Peach and Jalapeno Pepper Jam

This recipe makes 4 pints.

Prepare your jars and lids accordingly. If you have never made jam or jelly before, I suggest you read the Fresh Preserving site. You can find out all the information you need on canning. There are some important bits of information you need to know so that you can safely preserve food for your family.

Measure the lemon juice into a large bowl. Peel your peaches. As you peel each peach, slice the peach into thin slices. (I like big chunks of fruit in my jam so I just slice them up.) If you like your fruit cut finer, chop them up finely in a food processor. Don’t chop them too long or they will turn into a pulpy mess and you will end up with more of a jelly than a jam.

Slice one jalapeno and place a slice in the bottom of each jar. Cut the remaining jalapenos and chop them up finely in a food processor.

Use caution when chopping jalapenos or any hot pepper for that matter. Wear gloves while cutting them and hold the food processor away from your face when you remove the lid. I had a very bad experience some years ago.

Once you’re done peeling and slicing the peaches, pour them into a large deep pot. Add the sugar and add the peppers. Turn the stove on a medium low heat. Stir the fruit and sugar. Stay close to the pot and keep stirring from the bottom of the pot. As the sugar heats up and starts to melt, you want to stir it into the fruit. You also don’t want the dry sugar to burn at the bottom of the pot. It takes a bit of time for all of the sugar to melt into the peaches and juice.

Once the sugar has melted, turn the heat up to medium. Continue stirring periodically. As the mixture starts to boil, throw a tablespoon of butter or margarine in the pot. This helps cut down on the foam that settles on top of the fruit and sugar. As the mixture boils, if there is still a good amount of foam on top, add another tablespoon of butter or margarine.

Boil the peaches and sugar until the peaches get soft. Depending on your stove and the thickness of your peach slices, this could take 30 minutes or longer.

Keep a close eye on your pot as the mixture boils. Be sure that the mixture is not going to boil over.

Once the peaches are soft, open the pouch of liquid pectin and add it to the pot. Keep stirring. Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil. Start your timer for 1 minute and if the jam foams up and looks like it might overflow, carefully stir it down.

Keep the jam boiling for a full minute. Once your timer goes off, remove the pot from the hot burner. Skim any remaining foam from the top and fill your jars leaving a 1/4-inch head space.

Once you have filled all your jars, you will need to process this jam in a hot water bath. Please follow the directions on the box of liquid pectin for the processing time for your part of the country.