Pear Vanilla Jam Sweetened with Honey
A few years ago we had a hands-on jam canning class with Marisa McClellan of Food in Jars. This delightful Pear Vanilla Jam sweetened with honey was the result of that class. It’s perfect with yogurt, or spread on waffles – even by the spoonful!
If you haven’t swapped out sugar for honey in your jam making before, here are a couple tips to consider:
- Selecting Honey – When using honey instead of sugar it’s important to use a mild flavored honey with a delicate fruit, so the honey flavor does not overpower the natural flavor of the fruit.
- Enhancing Flavors – When pulling sweeteners out, it’s important to add in other flavors so that your jam doesn’t taste flat. In this recipe we used lemon and vanilla bean to build on the flavor of the pear.
Read more about honey sweetened preserves here.
This recipe calls for Pomona’s Pectin If you aren’t familiar with Pomona’s Pectin, it is a sugar-free, preservative-free, low-methoxyl citrus pectin that does not require sugar to jell. It enables you to make jams and jellies with little to no sugar, or by using alternative sweeteners such as honey.
We are sure you will enjoy this Pear Vanilla Jam sweetened with honey. If you try it, let us know and tag us!
- 6 pounds ripe thin skinned pears (like Bartlett or Bosc)
- 3 cups honey divided
- 2 vanilla beans split and scraped
- 2 lemons zested and juiced
- 2 tablespoons calcium water
- 2 tablespoons Pomona’s Pectin powder
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Prepare a boiling water bath canner and enough jars to hold 5-6 pints of jam (the yield varies depending on how much water the pears contain).
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Wash, core and chop pears. Place them in a low, wide pan and add 1/2 cup water, 2 cups honey, vanilla seeds and beans, the lemon zest and juice, and the calcium water. Stir to combine and place on the stove. Set the burner to medium-high heat and cover the pot.
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Cook the pears, stirring regularly, until they are soft. This should take 35-40 minutes.
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Once the pears are tender, grab a potato masher and break them down into a chunky sauce. Whisk the pectin powder into the remaining cup of honey. Bring the pears up to a simmer and stir in the pectin-spiked honey.
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Cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes, until the jam begins to thicken. Once it is thickening, remove the pan from the heat. Funnel jam into prepared jars. Wipe rims, apply lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes.
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When time is up, remove jars from canner and set them to cool on a folded kitchen towel.
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Sealed jars are shelf stable for up to a year.
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Unsealed jars should be refrigerated and eaten within 2-3 weeks.
You’ll note that this recipe calls for calcium water. Calcium water is a solution you make with water and the monocalcium phosphate powder (food-grade rock mineral source) that comes in its own packet with every purchase of Pomona’s Pectin. The Pomona’s Pectin directions tell you how to make calcium water with the calcium powder. Pomona’s Pectin recipes call for calcium water because the pectin is activated by calcium, not by sugar. For more information about calcium water, please visit the FAQ page of the Pomona’s Pectin website.
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What is Calcium water?
Hi Judy,
Calcium water is a solution you make with water and the monocalcium phosphate powder (food-grade rock mineral source) that comes in its own packet with every purchase of Pomona’s Pectin. The Pomona’s Pectin directions tell you how to make calcium water with the calcium powder. Pomona’s Pectin recipes call for calcium water because the pectin is activated by calcium, not by sugar. For more information about calcium water, please visit the FAQ page, Section 2, of the Pomona’s Pectin website.
Going to try this next year
Can you substitute the honey for granulated honey ?
Great question, Gail! Yes, you may substitute granulated honey for the honey.
Could you use regular pectin? If so – how much?
Hello Terry, Yes, you could use other pectin, as long as it doesn’t require sugar in order to make the set. I believe Ball used to have a “Flex” Pectin. We would recommend following the proportions indicated on those recipe instructions.