5 Minute Raspberry Jam

Isaiah, Nancy, and I spent a wonderful afternoon picking raspberries at a local berry farm. They were only 2 dollars a pound!! I found the farm on u pick a great website that has a list of different farms that sell their produce already picked, or you can pick your own fruit and save a lot of money. Not to mention it is the freshest you will get it, and most times organic.

Isaiah probably ate a pound of berries himself, "helping" mommy pick them. If you haven't tried a u pick, you should it is a lot of fun, and good for kids to understand how food is grown. With a couple of the pounds I picked I decided to make jam. This has been my go to recipe for jam because it takes 5 minutes and you don't have to cook it preserving the nutrients of the fruit. The jam also has more flavor because it hasn't been cooked out.

My secret weapon to make the quickest jam possible, ultra gel. If you have not heard of ultra gel it will soon become your best friend in the kitchen. The reason I like ultra gel for making jam is the obvious it takes five minutes.

What I like about ultra gel:

• It doesn't require cooking to thicken whatever you are making


• You don't have to make a slurry to add it to soups, or other things


• It has no taste


• It is gluten free


• It will keep whip cream from separating


• You can make ranch dressing without the mayonnaise, or with a lot less for a thicker dressing


• You can add it to ice creams that are lower fat and they won't crystallize

Wow this sounds like a paid advertisement or commercial. Which I assure you no one is paying me to use their products, not that I would mind that. But I just had to let you in on my little secret to 5 minute jam.

Five Minute Raspberry Jam

Printable Recipe

4 Cups Raspberries

1 C agave

1 1/2 C sugar

1/2 C ultra gel

2 T lemon juice ( I added a little more, because I like it a little tart)

Mash the raspberries, agave, lemon juice, and sugar. Gradually stir in the ultra gel. It will start to thicken immediately. Package, label, and date. Store in freezer for six months.

**Next time I will try all agave, truthfully I ran out, and I was worried about the consistency

**I have used this recipe with strawberries and it is equally good, but I cut out a half cup of sugar because strawberries are sweeter