I made some jam last night from the wild blackberries. It’s really easy, anyone can do it and I encourage you to give it a go 
To make 2 jars of jam you will need:
- 3 cups of berries: raspberries, loganberries, blackcurrants – I used wild blackberries
- 2 ¾ cups of sugar
A bit of a disclaimer: I am not a jam making pro, I’ve only done it a couple of times. But I am amazed each time at how easy it is and how yummy the jam is – give it a go, I don’t think you can go too wrong!
Wash your berries thoroughly. As you measure out the berries do a quality check on them.
If there are any that are showing signs of rot – like the ones shown here – send them to the compost bin.
Put the berries in a big pot. They should fill no more than a third of the pot as the jam will get bigger as we make it. Turn the heat onto medium to boil the berries.
While they are heating up, start to sterilise your jars. It is really important that your jars are really clean, so give them a good wash. Then you sterilise them by boiling the jars in a pot of water. Really your jar should be fully immersed in the boiling water (my pots are on the small size!) so if you’re doing a lot of jam making you might want to use the oven method: put your jars in the oven at 120 C for 30 minutes.
When your berries are boiling, start to gradually add the sugar. Stir it with a wooden spoon as you add the sugar, ensuring each addition of sugar is dissolved before adding more. The sugar turns into syrup and will fill up the pot.
When all of the sugar is added, boil the jam rapidly for around 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to stop it sticking to the bottom of the pot. If you find scum rising to the top, gently scrap it out with a spoon. As your jam boils, test to see if the jam is setting by dipping a tea spoon in and tipping a small amount onto a cold plate. The jam should start to form a skin on it as it cools.
Now carefully take your sterile jar from the water and pour the jam into the jar. Quickly put the lid on. As the jam cools, the ‘button’ on the lid will compress inwards. If this happens your jam can safely be stored for months.
