Strawberry Honey

About 5 jars

Ingredients

  • 4 cups (1000 ml) finely crushed, fully ripe sweet strawberries (do not purée)
  • 1 cup (250 ml) strawberry juice*
  • 1 pkg (49 g) BERNARDIN No Sugar Needed Fruit Pectin
  • 1-1/2 cups (375 ml) liquid honey

Description

  1. Place 5 clean 250 ml mason jars on a rack in a boiling water canner; cover jars with water and heat to a simmer (180°F/82°C). Set screw bands aside. Heat SNAP LID® sealing discs in hot water, not boiling (180°F/82°C). Keep jars and sealing discs hot until ready to use. Combine strawberries and juice in a large, deep stainless steel saucepan. Add Fruit Pectin, stirring until dissolved. Stirring occasionally, bring mixture to a boil. Add honey. Stirring frequently, return mixture to a full boil; boil 3 minutes.
  2. Ladle hot mixture into a hot jar to within 1/4 inch (0.5 cm) of top of jar (headspace). Using non-metallic utensil, remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if required, by adding more mixture. Wipe jar rim removing any food residue. Centre hot sealing disc on clean jar rim. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight. Return filled jar to rack in canner. Repeat for remaining Strawberry Honey.
  3. When canner is filled, ensure that all jars are covered by at least one inch (2.5 cm) of water. Cover canner and bring water to full rolling boil before starting to count processing time. At altitudes up to 1000 ft (305 m), process –boil filled jars – 10 minutes.*
  4. When processing time is complete, remove canner lid, wait 5 minutes, then remove jars without tilting and place them upright on a protected work surface. Cool upright, undisturbed 24 hours; DO NOT RETIGHTEN screw bands. l After cooling check jar seals. Sealed lids curve downward and do not move when pressed. Remove screw bands; wipe and dry bands and jars. Store screw bands separately or replace loosely on jars, as desired. Label and store jars in a cool, dark place. For best quality, use home canned foods within one year.

Notes

To prepare fresh berry juice, wash and thoroughly crush 4 cups (1 L) fully ripe strawberries or raspberries. Pour mixture into a dampened jelly bag or cheesecloth lined strainer suspended over a bowl. Let drip 2 hours. If desired, squeeze bag to extract juice. If you do not get a full 1 cup (250 ml) juice, add water to yield this measure.

Do not substitute pectins. This recipe requires Bernardin No Sugar Needed Fruit Pectin, a unique product that gels with little or no added sweetener.