when life gives you lemons…

…grab some rhubarb and cook yourself a jam!

~Strawberry Rhubarb Jam~

What you’ll need:

• 3 stalks of rhubarb
• 1 box of strawberries (about 16 oz)
• 1 cup sugar
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon

What you’ll do:

Chop up the strawberries and rhubarb

Add the sugar and lemon juice and stir to coat the fruit

Store in the fridge over night (the sugar will begin to suck out the moisture from the fruit)

In a pan, bring to a boil then simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally.  I also used an immersion blender to smooth out the chunks.  It only took maybe 5 seconds to get it soupy smooth, and in retrospect I wish I had left it a little more chunky.  So depending on your desired consistency – blend with caution!

Meanwhile put a saucer into your freezer.  After the hour’s up, the jam will have reduced and thickened like so…

Place a drop of jam onto your chilled saucer and see if it takes on a consistency to your liking.  If it gels and doesn’t run all over the plate, you’ve got yourself a jam!  I used my finger to see if it dripped off or held firm.

Now, proper canning lore involves scalding hot water and other contraptions that I just didn’t have lying around so I simply scrubbed a few recycled glass jars with boiling hot water and poured the hot jam into each one.

I just so happened to have six (yes, six) tubs of peanut butter lying around just waiting to be eaten (courtesy of very kind friend – thanks, Icy!!)

 So this jam was the perfect accompaniment!

Keeps for 4 weeks.  Take that, lemons.