What You Will Need:

– 8 cups blueberries {or 2 quarts or 4 pints}
– 2 cups water
– 4 cups water
– 1 Tbs. grated lemon peel
– 3 cups granulated sugar
– 2 Tbs. lemon juice
– Boiling Water Canner, Canning Jars, Canning Lids/Rings, Lid Lifter, Jar Lifter

Crush blueberries {you can choose to wash them or not- I don’t as I pick mine wild). Combine with 2 cups water and lemon peel in heavy stock pot. Simmer 5 minutes.

 Strain through damp jelly bag or several layers of cheesecloth {I used a fine mesh collander since I don’t mind tiny little pieces slipping through into my syrup}.

Combine granulated sugar with 4 cups water in a stock pot and bring to a 230 degree boil; add blueberry juice and boil 5 minutes. Stir in lemon juice.

Ladle hot syrup into hot jars leaving 1/4 in. headspace. Secure lids and bands and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.

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Blueberry Jam
{Printable Version}

What You Will Need:

-4 cups crushed blueberries {approx. 6-8 cups whole, depending on berry size}
-4 cups sugar
-1 box pectin

Crush berries.. Measure exact amount of crushed berries into a heavy stock pot. Add pectin. Heat on high heat until you reach a full rolling boil (a boil that does not stop when stirred). I stir pretty much constantly to avoid any burning to the bottom of the pot. Once you’ve reached a full rolling boil, quickly stir in your sugar. Return to a full rolling boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, skim foam from the top.
Ladle into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace; wipe jar rim and threads. Secure lids and bands.
Place jars into elevated rack of your boiling water canner. Slowly lower the rack into the boiling water, and once settled at the bottom you should have 1-2 inches of water over the tops of your jars. Cover the canner and boil for 10 minutes. Shut off heat, raise the rack, and carefully remove your jars using a canning jar lifter. Set upright on a towel to cool. Once they are cool, check that your jars have sealed by pressing on the middle of the lid. If the lid springs back, you did not get a proper seal- be sure to put that one in the refrigerator (unless you prefer to reprocess.)
Let jars sit at room temperature for 24 hours before storing in a cool, dry, dark place.

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Blueberry Raspberry Jam
{Printable Version}

What You Will Need:

– 2 cups crushed blueberries (approx. 4 cups whole)
-2 cups crushed raspberries (approx. 4 cups whole)
– 2 Tbs. lemon juice
-5 cups sugar
-1 box pectin

Crush berries.. Measure exact amount of crushed berries into a heavy stock pot. Add lemon juice and pectin. Heat on high heat until you reach a full rolling boil (a boil that does not stop when stirred). I stir pretty much constantly to avoid any burning to the bottom of the pot. Once you’ve reached a full rolling boil, quickly stir in your sugar. Return to a full rolling boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, skim foam from the top.
Ladle into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace; wipe jar rim and threads. Secure lids and bands.
Place jars into elevated rack of your boiling water canner. Slowly lower the rack into the boiling water, and once settled at the bottom you should have 1-2 inches of water over the tops of your jars. Cover the canner and boil for 10 minutes. Shut off heat, raise the rack, and carefully remove your jars using a canning jar lifter. Set upright on a towel to cool. Once they are cool, check that your jars have sealed by pressing on the middle of the lid. If the lid springs back, you did not get a proper seal- be sure to put that one in the refrigerator (unless you prefer to reprocess.)
Let jars sit at room temperature for 24 hours before storing in a cool, dry, dark place.

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Blueberries: Frozen
{Printable Version}

Spread berries, one cup at a time, out on a cookie sheet. Pick out any leaves, stems, bugs, and any undesirable berries such as those that are under ripe, overripe, moldy, damaged, etc. Fill the cookie sheet so that there is a single layer of berries. Place in the freezer for a couple hours or until frozen. Measure them out into freezer bags; remove as much of the air as possible from the bag (I stick a drinking straw into the corner of the bag, zip it closed to that point, and suck out the extra air before quickly pulling the straw and fully sealing the bag). Manipulate the berries so that the bag lays flat for easier freezer storage.
Tips: If you pick your berries wild like I do, I strongly suggest NOT washing them to prevent your berries from becoming rubbery. Additionally, I like to double-bag my berries for added freezer protection. Typically, I use quart bags for freezing the berries, and them layer several of them into gallon freezer bags. They keep for a year in the freezer this way.

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How do you preserve your blueberry harvest?

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Shared at:
Simply Natural Saturdays