Plum Jam and Plum Butter

Stephanie's Father-in-Law gave Kay Morrison about a bushel of wild yellow plums.  She, in turn, gave them to me to make jam.  I have been pitting plums for several days.  Today, I pressed them through a colander and then separated the juice and the flesh.  The juice was made into jam and the rest was made into plum butter.  The jars were sterilized in boiling water. I used a water bath to pull the vacuum and set the lids.



Plum Jam
Sterilize 6 1/2 pint jars and lids following the manufacturer's directions.
Wash plums 3 three times to remove any debris or chemicals.  Pit enough plums to make 5 quarts of meats.  Run through a canning colander or a food mill.  Discard skins. Using a mesh sieve, separate the juice from the thicker pulp.  There will still be some pulp in the juice but the juice will be much thinner.  Measure 5 cups of the juice.  Add 4 cups of Sugar and let sit for an hour.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Boil until 2 distinct lines of syrup form on the back of a metal spoon, after dipping in the jam.  This will take a while.  Try not to overcook or undercook the jam.  However, it is better to be a little undercooked than over cooked.  Ladle into hot, sterilized jars, place lids and rings on the tops and put through a 10 minute water bath.

3 cups of Plum Pulp
2 cups of Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoons of Cloves

Sterilize 4 1/2 pint jars with lids, following the manufacturer's directions.
Combine all of the ingredients and cook over medium heat.  Boil until the desired consistency is achieved.  Ladle into hot, sterilized jars, place lids and rings on the tops and put through a 10 minute water bath.

Enjoy!

Deloris