Turn your pumpkin decorations to jam

In my last post I wrote about autumn decorations, and about taking advantage of the harvest season and decorate with fruit and vegetables such as apples and pumpkins. But what do you do with all these apples and pumpkins when it’s time to change the decorations for a more wintery theme? There are so many things you can do with apples; apple cordial, apple sauce, apple pies… the list is long! It’s more difficult when it comes to the pumpkins!

Many people don’t see their autumn/Halloween pumpkin decorations as anything else than just a decoration, but you can definitely take advantage of this fruit (Yes, I’m calling it a fruit, cause although it is treated like a vegetable, it is technically a fruit.). The most common thing to make with pumpkins are pumpkin pies, but I’m stepping away from the tradition, and I’m now going to share a recipe for pumpkin jam;

Ingredients:

    825g pumpkin puree

    1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

    1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

    1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

    1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

    1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

    55g dry pectin

    900g caster sugar

Preparation time: 15 minutes     Cooking time: 10 minutes

Mix pumpkin puree, spices and dry pectin in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil. Mix in sugar all at once. Stirring constantly, return to a full boil and boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Transfer immediately to sterile containers. Seal and chill in the refrigerator until serving.

It’s the simplest pumpkin jam recipe I could find, with a cooking time of only 25 minutes. It’s a perfect autumn jam, and if you put it in some pretty jam jars with homemade labels on, this jam would be a perfect autumn present for your nearest and dearest. You can find really pretty old fashioned jam jars at Wares of Knutsford, who are professionals in preserving equipment.