Apricot jam has been a staple in my family as long as I can remember because most of my family loves apricot anything. My kid, like my parents and sister, loves having it on pancakes, biscuits, toast, and waffles. I start by prepping all of my apricots at once so that my stove top is clear for the jamming and canning.

I started with the most recent edition of the United States Department of Agriculture canning book (pictured above), because I didn’t want my electronics to get sticky. I skipped right through the jellies and pickles and straight to the jams without pectin. The book suggested mashing the apricots, but I was feeling pushed for time, and running the apricots through the food processor worked beautifully for achieving the texture I was after.

Since I was pureeing the apricots in batches of 64oz, the lemon juice went in as it went around in the food processor, then I measured out four cups of puree and four cups of sugar into my stainless steel pan. After about 3o minutes of continuous stirring, the jam was ready for the jars.

I carefully ladled the hot jam into the jars, centered the lids, then added and finger-tightened the rings. A 10-minute trip (adjust for altitude) through the water bath was next, and then the jars were allowed to sit untouched as they cooled.

I labeled them the following day after checking the seals on the jars. This jam yields a soft set rather than a firm set like a store-bought jam. It scoops easily with a spoon and won’t tear up bread when it is spread.

All fruit used in these recipes are locally sourced (about 5 blocks from my house) or commercially grown. Fresh homegrown fruit should NEVER be transported from a quarantine area into or through a pest-free area as this can introduce destructive pests to local orchards, decimating crops and people’s livelihoods.