This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bernardin. All opinions are 100% mine.
I didn’t grow up with Saskatoon berries inhabiting my palette, but the first time I had a bite of my mother-in-law’s Saskatoon pie, I was hooked. The Saskatoon berry, also called serviceberry, juneberry, and I personally like to call them prairie berries. Whatever you want to call they, they are a summer essential here. I planted six Saskatoon plants in my backyard 5 years ago, and this year they are finally hitting their stride and producing big, juicy, round purple berries for us to enjoy. The boys absolutely love eating them fresh off the plant, and I am so excited I had enough of my own to make jam for the very first time!
Saskatoon Berry Jam
- 9 cups whole Saskatoon berries
- 4 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 package (49 – 57 g) powdered fruit pectin
- 6 cups sugar
First things first, find a friend, wild patch of Saskatoons or a Saskatoon farm and go picking! Get ready to have purple-stained hands from picking these juicy berries, and you’ll need approximately 9 cups, at least 8-9 cups will yield the 4.5 cups of crushed berries you need to make this jam.
Gather all of your Bernardin canning supplies, (Canadian Tire Canning landing page) including:
- Bernardin jars, brand new smooth jars are now available
- Canning pot with wire rack
- Funnel
- Jar lifter
- Lid lifter
- Tongs
- Bubble remover
- Towels
Fill your canning pot with water, about 1″ above the jars you’re going to use and get that boiling, it takes quite awhile to heat up.
Now, let’s get that jam ready! In a large and deep stainless steel pot, dump all of your Saskatoon berries in and mash them with your choice of weapon. Don’t worry if they’re not all mashed, we can take care of that later.
Add lemon juice and stir to combine with the crushed berries. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Add the sugar in all at once bring to a full rolling boil (a boil that doesn’t start and stop, that is continuous). Boil hard for 1 minute, constantly stirring. Remove jam from heat, and using a hand-held immersion blender, carefully blend jam until smooth. This is optional, but I love me a smooth jam! Skim off any foam if you have, I don’t usually have any.
Once your canner is boiling, remove jars, a couple at a time, and ladle hot jam using funnel and leave 1/4″ headspace. Remove the air bubbles, wipe the rim, place the lid on the jar and screw on the band to fingertip-tight. Repeat until no more jam is left.
Place the jars of jam back into canner, ensuring that they are completely covered with water and bring to a full rolling boil. Process for 10 minutes and then remove the canner lid, wait for 5 minutes and remove jars, placing them on a towel on your counter to cool and then store.
- 9 cups whole Saskatoon berries
- 4 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 packaged powdered fruit pectin (49 - 57 g)
- 6 cups sugar
- Fill your canning pot with water, about 1" above the jars you're going to use and get that boiling, it takes quite awhile to heat up.
- In a large and deep stainless steel pot, dump all of your Saskatoon berries in and mash them with your choice of weapon. Don't worry if they're not all mashed, we can take care of that later.
- Add lemon juice and stir to combine with the crushed berries. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Add the sugar in all at once bring to a full rolling boil and boil hard for 1 minute, constantly stirring.
- Remove jam from heat, and using a hand-held immersion blender, carefully blend jam until smooth. This is optional, but I love me a smooth jam! Skim off any foam if you have, I don't usually have any.
- Once your canner is boiling, remove jars, a couple at a time, and ladle hot jam using funnel and leave ¼" headspace. Remove the air bubbles, wipe the rim, place the lid on the jar and screw on the band to fingertip-tight. Repeat until no more jam is left.
- Place the jars of jam back into canner, ensuring that they are completely covered with water and bring to a full rolling boil. Process for 10 minutes and then remove the canner lid, wait for 5 minutes and remove jars, placing them on a towel on your counter to cool and then store.
Recipe adapted from Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving.
This is one of the best jams that I have ever made, and it tastes almost exactly like the Saskatoon pie filling my mother-in-law makes. I really hope you enjoy this delicious prairie berry jam, especially if you’ve never used them before!
Be sure to pick up the Bernardin’s new, modern-looking smooth 500 ml or 1 litre smooth jars, available at Walmart, Canadian Tire and London Drugs (in western Canada). You can get a coupon here and make yourself some delicious jam this summer.
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