Lavender Grape Jam
By Monica Shallow β’ January 11, 2024
Part of the fun of ordering a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) box is getting to try new produce we wouldnβt ordinarily think to buy at the grocery store. At the same time, the challenge of getting a box of produce we are not accustomed to eating and cooking with is figuring out how to use it. That was just the case last week when a pound of Jam Grapes was delivered, along with a bunch of other beautiful fruit and vegetables.Β I was not familiar with Jam Grapes and had to Google them. Theyβre really pretty β petite, deep dark purple, almost black grapes, and so sweet. Easily a dessert all on its own.
Lavender and grapes – the perfect match!
Of course, I wanted to see how Jam Grapes would pair with lavender. Disclaimer – I am in no way a jam or jelly expert, and I have next to no experience with canning, but I am usually up for an experiment.
Hereβs what I did:
Lavender Grape Jam
Delicious on toast,Β scones, or part of a charcuterie board.
Ingredients
- 1 pound of Jam Grapes (approximately 3 Β½ cups), washed
- 1 Β½Β cups of Lavender Sugar (recipe here)
Directions
- Place grapes and Lavender Sugar in a pot and place over low heat; bring to a low boil.
- Crush grapes, mixing in the Lavender Sugar at the same time until combined. I used a meat and potato masher tool like this.
- Continue to cook, keeping a low boil, for about 12-15 minutes.
- I chose to remove the seeds I could see at this stage.*
- Pour into mason jars. I used these.
*Seeds can be removed before cooking, but I found it to be pretty easy to scoop the seeds out with a spoon after cooking the mixture down a bit. The grapes are βseedlessβ but still have small seeds.
Full disclosure, I took my jam off the stove and put it into jars, and then was not quite happy that there was more liquid than I wanted. I waited for it to set a bit, but it still didnβt set up as much as I had hoped.Β So, I put it back on the stove to cook it down a little more for the consistency I was looking for. In total, I cooked the mixture for approximately 15-17 minutes.
So, how did it turn out?
It was fantastic! 10/10, definitely recommend. The lavender notes are subtle, and a nice compliment to the sweetness of the grapes.Β
Let me know if you try it.
With Love & Lavender,