Blueberry Jam – A Beautiful Mess

This homemade blueberry jam is made with just three ingredients: fresh blueberries, sugar, and lemon. Not only is it super easy to make, it’s also super delicious! I love spreading this blueberry jam on peanut butter toast or on a bagel with cream cheese.

I often make this blueberry jam recipe using fresh blueberries, but some tips include using frozen berries instead if you have them on hand.

Related: Next, try strawberry jam, peach jam, pumpkin butter, and apple butter.

material

• blueberry
• Granulated sugar
• lemon

Most of the time, I use fresh blueberries when making this jam, but here are some notes if you want to use frozen blueberries instead.

direction

Remove the stems from the blueberries and wash them thoroughly.

In a medium to large saucepan, add the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Heat over medium heat until the sugar is liquid and the blueberries are tender (3 minutes).

Use a hand blender to puree the mixture – I like my blueberry jam fairly smooth, but you can leave it with a coarser texture if you prefer.

Continue cooking on medium/high heat for another 10 minutes. The mixture should be boiling over low heat. The temperature should be between 210°F and 220°F. Keep stirring, being careful not to burn the bottom of the pan.

Remove from heat and allow to cool – the jam will thicken as it cools. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for at least 2 weeks.

Tips and Alternatives

• If you use frozen blueberries instead of fresh, thaw the blueberries before beginning this recipe and discard any excess juice, which you can use to flavor water or tea. Not discarding the excess liquid won’t ruin the jam, but it may be less thick or you may need to cook the jam on the stove for a little longer.
• If you want to change things up a bit, you could also swap out the lemon for another citrus fruit — I think orange pairs really well with blueberries, but lime or grapefruit would also be fun.
• If you want to add a bit more flavor variety, try swapping out the granulated sugar for brown sugar, adding a pinch of cinnamon, or adding half a teaspoon of vanilla extract to this simple recipe.