I do like the frozen wild blueberries. They have a good strong taste. I purchased 600 grams for $4.79. I also purchased frozen strawberries, same price. Not impressed. Most of the berries were bland, a few were nice and sweet. I checked things out online and found that frozen berries are probably healthier than fresh.

A Moose in Love wrote:
> I do like the frozen wild blueberries. They have a good strong taste. I purchased 600 grams for $4.79. I also purchased frozen strawberries, same price. Not impressed. Most of the berries were bland, a few were nice and sweet. I checked things out online and found that frozen berries are probably healthier than fresh.
>

if you are very finicky about taste of strawberries
it is best to grow your own or go pick your own when
they are ready locally.

the frozen ones are better than the fresh ones in
the middle of winter when you are desperate, but if
you can get the fresh ones and put those up they
are going to be better because they'll be riper than
the mass produced frozen ones.

we take the frozen ones in the winter and i add
some of my strawberry freezer jam to them to make
them much better tasting than anything you can
get shipped in from CA. those tasteless berries
aren't worth the bother. they may look ok but
blech.


songbird

On Monday, August 5, 2019 at 10:46:39 PM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
> A Moose in Love wrote:
> > I do like the frozen wild blueberries. They have a good strong taste. I purchased 600 grams for $4.79. I also purchased frozen strawberries, same price. Not impressed. Most of the berries were bland, a few were nice and sweet. I checked things out online and found that frozen berries are probably healthier than fresh.
> >
>
> if you are very finicky about taste of strawberries
> it is best to grow your own or go pick your own when
> they are ready locally.
>
> the frozen ones are better than the fresh ones in
> the middle of winter when you are desperate, but if
> you can get the fresh ones and put those up they
> are going to be better because they'll be riper than
> the mass produced frozen ones.
>
> we take the frozen ones in the winter and i add
> some of my strawberry freezer jam to them to make
> them much better tasting than anything you can
> get shipped in from CA. those tasteless berries
> aren't worth the bother. they may look ok but
> blech.
>
>
> songbird

My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.

On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 12:19:39 PM UTC-5, A Moose in Love wrote:
>
> My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.
>
Back during the Crusades when I was just barely a teenager there was a jar of
quince seed jam on the kitchen table. Being a goofy teenager I thought it
sounded just disgusting; don't ask me why, you know teenagers can be real
ding-a-lings at times. Anyway, with some trepidation I smeared a bit on
either a biscuit or toast and had no high expectations. Oh my! Much to my
amazement it was simply delicious!!

Can't even find the stuff on grocery shelves now. GRRRRRRRRR I think the
only place I could snag a jar now is at the once-a-month flea market at the
Mennonite stand. The Amish stand would probably have it for sale, too.

A Moose in Love wrote:
....
> My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.

have you ever had strawberry freezer jam?

i don't bother making any other kind of
strawberry jam now.


songbird

On 8/6/2019 1:50 PM, wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 12:19:39 PM UTC-5, A Moose in Love wrote:
>>
>> My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.
>>
> Back during the Crusades when I was just barely a teenager there was a jar of
> quince seed jam on the kitchen table. Being a goofy teenager I thought it
> sounded just disgusting; don't ask me why, you know teenagers can be real
> ding-a-lings at times. Anyway, with some trepidation I smeared a bit on
> either a biscuit or toast and had no high expectations. Oh my! Much to my
> amazement it was simply delicious!!
>
> Can't even find the stuff on grocery shelves now. GRRRRRRRRR I think the
> only place I could snag a jar now is at the once-a-month flea market at the
> Mennonite stand. The Amish stand would probably have it for sale, too.
>

You can buy a jar or buy a case. The Trappist make great preserves. I
always have a jar of strawberry. Have some on toast or English uffin
most days.

https://www.monasterygreetings.com/p...nal-Selections

On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 2:27:23 PM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
> A Moose in Love wrote:
> ...
> > My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.
>
> have you ever had strawberry freezer jam?
>
> i don't bother making any other kind of
> strawberry jam now.
>
>
> songbird

I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and is frozen.
The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is freezer jam made in a different way than regular?

On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 1:25:25 PM UTC-5, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
> You can buy a jar or buy a case. The Trappist make great preserves. I
> always have a jar of strawberry. Have some on toast or English uffin
> most days.
>
> https://www.monasterygreetings.com/p...nal-Selections
>
Yes, but the cost of shipping far outweighs how much I'd enjoy a jar. When-
ever I hit the flea market again and the the Mennonites or Amish are there
I'll spring for a jar.

On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 12:22:22 PM UTC-10, A Moose in Love wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 2:27:23 PM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
> > A Moose in Love wrote:
> > ...
> > > My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.
> >
> > have you ever had strawberry freezer jam?
> >
> > i don't bother making any other kind of
> > strawberry jam now.
> >
> >
> > songbird
>
> I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and is frozen.
> The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is freezer jam made in a different way than regular?

Freezer jam is a jam that is not cooked. The fruit is chopped up and sugar and an acid like lemon juice is mixed in. After the sugar has dissolved, liquid pectin is added which thickens the mix. That result is a fresh fruit spread that some folks like better than the cooked stuff. I've made quite a lot of strawberry freezer jam. It used to be a thing with me. Of course, I made quite a lot of biscuits to go with this tasty spread.

On 2019-08-06 6:22 p.m., A Moose in Love wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 2:27:23 PM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
>> A Moose in Love wrote: ...
>>> My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally
>>> grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small
>>> amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a
>>> jam I didn't like.
>>
>> have you ever had strawberry freezer jam?
>>
>> i don't bother making any other kind of strawberry jam now.
>>
>>
>> songbird
>
> I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and
> is frozen. The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is
> freezer jam made in a different way than regular?
>


It is an easy kind of jam. You add the sugar to the fruit. Heat up some
water with pectin and then mix it with the fruit and put it in plastic
containers and throw them into the freezer. It produces a jam that may
be a little runnier than cooked jam but tastes more like the fresh fruit.

On 8/6/2019 5:36 PM, dsi1 wrote:
> On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 12:22:22 PM UTC-10, A Moose in Love wrote:
>> On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 2:27:23 PM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
>>> A Moose in Love wrote:
>>> ...
>>>> My cousin made a really good strawberry rhubarb jam using locally grown strawberries. Wonderful stuff. She also put in a small amount of nice bitter orange peel. But then, I've never met a jam I didn't like.
>>> have you ever had strawberry freezer jam?
>>>
>>> i don't bother making any other kind of
>>> strawberry jam now.
>>>
>>>
>>> songbird
>> I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and is frozen.
>> The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is freezer jam made in a different way than regular?
> Freezer jam is a jam that is not cooked. The fruit is chopped up and sugar and an acid like lemon juice is mixed in. After the sugar has dissolved, liquid pectin is added which thickens the mix. That result is a fresh fruit spread that some folks like better than the cooked stuff. I've made quite a lot of strawberry freezer jam. It used to be a thing with me. Of course, I made quite a lot of biscuits to go with this tasty spread.

Â* What a great idea ! I think for dinner tonight I'll make a batch of
biscuits to go with that half pint of strawberry jam (home grown home
canned) I opened a couple of nights back . Might as well scramble some
eggs and cook that pound of bacon that's in the fridge too ... I counted
a couple of weeks ago , we have over 50 jars of home made jam down in
the cellar . Not much room in the freezer , it's usually full of meat .

--
Snag
Yes , I'm old
and crochety - and armed .
Get outta my woods !

On Tuesday, August 6, 2019 at 2:02:12 PM UTC-10, Terry Coombs wrote:
>
> Â* What a great idea ! I think for dinner tonight I'll make a batch of
> biscuits to go with that half pint of strawberry jam (home grown home
> canned) I opened a couple of nights back . Might as well scramble some
> eggs and cook that pound of bacon that's in the fridge too ... I counted
> a couple of weeks ago , we have over 50 jars of home made jam down in
> the cellar . Not much room in the freezer , it's usually full of meat .
>
> --
> Snag
> Yes , I'm old
> and crochety - and armed .
> Get outta my woods !

Biscuits and freezer jam always made me happy. In the old days, we were living in San Bruno CA, across from SFO. We had biscuits and jam one morning in our little kitchen as the sun was streaming in. Back then, people would listen to the radio for entertainment. The news we were getting was that there was some kind of occurance at the Three Mile Island nuclear power generation plant. My sister-in-law was talking about a co-worker at UAL who had a mystery disease which was causing him to waste away. In 1979, nobody had heard of AIDS. We didn't know that these things were going to be a part of American history - we were just happy to be together in that sunny kitchen eating biscuits.

A Moose in Love wrote:
....
> I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and is frozen.
> The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is freezer jam made in a different way than regular?

yes it is different as the fruit is not cooked. if you
like lemon juice it really makes the bright notes of the
strawberries stand out. i add extra lemon juice.

the basic technique is simple, clean the fruits, mash
some of them up and you can leave some larger chunks if
you want them, i just mash it all up, measure out what
is needed, add sugar, stir a bit and then leave it sit
for about 10 minutes, by then most of the sugar has
dissolved, you can stir it a bit at this point to get
more of the sugar dissolved, i'm not that picky. then
you add pectin and lemon juice and stir for a bit to
make sure that is fully incorporated, then you can put
it in containers and let them sit for a bit and then
put them in the freezer or refridgerator. frozen it
will keep a year or two (i seal the jars using budget
canning lids that have been warmed up and then i put
a ring on and tighten it well). you have to leave
enough room in the jars for expansion during freezing
but otherwise i don't have problems with the jars in
the freezer.

i usually use liquid pectin, it is fairly expensive
so i may do something else in the future or just not
make as much. we'll see (trying to reduce sugar in
my diet).

what i like about it the most, not having to cook
jam on a hot day in the summer. that alone is worth it
but the flavor is so much better too.


songbird

On Wednesday, August 7, 2019 at 7:43:18 AM UTC-4, songbird wrote:
> A Moose in Love wrote:
> ...
> > I don't think I really know what freezer jam is. This jam can be and is frozen.
> > The jar I got was freshly made, and wasn't frozen. Is freezer jam made in a different way than regular?
>
> yes it is different as the fruit is not cooked. if you
> like lemon juice it really makes the bright notes of the
> strawberries stand out. i add extra lemon juice.
>
> the basic technique is simple, clean the fruits, mash
> some of them up and you can leave some larger chunks if
> you want them, i just mash it all up, measure out what
> is needed, add sugar, stir a bit and then leave it sit
> for about 10 minutes, by then most of the sugar has
> dissolved, you can stir it a bit at this point to get
> more of the sugar dissolved, i'm not that picky. then
> you add pectin and lemon juice and stir for a bit to
> make sure that is fully incorporated, then you can put
> it in containers and let them sit for a bit and then
> put them in the freezer or refridgerator. frozen it
> will keep a year or two (i seal the jars using budget
> canning lids that have been warmed up and then i put
> a ring on and tighten it well). you have to leave
> enough room in the jars for expansion during freezing
> but otherwise i don't have problems with the jars in
> the freezer.
>
> i usually use liquid pectin, it is fairly expensive
> so i may do something else in the future or just not
> make as much. we'll see (trying to reduce sugar in
> my diet).
>
> what i like about it the most, not having to cook
> jam on a hot day in the summer. that alone is worth it
> but the flavor is so much better too.
>
>
> songbird

My cousin cooks her fruit, but then the resulting jam is frozen. I don't know why. Maybe she doesn't use much pectin; would that make a difference?

A Moose in Love wrote:
....
> My cousin cooks her fruit, but then the resulting jam is frozen. I don't know why. Maybe she doesn't use much pectin; would that make a difference?

i'm not sure what she is doing or why there, but
perhaps that is just how she was taught. powdered
pectin is different than liquid pectin.

the recipe i use comes along with the liquid
pectin directions and is probably not hard to find
on-line. the only things i do different is add more
lemon juice, berries and sugar to make it less
firm so i get three pints per batch. if i wanted
it firmer i would stick to the recipe exactly and
get two and a half pints per batch.

i can eat a pint of it in a day or two - but all
that sugar is too much for my system these days -
i'm not used to it any more. i have tried the low
sugar pectins and didn't like the results as well
so now i just treat this stuff as a once in a while
treat and that is good enough.

when i had much larger patches of strawberries
here i could put up 50 pints in a week and still
have berries to give away or have others come pick.


songbird