Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam

Last weekend we visited my almost 90-year old Grandma for a night. When I saw that the elderly bachelor next door had about four huge rhubarb plants ready for picking, I asked permission of his niece-in-law (who happens to be one of my Grandma's caregivers) to go get some. She was going to harvest some herself and said I should "help myself". So I did, taking about 5 pounds of it.

That evening, when we got home, I took the last 2 quarts of last year's farm-picked strawberries out of the freezer and prepared to make some jam. I had a packet of no sugar/low-sugar Sure Jell and found rhubarb jam recipes online at this site. I looked at all the recipes and decided to devise my own based on what I had and what they recommended. Here is the recipe I made up:

2 pounds chopped rhubarb

2 pounds frozen strawberries (same measurement for fresh, about 8 cups worth)

6 cups sugar

1 packet of the low-sugar/no sugar Sure Jell

I put the chopped rhubarb in a pot and sprinkled 3 cups of sugar on it, then let it sit 2 hours. I then poured 2 and 3/4 cups of sugar on the frozen strawberries in another pot and let those sit and thaw for the 2 hours. I reserved 1/4 cup of sugar to mix with the Sure Jell, as directed on their package.

After about 2 hours of running errands, etc., I came home and boiled water to pour over the jar lids and rings; I just keep them in a plastic container full of the hot water until ready to use. Then I heated the strawberries and their sugar just enough to smash them with a potato masher. I then added them to the bigger pot of rhubarb and sugar. I heated this whole mixture to boiling, stirring often and smashing more with the masher. When at a rolling boil, I added the packet of Sure Jell and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar together. I boiled everything for about one minute more.

Then with a spoon and jar funnel, I quickly put the hot jam into my twelve 1/2 pint jars, which I'd just washed in the dishwasher and was keeping hot in the steamy, closed dishwasher (or trying to, George kept opening it and I kept telling him to wait!). I put the lids and rings on the jars and let them sit on a towel for the next day. After about 24 hours of sitting, I made sure the lids had sealed and then moved the jars to storage.

Let me tell you, this jam is delicious. It has the tangy taste of rhubarb with the sweet taste of strawberry and just enough sugar. It's hard to believe 6 cups of sugar in 12 cups of jam is "low sugar" and I could probably find an even lower-sugar alternative, but I don't mind some sugar in jam since we only eat a teaspoon or two at a time. Sugar is a great preservative and it helps keep the jam a nice red color. We have enjoyed homemade jam all this past year, and we'll be enjoying it all this year too!