Easy Cranberry Jam (fridge style) made in under half an hour! No pectin needed!
About this time of year, we envy our neighbors across the street for having this tree growing right in front of their house. Can you imagine waking up to a glow like this? It is the prettiest in the morning, when sun hits it in a particular angle to create a beautiful glow right underneath it.
This year, I managed to take a picture of this stunning tree. It was early in the morning when I sneaked in and snapped a few photos.
Today I am sharing them with you for two reasons. One – it’s simply beautiful. Two – it is losing it’s leaves as I type this. Soon it will be bare and we will have to wait till next Fall to see it again.
The colors of the leaves reminded me of cranberries. I love it’s deep orange and fire red.
I was inspired.
We still have over a week until Thanksgiving dinner, so to enjoy cranberries before that I decided to turn them into a jam we can have on a freshly baked bread every morning till then.
( Have you ever tried a raw cranberry? If not, you might want to. Just to know what it tastes like. )
No need to play the canning game here. It is a very easy recipe and you are just moments away from enjoying a tarty-sweet preserve yourself.
This jam is on the tarty side. You could add more sugar, but I just love the combo of flavors in this one.
As soon as the success on making the jam was declared, I knew what I wanted to reserve part of it for. Did I get you curious? Good. Then you will have to come back to see what I whipped up with my cranberry jam. 🙂
Cranberry Jam - easy to prepare and delicious to enjoy during the holidays! Made in under half an hour! No pectin needed.
- 12 oz pkg frozen cranberries
- 3/4 c sugar
- 3/4 c water
- 3 tsp lemon juice
- In a medium sauce pan, combine the rest of cranberries, sugar, water and lemon juice.
- Cook over medium heat until it boils. The cranberries will pop.
- Turn the heat down to a low setting and simmer the cranberries until the jam thickens. If you run a wooden spoon across the pot and you can see the bottom for at least 2 seconds, the jam is ready. It will thicken even more as it cools.
- Cool and pour into a jar.
- Keep covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
This jam is chunky, but if you prefer it smoother, you can place the cooled jam in a blender or a food processor and process until smooth.
The calorie amount is for the whole jar of jam.
Taylor Mains says
How many days or weeks will it stay good for
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
I would say at least a week. We love it and use it every day when I make a jar of it.
Maret says
How much does this recipe make in cups? What size jar is best to hold the entire recipe?
I’m also asking since I’d like to make a smaller batch to use in your Cranberry Orange Sour Cream Bars recipe which uses about 1/2 cup. I hesitate to make the entire recipe since it only lasts about one week, and I don’t eat that much jam (even though I’m sure I’d like this!). I have a frozen bag of cranberries ready and waiting! Thanks.
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Hi Maret! The recipe will make about 1,5 cups of the jam. The jar in the photo is Weck 9.8 oz. jar. If you use it to make the sour cream bars, you will have some leftover. If you don’t want any sitting in your fridge, divide the recipe in half. The bag of cranberries is usually 12 ounces, so use only 6. I hope this helps! Let me know how it goes!
CrunchyCreamySw says
I used 12oz. package of cranberries.
Donna says
Yes…Same question as Patty S…what size of package would be needed..in grams or ounces?..I am afraid the quantity of a typical U.S. package of cranberries might be different here in Europe?…This jam looks phenomenal!
CrunchyCreamySw says
I used a 12oz. package of cranberries. I just checked how many grams that is and it comes to 340 grams. Hope this helps!! I hope you will try this jam – it really is amazing!
Crunchy Creamy Sweet says
Hi Joan! Thank you so much for your comment. I love the idea of adding the jam to brownies! I will have to try that 🙂 Have a wonderful weekend.:) Enjoy the jam!
Joan says
Great recipe and the jam is a beautiful color. Next time I will add a bit more sugar. My jam is a bit tart. Sometimes when I make brownies I swirl in raspberry jam and I am going to try it tomorrow with the cranberry. Yummy!