The favorite delicacy that good housewives pamper their households in the winter is, of course, jam. Prepared from berries and fruits, which absorbed sunlight all summer, it raises the mood and gives strength, especially if you eat it with hot tea and with your family.
Fragrant Workpieces
Summer, holidays, the village ... Those who were fortunate enough to spend time with their grandmothers in childhood must remember the best memories of these wonderful days. And, of course, it is unlikely that we will be able to forget the smell that almost every village house is filled with during the ripening of berries and fruits - the smell of jam. And how wonderful the delicious raspberry jam smells!
The industriousness of our mothers and grandmothers can generally be envied, because how much effort and patience you need to make to fill the shelves with pickles, marinades, stewed fruit and all that is usually stocked up for the winter.
Modern young housewives, who are trying to keep up with the more experienced ones, have a hard time, because homemade preparations take a lot of time and energy, plus experience and proven recipes are very important. In order not to fall face down into the mud, you can use easier ways to please your family with homemade goodies. The first step may be to prepare raspberry jam according to a simplified recipe.
Note to the young housewives
It is not necessary to spend the last summer days scurrying around the stove to make a couple of jars of jam. Try to make jam that does not require cooking, and you will love this method. It will take ripe fruits or berries, sugar and 15 minutes of time.
Such raw jam is much more useful, because it does not undergo any heat treatment, which means that all vitamins and nutrients are fully preserved. The taste of raw jam is not as rich and delicate as that of cooked jam, but it closely resembles the taste of fresh fruits.
Storage conditions for raw jam are also different. You need to store it in the refrigerator or in a very cold basement, and for longer storage you can even freeze it.
Why is raspberry
Raspberry jam without cooking, the recipe of which will be given below, is very tasty and healthy. They recommend starting experiments on cooking raw jam with this particular berry. Raspberries contain a huge list of substances useful for the body:
- Vitamin C - strengthens the immune system, strengthens bones and teeth, promotes wound healing;
- Vitamin B - normalizes the nervous system;
- Vitamin A - improves vision, is responsible for skin health, growth and skeleton formation;
- Vitamin PP - normalizes the work of the stomach, improves blood circulation, fights cancer cells;
- as well as glucose, magnesium, iron, essential oils and many others.
Raspberry jam helps with colds due to its antipyretic and anti-inflammatory properties. And raspberries improve appetite.
Children especially love raspberry jam, but this delicacy should be fed in moderation, because it contains a lot of sugar. If your baby is allergic, then pay your attention to yellow and aronia raspberries (yes, yes, this also exists).
Raspberry jam without cooking. Recipe
To make raw raspberry jam you will need: 1 kg of berries and 1 kg and a little more sugar. To start, the berries should be washed and dried. Raspberry in its structure is a very delicate berry, so you should not wash it under the tap - it will fall apart and become watery. Rinse the berries in a bowl of water, then transfer them to a colander and let the water drain.
Raspberries need to be mashed with sugar and allowed to infuse for several hours until completely dissolved. It is better to make jam in the evening and leave it in a warm place so that it is definitely ready by morning. Sugar can be replaced with powdered sugar, then cooking raspberry jam will go faster.
Pour the finished treat into sterilized jars, sprinkle with sugar, close the lid and boldly send your raspberry jam without cooking to the refrigerator. The recipe can be improved, for example, add currant berries or sour lemon juice.
Quick jam for the winter
Tasty raspberry jam, which undergoes heat treatment, but retains useful substances in berries, is called “five-minute” by the housewives. We prepare berries for such a jam, as in raspberry jam without boiling, the recipe will differ only in the amount of sugar. For 1 kg of berries, take 800 grams of sugar.
Rub raspberries and sugar together, leave for several hours, and then put the resulting homogeneous mass on low heat and cook until sugar is completely dissolved. Then we intensify the fire and cook another 5 minutes. Five-minute raspberry jam is ready!
Pour the hot jam into the jars, close it tightly or roll it up, turn it down with a lid and cover it with a blanket so that the jars cool down slowly. This jam is stored in a cool dark place.
Pectin
Despite the presence of a large amount of sugar, raw raspberry jam turns out to be quite liquid. In order to get thick raspberry jam, pectin must be added to it. There is nothing harmful in this, because pectin is a natural gelling substance of plant origin. It is made from fruits and vegetables, such as apples, citrus fruits, sugar beets , etc.
Today you can buy pectin of various brands, but it is very important to adhere to the instructions on the packaging. Under the influence of high temperatures, pectin loses its properties, so it is added at the end of cooking. If you want to make raspberry jam thicker without boiling, the recipe must be supplemented with special pectin, the product with which can be stored in the refrigerator or frozen.
The main advice that all hostesses give: pectin should be mixed very well, otherwise jelly lumps will form in the jam.
Important: clean can and proper lid
One of the reasons why jam or any other preparations will not be stored is unsterilized dishes. Many ways have been invented to sterilize cans: steamed, in a pot of boiling water, in a microwave, in a double boiler, some even manage to sterilize dishes with alcohol.
We recommend using the most convenient and proven way - in the oven. You need to wash the cans and put them wet in the cold oven with the neck down. Then turn on the gas and set the temperature to about 160-170 degrees. Sterilization in this way takes about 10 minutes, but you should not immediately remove the cans from the hot oven. You just need to turn off the gas, open the door and let the glass container cool.
How to close raspberry jam
As for the lids, it is most convenient to boil them in a pan with water for about 10 minutes, but this must be done immediately before use. Jam prepared in the traditional way is best rolled up, but five-minute raspberry jam and raw jam are best closed with a plastic cover or a metal lid with carvings.