It’s been a trying week in my kitchen, and it’s only Wednesday. To start out the weekend, I discovered the door to our stand up freezer in the basement was left ajar for a couple of days. It needed a good cleaning out anyways, but still, talk about a waste. Then, to make matters worse, when cooking dinner on Friday evening – the propane tank that fuels the cook top ran out. We only have to have it filled once a year, and I guess it just slipped my mind. That meant going until Monday without a propane delivery. Thankfully, we have a beast of a grill with a handy side burner. It’s saved our butts more times than I can count when we’ve been without electricity for an extended period of time.
However, one thing that I couldn’t do on my trusty grill was preserve the 15 lbs of strawberries we picked on Saturday afternoon. So, we went over to my Mom’s house yesterday to can, and it was a great afternoon. Mom always enjoys spending time with the boys, and it was nice not to have them pulling on my apron strings when I was in the process of canning. Hot jars + boiling water + toddlers just makes me nervous!
I couldn’t be happier with how this jam turned out. At first taste, it’s pure delicious strawberry. But, comin’ up from behind is a lovely smokey, slow burn from the chipotles. I intended to do one batch of this, and one batch of a traditional strawberry jam. But, I loved this so much that I went ahead and did a double batch. I can’t wait to try it mixed into BBQ sauce, brushed onto grilled pork, or making a fun dipping sauce for coconut shrimp. Definitely plan on entering this one into my local fair come August!
Strawberry Chipotle Jam
6 cups strawberries, washed and halved
1 (7 oz) can chipotle chiles in adobo (I used about 3/4 of a can)
6 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 package powdered pectin
In a food processor or blender, process the chilis and berries in a food processor (pulse), being careful not to over process, you want some pieces of berry. Pour berry mixture, lemon juice, and pectin into a large pot.
Cook, over medium-high heat, stirring frequently until mixture comes to a boil. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Return to a rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary.
Immediately pour the hot jam into hot jars and put the lids on. Process in a water bath for 10 minutes.
Source: adapted from SB Canning and The Ball Blue Book Guide To Preserving
