Combine fresh strawberries with orange juice or orange liqueur and ground cardamom for a bright, tangy strawberry jam recipe.

Spring means it’s time to jump back into canning for another season. Big, red, beautiful strawberries have been on sale locally for the past few weeks. so I grabbed a few pounds (ok, more than a few) for snacking. But, as sometimes happens with early fruit, the berries looked better than they tasted. Which led me to jam. First I made a batch of Strawberry Cabernet Black Pepper Jam from my Water Bath Canning Cookbook. That was so delicious that I was tempted to create this similar, but lighter jam. You can use Grand Marnier or Triple Sec or another orange liqueur, or orange juice here. But do add the ground cardamom too. Both additions enhance the strawberry taste.

Strawberry Orange Jam

Combine strawberries with orange liqueur or orange juice and ground cardamom for a bright, tangy springtime soft spread.

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Servings: 4 half-pint jars

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 2 pounds fresh strawberries cleaned and hulled
• 3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup bottled lemon juice
• 1/4 cup Grand Marnier or orange juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

Method

 

1. Place strawberries in an 8 quart Dutch oven or pot. Mash with a potato masher.

   Note: if berries are too hard to mash, add 1/4 cup water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and gently cook until berries are soft. Watch closely so berries to not burn.
2. Add sugar, lemon juice, orange juice or liqueur, and cardamom.
3. Stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.
4. Turn heat up to medium high and cook rapidly, stirring often to prevent scorching, until the mixture reaches the gelling point.

   Note: Gelling point can be checked one of three ways: Either cook until the mixture reaches 8 degrees above the boiling point of water (usually this will be 220 degrees but you should check your thermometer and the boiling point beforehand). Or place a glass plate in the freezer for at least 5 minutes. Drop a spoonful of the hot mixture onto the plate and draw a line through it. If it remains separated it is at the gelling point. Or lift a metal spoonful of jam out of the cooking pot. If the mixture falls off the spoon in a sheet, it is at the gelling point.
5. Ladle set jam into 4 clean half-pint jars leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Top with two piece lids and rings and process in a water bath for 15 minutes. Don't forget to adjust for altitude if you are more than 1000 feet above sea level.

Want even more strawberry jam recipes?

Strawberry Mango Jam with Lime

15 Ways to Make Strawberry Jam