I got a giant quart of blueberries at the farmer's market Tuesday for $5.00, so I knew I HAD to try making this. Making the deal even sweeter is that my lavender plant went wild this year since it's been so dry and hot. I trimmed a few stems off my plant and minced the fresh buds for this jam. Not only did they make the jam mind-blowing, but they made my hands smell lovely. If you don't have your own lavender growing, I don't know where you could buy fresh buds. But, you could probably just find an organic lavender tea (I love Traditional Medicinals) and soak the buds in a little water to re-hydrate them. Though, I don't know if it would be quite the same. Maybe I'll try that next time just to see how it would work.
You should know up front that this is not a shelf-stable jam. You must either eat it within a couple weeks, or freeze it. We actually ate half of it this morning on some biscuits, so I know it won't even have a chance to spoil at my house.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pints (3/4 of a quart) fresh blueberries
- 1/3 cup plus 1-2 TB organic agave nectar
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt (or sea salt)
- 1 1/4 tsp fresh lavender buds, minced
- Bring all ingredients to a boil in a large pot over a medium-high heat. Let boil 2-3 minutes, then change heat to medium-low.
- Use a big fork or a potato masher to smoosh your berries after they've been cooking a few minutes. Let the mix slow boil/simmer for 25-30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. It'll get a "skin" over it when it's done.
- Remove the pot from the burner and very carefully ladle or pour the hot jam into a jar that can be sealed airtight. I used a couple tiny Mason/Ball jars for mine. The jam will seem a bit runny, but it will thicken considerably as it cools. Leave the jars out on a cooling rack for about an hour.
- Then put the lids on and pop the jar(s) into the fridge to cool at for at least a couple of hours. Mine set overnight in the fridge and was perfect today.
