WHY MAKE JAM when in the year 2015 it’s very easy to zip right down to the Food Lion and pick up a jar or seven? And what about your mom’s delicious homemade recipe? Here’s my case for chia seed refrigerator jam:
Store-bought or homemade, jam is typically full of sugar.
Making traditional strawberry jam takes a long time, and requires things like “violent” boiling.
If you have small kids like I do, this is not for you.
Instead, we’re making refrigerator chia seed jam with only three ingredients: berries, chia seeds and water. (You could add honey if your berries aren’t quite ripe or just leave it out.) There is no cooking and the only violence involved will be over who gets to lick the spatula. In fact, this is such a tasty and healthy treat, you could certainly serve the kids a bowl of your jam in place of applesauce.
Fresh strawberries and blueberries worked well but you could use frozen too. Just set them out ahead of time to thaw and don’t include any water if you’re using frozen berries. Peaches would also be delicious, so would raspberries, apricots or blackberries. That’s all you need. Fruit and chia seeds.
Why chia seeds? Chia seeds are amazingly nutritious, and like spinach, something I try to incorporate into as many dishes as I can. Chia seeds are:
- high in fiber
- a great source of protein
- bursting with antioxidants
- full of Omega-3 fatty acids (even more than salmon)
They’re also an excellent thickener.
Our chia seed refrigerator jam can be made with ANY FRUIT and the “recipe” is more of a technique.
USE THIS RATIO:
- 1 cup diced fruit, without stems or hulls (we used strawberries and blueberries)
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon honey (optional)
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
HOW TO DO IT:
Use a blender (or potato masher) to process the fruit, water and honey (if using) as chunky or smooth as you like. THEN add the chia seeds. Stir and place in a bowl, jars or any storage container you like. Let it set up overnight so the seeds have time to soak up as much juice as possible.
HOW TO SERVE:
On toast. Over ice cream. Inside tarts. In a bowl. As popsicles–and if you’re going this route, let the seeds set up overnight before freezing. Otherwise your popsicles may have a crispy texture.
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