Peach & Plum Ginger Jam

One more week till September!!! I can't wait!! For multiple reasons! LOTS of Colorado's best produce comes into season in September: blackberries, pears, plums, apples, raspberries, late crop strawberries, ALL of which I am just dying to turn into gorgeous jars of scrumptious preserves! Not to mention the weather is cooling down and I think it's going to actually start feeling like Fall in a matter of weeks... I'm Fall-crazy already, I'm itching for long sleeves and crisp mornings! Until all that gorgeous fruit is ready for me, I have to work with what I can find, because I am seriously addicted to this jamming thing. So when I was making a quick grocery run and saw these beautiful yellow plums on sale, and actually ripe instead of rock hard, the wheels of inspiration started spinning. I just had to make them into jam! I can't ever leave well enough alone though, so it had to be more than just plum jam, right?? I thought ginger immediately, but was a bit wary so I only made half of the batch with ginger, just in case it turned out awful. The plums were plenty sweet, but I wanted a bit more tang to them, so I threw in a few peaches to brighten things up, and it turned out fabulous. A perfect late-Summer treat!

Peach & Plum Ginger Jam
Printable Recipe

5-6 pounds total of peaches and plums, any ratio you prefer
juice of one medium to large lemon (about 3-4 Tb)
1 1/2 cups sugar

2 whole cloves

1/3 cup chopped candied ginger

a tiny pinch of salt

Prepare four half pint jars, their lids, and a canning pot. (Boil the jars and lids to sanitize before using) Place a small plate in the freezer (you're going to use this to test the set of your jam later!).

Wash your fruit, then pit, peel and chop them. Don't peel the plums, the peels are wonderful in this jam. If you like bigger chunks in your jam chop into bigger pieces!  You should end up with 4-5 cups of chopped fruit.

Combine chopped fruit, juice, cloves, ginger, salt, and sugar in a large, non-reactive pot. Make sure there is enough room for the mixture to just about double. Turn heat to medium high and bring to a boil. Boil the jam over high heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring often to keep it from burning. (I like to crush the larger chunks of fruit while cooking, to make the jam just a bit smoother.) To test if your jam is ready, spoon a bit of the jam out onto that plate you put in the freezer, then put the plate back in the freezer for 5 minutes. Pull it back out and gently push across the top of the jam. If it wrinkles up at your touch, it's ready! 

Remove the pot from the heat, find those two cloves, and discard them. Ladle into prepared jars. Wipe rims clean, put the prepared lids and rings on tightly and process in a boiling water canner for 15 minutes. (If you don't have a canner, this batch is so small you could use a large pot! Just make sure to put something in the bottom to keep the jars up off the bottom of the pot, and away from each other, some kind of rack, or small balls of foil work too!)

Remove jars from canner and allow to cool 24 hours on the counter before opening. Check the tops of the jars, make sure the lids are sucked down tight!

This jam is really fun. Sweet, bright, and tangy, with that warmth and kick from the ginger; I've never mixed the two before, but I'm a convert!

You could make this with all plums too, if you've got some great ones! The ginger make it a touch more savory, so you could serve it with crackers and cheese, or with chicken or pork, bake it into muffins and cookies and things... Maybe not so much a PB&J kinda jam, but scrumptious and inspiring! I'm already thinking of new ways to use it...

I had a ton of fun creating this recipe, and I literally did a happy dance around the kitchen when it turned out so delicious. Mom, there's a jar waiting here just for you!

Shared at The Scoop at StoneGable