Blueberry & Lemon Verbena Jam Recipe
Blueberry & Lemon Verbena Jam
This weekend, I scored some lemon verbena from Chef Chashma of Pate Pastiche. I had some blueberries at home too and a recipe for a really nice looking jam recipe by Dorina Allen of Ballymaloe Cookery School.
Been really having fun with the nostalgic feeling of preserves and jam making this year, so this was the next one on my list.
Lemon Verbena is a beautiful smelling herb and this is the first time I’ve worked with it. I followed the directions in Dorina’s recipe and added rough chopped herb to the jam. It doesn’t work though…there’s chewy bits of verbena mixed through the jam and it’s not really nice. So I’ve altered the recipe and recommended you put the lemon verbena in a sachet. Or you could just scrap the fussy business and use lemon zest…if I make this again that’s what i’ll be doing…though verbena is a pretty word so it’s almost worth including it just to say it’s in there : )
Blueberry & Lemon Verbena Jam
(adapted from Darina Allen’s Forgotten Skills of Cooking)
If you can’t get lemon verbena, use lemon zest instead.
makes about 4 13-oz. jars
- 1kg (2½lb) firm blueberries (over-ripe won’t set)
- Juice of 3 lemons
- 50 lemon verbena leaves, roughly chopped and enclosed in a sachet OR just use The zest of 2 lemons
- 3 cups (600g) white sugar
1. Put a plate in the freezer to test your jam for doneness later on.
2. Put the blueberries in a tall, wide pot with enough room for the jam to boil up a bit.
3. Add the lemon juice, sachet of lemon verbena leaves (or lemon zest) and 300ml of water.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes to soften the fruit, release juices and activate the natural pectin.
5. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Boil until setting point is reached. To test setting point, take your plate out of the freezer, place a dollop of jam on the plate to cool it, and slowly run your finger through it. If the jam wrinkles even a little bit, it’s done. If not, keep cookin’.
6. Fill the jam into sterilized jars, cover and store in a cool, dry place.
Try it dabbed on ricotta with lemon on toast.
-Food Nerd Matt