Apricot Orange Blossom Jam Recipes

APRICOT JAM

Steps:

• Mix apricots and lemon juice in a large pot; add sugar. Slowly bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cook and stir until apricot mixture thickens, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat and skim foam if necessary.
• Meanwhile, prepare jars, lids, and rings by cleaning and sterilizing in dishwasher or boiling water bath. Leave lids in simmering water until ready to seal jars.
• Ladle hot jam into hot sterilized jars, leaving about 1/4 inch of space on top. Run a knife or a thin spatula around the insides of the jars after they have been filled to remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims of the jars with a moist paper towel to remove any food residue. Top with lids and screw on rings.
• Place a rack in the bottom of a large stockpot and fill halfway with water. Bring to a boil, then carefully lower the jars into the pot using a holder. Leave a 2-inch space between the jars. Pour in more boiling water if necessary until the water level is at least 1 inch above the tops of the jars. Bring the water to a full boil, cover the pot, and process for 15 minutes.
• Remove the jars from the stockpot and place onto a cloth-covered or wood surface, several inches apart, until cool. Once cool, press the top of each lid with a finger, ensuring that the seal is tight (lid does not move up or down at all). Store in a cool, dark area.

APRICOT & ORANGE BLOSSOM JAM

Steps:

• Mix the apricots and sugar together, cover and leave to stand overnight.
• Put a saucer in the freezer. Tip the syrupy apricots into a preserving pan or a large, wide-based pan (the wider and more open the pan, the faster the jam will be ready, so a preserving pan is ideal). Add the lemon juice and place over a gentle heat. Once any last bits of sugar have melted, turn up the heat and boil for 15 mins. Turn off the heat and spoon a little hot syrupy jam onto the cold saucer. Once cool, push the jam with your finger. If it wrinkles a little, it's ready and has reached setting point. If it is too runny to wrinkle, return the pan to the heat and boil in stages of 2-3 mins, removing the pan from the heat each time you do the saucer check, until the jam wrinkles.
• Skim the surface, then stir in the orange blossom and knobs of butter, if you like - this will help to dissolve any remaining scum. Leave the jam for 15 mins before ladling into sterilised jars (see tip, below) - this allows the fruit to settle so it doesn't sink to the bottom. Will keep in the fridge for 6 weeks.

ORANGE-APRICOT JAM

Steps:

• Mix apricots, sugar, orange zest, and lemon juice in a very large pot. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally and skimming any scum off the top, until apricots look glassy and the liquid thickens, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Spoon the jam into 3 pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch of space at the top. Seal jars and let the jam cool to room temperature, 1 to 2 hours, before transferring to the refrigerator.

APRICOT ORANGE ALMOND JAM

Steps:

• Chop the apricots coarsly and put into a large bowl. Sprinkle-on the grated zest of the oranges and the cinnamon.
• Squeeze the juice of the oranges, measure and add enough water to make 6-cups total. Pour the liquid over the fruit, gently combine, and set out overnight in a cool place (not in the fridge).
• The next day, simmer the apricots in a heavy pan until fruit is nicely tender; 1 to 2 hours. Use a potato masher to crush fruit if desired. I like the apricots in larger chunks so I don't mash them.
• Add the sugar to the pan together with juice of the lemons and the almonds.
• Cook 'til sugar is melted, then fast-boil to a setting stage. (drip some on a plate, if a skin forms on top when cooled it's ready).
• Ladle into sterile jars, seal, and process in 10-min. water bath.