Updated March 2023
Linda Ziedrich, our guest blogger, is sharing her blueberry-rhubarb jam recipe. Linda is a Master Gardener and a Master Food Preserver and the author of The Joy of Jams, Jellies, and Other Sweet Preserves, and The Joy of Pickling.
In jams, pies, cobblers, and other sweet treats, rhubarb routinely gets paired with strawberries, for good reasons: Rhubarb and strawberries tend to reach the peak of their seasons together, and strawberries disguise the often lackluster color of rhubarb.
But what if your rhubarb provides stems ready for harvest long before the first strawberries ripen? In this case you can make lovely jam with rhubarb alone, even if the stems are grass-green.
Here’s another idea: Check whether bags of last year’s blueberries are lurking among the pork chops and pesto in your freezer. If so, it’s time to put those berries to use.
In the jam pot, blueberries from the freezer pair well with the first of the season’s rhubarb. The rhubarb takes on the deep-blue color of the berries, lends an interesting texture, and balances the berries’ high pectin content so you can use minimal sugar and yet avoid a tough jell.
To eliminate the unpleasant fibrousness of cooked blueberries, heat the berries separately and then press them through a food mill. The result will be a lusciously soft, dark jam that seems the essence of blueberry until you notice the tart yet subtle background note of rhubarb.
Supposing no blueberries turn up in your freezer, wait a few weeks. With adequate watering, your rhubarb will still be going strong when the first blueberries ripen.
Skim the foam from the jam, and ladle the jam into six sterilized half-pint mason jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Close the jars, and process them for 5 minutes in a boiling-water bath.
If you want more rhubarb recipes, read this post.
Here are a few more recipes to keep your jam pot busy year round: (none of these recipes require added pectin.)
Mixed Berry Jam from the Freezer
Triple Crown Blackberry Jam
Pommé (Breton Apple Butter)
Paradise Jelly
Can’t wait to try the blackberry jam! If my thorn-less blackberries aren’t producing enough yet, we’ll just head to CherryHill!
This recipe is fantastic! It turned out wonderfully. I made a double batch and it took a long time to come to temp, but that was on me. I also added a small amount of cassis liqueur at the end and it was delicious. This will last us a long time and with the amount of rhubarb we get, it will be made again!