ideally, I would have loved to have gotten these strawberries more locally, maybe even from my farmer’s market, but the lure of the deal I would be getting got the best of me. At least the strawberries are from this country.
I used the recipe for Strawberry Jam by Food In Jars to process my strawberries. I loved the idea of using vanilla beans and lemon zest for a warmer, more interesting flavor. Additionally, many other recipes that I saw used much more sugar, sometimes twice as much. I like my preserves to taste more like the fruit itself then like candy.
Preserving for the first time this year showed me how much I had already learned in canning, as well as how much I have yet to learn. I know the process well, sterilize, cook, fill, process, cool. But I have so much more to learn about the art of canning. It takes so much intuition and experience. My jam turned out delicious, but a bit on the loose side. I know that as I can more and more fruits and vegetables, I will be able to tell when a recipe is not going exactly as planned, and hopefully will know how to fix the problem.
Not all was lost for this “jam”, however. Last night I threw together one of the tastiest desserts I have had in a long time…crepes with strawberry syrup and powdered sugar!
Crepes – Adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons of melted butter (plus more for oiling the pan)
- dash of salt
- dash of vanilla or a bit of vanilla bean
- Mix flour and eggs as well as you can. Slowly add 1 cup of milk, whisking to eliminate lumps of flour. Add butter, salt, and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
- With a medium skillet over medium-high heat, melt a small bit of butter to coat. Pour 1/4-1/3 cup of crepe batter, and tilt the pan to coat the bottom. Cook until golden, then flip. When the second side is done, spread a small bit of butter over the crepe. Fold or roll crepe and place on plate. Repeat with remainder of batter.
- Lightly dust the crepes with powdered sugar, and drizzle with warm strawberry syrup (or your favorite topping). Eat all of them!!
It was so great to start the season with a big canning adventure! How do you feel about canning with food bought from the grocery store vs. local food?
I’m so glad you liked the addition of the vanilla bean! I am sorry to hear that your jam turned out a little runnier than you wanted though. If you’re really unhappy with it, you can undo the jars, reheat the jam, bring it up to 220 degrees and recan it.
Happy canning!
Thanks for the tip, Marisa! And thanks also for the great recipe…I really am not unhappy with the jam, I am actually looking forward to trying it on some vanilla icecream :-D. Also, I just want to let you know, I have really enjoyed reading your food adventures on your blog! Everything you make looks so delicious, and you have inspired my passion for jars!!
Thanks for the canning adventure!
J had some with pancakes and absolutely loved it!
I am 99% sure that the loose consistency and our greater yield are related…but it is a consistency that I am willing to use for toast, etc, so I am not upset.
Thanks for the recipe. We have just started trying to do a little canning in our apartment. Since we live in FL, all of these strawberries are actually local!! The farm truck sets up down the street from us in the parking lot. I had one batch of runny jam this year using just the recipe from the pectin box. We will have to try again with Marisa’s recipe. Yum!
That looks so yummy! My mouth is watering. Now I won’t be satisfied until I make crepes with strawberries.
My local grocery store had a similar sale – 99 cents a pound. I have 4 pounds sitting in my refrigerator that I’m going to make jam with :) I’m new to canning too, but I love it!
Oh this looks delicious! I love strawberries. I normally eat them fresh with my yoghurt for breakfast. Strange, but I can seldom buy locally grown strawberries in my own country. I just hate it when I see they are imported and cost a lot more. Where is all the locally grown tomatoes, avocado and other stuff? I heard we export all our local produce as the farmers get more money that way. Hmph!