Monday, March 29, 2010

Crock-Pot Dried Apricot Jam



From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I have a huge store of dried apricots in the pantry. I used a dehydrator for the first time last summer and my over zealous experimentation led to storing far more of the fruit than I could sensibly use. To make matters worse, I forgot the fruit was stored and didn't find it until I began to clean the pantry today. The apricots still retained their color, so I decided to use them to make some jam and a glaze for tarts that I'll be baking later in the week. I have a crock-pot recipe that uses dried apricots to make jam. The recipe is really easy and the only trick is cooking the jam to the consistency you want. No pectin is used in this recipe because apricots are high pectin fruits and the jam will "set" of its own accord if you cook it long enough. If the jam will be kept in your pantry, make sure you sterilize the jars and caps you plan to use for storage. I actually prefer frozen jams, so I bypass that step and make quick work of the very few steps needed to make these beautiful preserves. The frozen preserves retain a lovely amber glow that is muddied in the sterilization process. I can't over emphasize how important it is to cut or shred the fruit into small pieces. Whole apricots are neither attractive or spreadable. They are actually too large to be used to make either jam or preserves. For those who may not know the distinction between jellies, jams and preserves, I have a super short primer. A jelly is made from fruit juice and has no trace of fruit in it. Jam is made by boiling bits of fruit and preserves are basically the same as jam except chunks of fruit are used. The fresh jam will keep in the refrigetor for up to a month and it can be safely frozen for up to a year. If you wish, small amounts or herbs or spices can be added to the completed jam. Here's the base recipe.

Crock-Pot Apricot Jam...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1-1/4 pound dried apricots
2 cups sugar
3-1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1) Chop apricots finely using a knife or food processor. Place in a 3-1/2 quart crockpot with sugar and water and stir to combine. Cover slow cooker and cook on high for 2-1/2 hours, stirring twice during cooking. Uncover and add lemon juice and salt> Cover again and cook on high 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
2) Ladle preserves into clean, hot jam jars, seal tightly, and keep refrigerated up to 1 month. You can process the jars in a boiling water bath if desired, but follow instructions from your county extension agent carefully. The jam can also be frozen, Yield: 4 to 6 pint jars.

You might also enjoy these recipes:

Pumpkin Butter - One Perfect Bite
Tomato Jam - One Perfect Bite
Popovers and Strawberry Butter - One Perfect Bite


This recipe is also being linked to:

Crock Pot Wednesday - Dining with Debbie

55 comments :

Martha said...

I'll have to file this one away. I like making small batch jams and marmalades. They're fresher, I think, than the processed variety.

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

Sounds delish! Now send me some of those dried apricots so I can make it LOL!! :)

Have a great week!

♥ Kathy said...

Oh yum! I'm going to try this!

Annesphamily said...

Sounds yummy!

Debbi Does Dinner Healthy said...

This looks fantastic! I love using the crockpot and I love apricot jam so this seems to be a winner, thanks!

Unknown said...

How delicious to have jam made from your own dried apricots. I bet it tastes fantastic!

MaryMoh said...

That's perfect jam! I would love to try it. Thanks for sharing.

Cherine said...

sounds delicious! great job :)

Rue said...

Apricot is hands-down my favourite jam! Now I can make it year-round with dried apricots - thanks!

Coleens Recipes said...

What a FUN recipe!! I think I'll give it a try but I'm thinking about putting the apricots through the food grinder to make sure there aren't any large pieces...thank you for sharing!!

Ana Powell said...

I have never made jams with dried fruit and loved yours.
Delicious x

Anna said...

Hi Mary! first of all, thanks a lot for commenting on my blog. It's really a pleasure to know peolpe like you. I Browsed by your recipes and they look so creative, genuine and delicious, just what I like! I would like to follow you, so I will come again in your blog...

a presto! Anna

Allie and Pattie said...

I do a lot of canning, but have never tried making my preserves in a crockpot. I love this idea! Thank you Mary
xoxo Pattie

Penny said...

It is always nice to have recipes that can be prepared in the crock pot. I would like to try a jam. Thanks for the great idea. Your jam looks so vibrant.

Kristen said...

Who knew the crockpot was so handy?!! I usually make apricot jam from fresh fruit, but this would be a great idea for the winter months. Dried apricots are one of my favorite snacks. I will definitely have to try this.

Cathy said...

The color of this jam is beautiful, so fresh and vibrant. Apricot is my favorite topping for toast and biscuits and I love to glaze tarts with it. Thanks for the recipe, Mary.

Janice said...

Oh I just adore apricot jam, Mary. I don't have a slow cooker anymore so your recipe wouldn't be much good for me. I don't know about not having the big chunks though, when I was a child we used to get apricot jam that came in a tin that you had to open with a tin opener, it was ultra delicious and had whole or half apricots in it. Given half a chance, and my mum looking the other way, I would eat it with a spoon straight from the tin!

Joe Ambrosino said...

Hi Mary,
I don't think we have "county extension agents" in New York City,but I have always wanted to try my hand at home made preserves. Does one always use dried fruit in apricot preserves?

Hootin Anni said...

so simple, so luscious, and so wonderful a taste!!

black eyed susans kitchen said...

Mary, When I was a little girl, I would visit with my grandparents for a few weeks during the summer. One of my favorite treats was a dish of vanilla ice cream with apricot jam on it...delicious! Your post just reminded me of those wonderful times.
♥, Susan

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

This is good to have it with toast, simply delicious!

Deana Sidney said...

Great idea! One of my favorite things is Sally Darr's apricot souffle from her wonderful NYC restaurant
La tulipe that has been gone now for many years... you can find it online and you will love it!!!

Lori said...

Its good to know Mary that I am not the only one that over does it on summer fruit storage.

This looks delish!

Katie @ Cozydelicious said...

Yum! I adore making jam but have never used my slow cooker - what a great idea! I bet this would work well with other dried fruits too. I'm wondering about using dried mango... we'll see. Thank you!

Kelly said...

Finding your blog today made my Monday a bit brighter...thanks.

Mary Bergfeld said...

Deana, I took a look at the recipe and it really does look fantastic. Thanks for pointing me to it. Mary

sweetlife said...

crock pot jam..how wonderful--looks very tasty


sweetlife

The Blonde Duck said...

I didn't know you could make jam in a crock pot!

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

growing up, we had a shared apricot tree with a neighbor.... SOOO many apricots, but no dehydrator back then. So we ate everything in a month... got really tired of them

Mary said...

Love you sight,
Man, you take beautiful photos. Any secrets you would like to share? Just out of curiousity, how did you find my site?

Mary

Maria said...

I love that you made it in the crock pot!

Andreas said...

Interesting approach to jam-making.
Thanks for bringing it up.

Sue said...

I love any use of a crock pot....now where do I find that much dried apricots?.....and if you can figure out how to dry fruit then you certainly can melt some chocolate in the microwave and pour it into a mold....You give me too much credit!!

Barbara said...

This looks beautiful! What a great idea for jam and such an innovative way to make it!

DailyChef said...

This looks fantastic. Impressive how you can turn anything in your pantry into something delicious! I will try this soon--first attempt to make jam!

LittleRed said...

I will have to mark this to try for later! I just love apricots and am in fact using up my last two jars of apricot syrup and was just the other day thinking about spreading some on some toast. This will be much better for that. Thanks for sharing:)

Joanne said...

This looks delicious! I love jams. DO you think this could be done with any dried fruit?

Kim said...

What a fun recipe Mary! Not only did I learn that I can use dried fruit to make jam, I also learned that i can use my crock pot. I love this post:D

Mary Bergfeld said...

Joanne, you could BUT most fruit will need added pectin and the sugar amount will be different because of that.

tasteofbeirut said...

How funny! I have had these apricots in the pantry too and wondering what I should do with them! I actually made a jam last summer "solar-powered"; I am so glad I found your recipe! To keep for use later!

Krista said...

What a wonderful recipe! I have a apple butter recipe for the crock pot that I love, but I didn't know that I could use up my leftover dried apricots this way. Every year my grandma sends dried apricots from the Salvation Army Women's Auxillary sale. Next year, I know what I'll do with them. Thank you!

Megan said...

Great post Mary! I'm going to have to give this a try!Bookmarked and Stumbled!

Diana's Cocina said...

Sounds delish! I can see myself with this Apricot Jam and a plate of scones.

Ms. Meanie said...

What a great idea to make jam in a crock pot. I never thought of that.

The Fajdich Times said...

Mary this looks fabulous. I have printed the recipe and I can't wait to try it:)

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for linking up to Crock Pot Wednesday. This jam looks delicious - great color. I have a recipe for apricot jam that thyme - maybe rosemary-I will have to find that. I do remember that it was delicious served with lamb. Are you feeling better?

Katy ~ said...

Excellent! I love to see these kinds of recipes. I wish I were more disciplined to do it. Cool about the food dehydrator.

Tuty @Scentofspice said...

Mary,
Thank you for a wonderful recipe. Now, whenever someone asks me about the difference of jam, jelly, and preserves, I will just direct her/him to this post :)

Melynda@Scratch Made Food! said...

What a great recipe, thanks.

Unknown said...

I'm looking forward to seeing you back at Crock Pot Wednesday this week. Thanks for linking up last week and entering the giveaway.

Victoria said...

Wow that looks amazing. I tend to use my crockpot several days in a row and then forget about it! I am going to try your jam recipe for sure.

Momof3 said...

Can this recipe be used with fresh fruit?

Anonymous said...

I've been eyeing some dried apricots that a local fruit & nut company sells very reasonably. Thank you for this recipe as this jam will end up under quite a few trees. I will be adding some finely minced chile peppers when cooking the jam. It will probably be habaneros 'cuz of the color. Or maybe a combination of minced red bell pepper and jalapeno. We'll see what looks best at the store. Am also delighted to find another use for my crockpot! THX! Tricia

Hayle said...

The apricot jam looks DELICIOUS! I'm currently addicted to dried apricots so I've GOT to try this one! Thanks for sharing, I'm following you now! :)

Virginia Taylors said...

Do you think you could make the apricot crock pot jam with fresh apricots?

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