Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam

June 20, 2018 The Provident Princess 0 Comments

I am loving summer already. Yes, it's fun having the kids home from school and having tons of fun and crazy adventures; but what I am really excited about is my garden! I transplanted my strawberries last fall because they weren't doing great where they were and now they are producing abundantly. So in honor of my first strawberry harvest this season, I am so excited to share my favorite strawberry freezer jam recipe with you all.


It is so healthy. Made with low sugar and chia seeds for extra protein and fiber. It is delicious on toast. or my oldest loves it on waffles instead of syrup. I also mix it into plain whole milk yogurt for my babies.

This recipe is so fast and such an easy way to save money on organic jam. And if you have been interested in canning but didn’t know where to start, this is the perfect gateway into the world of canning and preserving. I know it can seem intimidating, but try this freezer jam recipe first. It is so easy and fast, and will be the perfect confidence builder to try one of the many other step-by-step recipes I have on the blog. 

Read on for my super easy, low sugar, Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam and stay tuned on the blog for many more healthy, plant-based, low cost, real food recipes and ideas.

Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam
Ingredients:
·        3 cups strawberries, chopped
·        ¼ cup non-gmo sugar or honey -(I know a lot of people love to use honey because of its health benefits but it isn’t worth it to use in this recipe. This recipe gets heated, just for a bit, but it is enough to kill any of the beneficial things in honey. So I use cane sugar and save my raw honey for when it will make a difference. It is non-gmo and way less expensive than raw honey.
·        2 Tbsp ground chia seeds- you can totally use chia seeds whole but I just don’t like the texture or look of all the seeds so I grind mine. About 1 ½ Tbsp chia seeds will make 2 Tbsp ground. Or just use 2 Tbsp whole.
·        1 Tbsp lemon juice- this helps retain color and texture
2 half pint canning jars

Directions     

1. Combine the sugar and ground chia seeds in a sauce pan and stir til equally distributed. (if you are using whole seeds don’t worry about adding them until you add the lemon at the end. With ground chia seeds it helps to add them to other dry ingredients or they will clump and start to gel immediately after being added to a liquid and it is hard to incorporate them evenly. 

2. Add the chopped strawberries to the sugar and chia seeds. Stir around and let sit for 10 minutes. The sugar will macerate the strawberries helping to release their juices making them break up easier.

 3. Turn on heat to medium and gently mash the berries until they break up a little and reach your desired texture. I like some chunks but mostly spreadable.

4. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes until berries are soft.

5. Take off heat and add lemon juice and whole chia seeds if using. Stir til incorporated evenly. 

6.     Pour into half-pint canning jars and refrigerate for 24 hours then move to freezer. Take one out and enjoy over toast, pancakes or yogurt. 

Cheers, 

PP

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