Do you want to give your guests a sweet treat that doesn’t cost the earth? Of course you do! Jam is a fun edible wedding favour that you can make at home, which gives you wedding reception a homemade, rustic feel.
In recent years, offering homemade goodies as edible wedding favours has become incredibly fashionable. Not only does it give real brides the chance to DIY their details but it also enables them to save money, too!
Even though the ingredients list is simple, making jam requires precision timing. Before you start, think about what fruit you’d like to use. You could create a jam out of national favourites like strawberries, blackcurrants and raspberries or you could create something more adventurous and offer up a chilli chutney for a spicy kick!
Preserves last for months if the jar being used has been sterilised properly. To prepare the glass jar for your edible wedding favour, you will first want to buy a good clip-top mason jar or metal spin-top jars, such as a Bonne Maman, which is the most popular jar for preserves. Wash the jar in hot soapy water before rinsing and leave it to drip dry, upside down, in an oven set to around 100 degrees Celsius. The combination of wet and dry heat will ensure that your jar is fully sterilised and ready to keep its contents preserved for as long as the ingredients allow.
You can personalise your edible wedding favours easily with your name and wedding date, or perhaps a funky little sticker with a personalised message. Some brown string will secure a cloth top and give the favour an authentic homemade look.
How to make jam for your wedding favours
Ingredients
- 1kg /2lb 3oz strawberries
- 1kg/2lb 3oz granulated sugar or caster sugar
- ½ lemon, juice only
- Small knob of butter
Instructions
- The day before you wish to make the jam, hull and halve the strawberries. Check for soft spots (which must be removed) and discard any berries with bruises or that are overripe.
- Place the strawberries into a large bowl with 500g/18oz of the sugar. Turn carefully to mix and coat well, then cover with cling film and place into the fridge overnight.
- The next day, place a saucer into the freezer to chill – you’ll need this when you come to test the setting point of the jam.
- Sterilise the jam jars – first wash the jars in soapy water and rinse in clean warm water. Allow them to drip dry, upside down, on a rack in the oven set to 140C/275F/Gas 1. Leave them there for at least half an hour while you make the jam.
- Pour the strawberries, their juice and any residual sugary juices into a very large pan or preserving pan, remembering that the mixture will rise as it boils, and add the remaining 500g/18oz sugar and the lemon juice.
- Stir over a gentle heat until the sugar has completely dissolved.
- Bring the strawberries up to the boil then boil hard until the jam reaches setting point. Check the setting point every ten minutes, although it may take up to half an hour to reach setting point.
- To test the setting point, remove the pan from the heat. Take your saucer from the freezer and place a drop of jam onto the cold plate. After a few seconds push the jam with your finger.
- If the jam surface wrinkles then it has reached setting point and is ready. If it slides about as a liquid, then it hasn’t reached setting point and should be returned to the heat and boiled for a few more minutes before testing again.
- When setting point has been reached, turn off the heat and let the jam cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Stir in the butter and skim off any scum on the surface of the jam with a large spoon.
Recipe taken from the BBC food website.
This article was written by Holly Powell, a lover of jam and all things sweet! She is currently writing for Wares of Knutsford, a household and hardware emporium.
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