Pineapple Basil Jam

Nothing better than jam and fresh baked bread!

I have a Ball jar problem. I see them in the store and I have to have them. I have stacks of flats in my home and once they're staring me in the face I spend hours in the kitchen playing around with ideas until things work.

This isn't even all of them.

Our farm share has been yielding copious amounts of the most beautiful basil. Now I love pesto as much as the next girl (maybe more, I'm allergic to pine nuts so I have to make my own to ensure it's safe for me) but I wasn't feeling inspired to make some. So I left the basil in the fridge for a few days and was the creepy lady who pulled out the bag occasionally just to sniff it.

I had been toying with the idea of a pineapple jelly when I realized that the flavors would compliment each other. It was a huge hit. Yasmina licked it off of cracker after cracker at dinner and demanded more, I used it to glaze chicken one night, and the cherry on the sundae was that it won both a blue ribbon and a best of show ribbon at our regional fair. (My husband demands that I insert here the fact that I competed against and beat Amish people. Apparently, he is impressed with their jam making skills and this elevates my win.)

She is a big fan of the giant purple ribbon.

I hope you enjoy it! This is actually a great beginner's jam so if you're just starting out try it....

Pineapple Basil Jam
(makes 6 12 oz jelly jars) and a tiny bit extra to go into the fridge for snacking

1 20 oz can of pineapple (you can use crushed or food process rings or chunks)
1 1/2 cups basil, chopped (you can use unpretty basil that has a few spots since you'll be discarding the boiled leaves)
3 cups water
1.75 oz pectin powder (Make sure you weigh this out.)
3 cups sugar

Note: For this recipe you will need prepared canning jars. For instructions on preparing jars for canning visit the Ball website, 2nd question down. You will also need a prepared ladle so keep that in mind and boil it when you do the jars!

1. Boil chopped basil in water for 10 minutes. Take it off the heat, cover &  let it sit for 10 additional minutes. Strain into a bowl discarding the basil and reserving the water. Measure out 2 1/2 cups of the basil water for the jam.


2. Pour can of crushed pineapple into saucepan.
Add the 2 1/2 cups of basil water.






3. Add 3 cups of sugar and bring it up to a rolling boil. A rolling boil means that when it boils and you go to stir it it continues to boil. Stir the mixture with a wooden spoon to ensure that the sugar gets incorporated completely.




4. Add pectin powder to boiling mixture and stir well to mix in. Boil for 1 minute at a high boil.


5. Remove from the heat and use the wooden spoon to skim the foam off the top of the jam. Discard the foam. Using a sterilized ladle fill the prepared jars leaving 1/4" of room at the top (called headspace). I visualize my pinky finger on it's side as the amount of space I need to leave. There is usually about 4-6 oz extra of jam. I put that in a container in the fridge to eat right away.

I did my 1st batch in big jars, then wised up.

6. Process the jars in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Remove them and put them somewhere where they can sit quietly undisturbed for 24 hours. You may here occasional pinging noises as the jars settle that is okay. The next day make sure all the seals are sucked down and discard anything that did not properly seal. Label and date them and store them for later use. Yum :)